Hello, my name is Timothy Ward. On November 13th of 2008 I was in a serious motor vehicle accident which rendered me a C5 complete tetraplegic. After the accident I spent five weeks in the Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney, Australia then flew home to Christchurch, New Zealand and spent seven months in the Burwood Spinal…

Caused by disruption or injury to the spinal cord between C1 and C7 quadriplegia, also known as tetraplegia in Europe, is a traumatic life changing event. I’m Graham, founder of the Mad Spaz Club. At 24 I knew little about quadriplegia, that was all about to change. Lying in a hospital bed I remember thinking of all the things I’d never…

It Was Mothers Day. I was meant to go and see Mum but we decided to go bush bashing first. My boyfriend and I were in the back of a 4 wheel drive. It was fun for a while then things got out of hand. The last thing I remember was my boyfriend yelling at the driver to slow down. I woke up in hospital a C5 paraplegic. I knew things were serious as my parents were really upset. They told me I’d never be able to walk again. I have some use of my arms and hands though need a carer to help me shower.

Two Certain Things About Being a Gimp:

Each of us wonders how or why it had to happen to us.
If you haven’t experienced it, you will probably never fully understand what it’s all about.

 
For me it happened gradually and nobody connected the dots. In my 30’s I was on “the rack” to stretch my spine. The…

Janine Shepherd was a 24 year old cross country skier in training for the winter Olympics when her life took a dramatic turn in 1986, hit by a truck while training in the Blue Mountains. Janine suffered terrible spinal cord injuries breaking her neck and back. Doctors and family feared she would not survive. Her incredible…