About the Apparelyzed Website and Creator

When was the site started?

Apparelyzed was initially created in August 2003 as a project to promote disability awareness using disability images, to be displayed on apparel by the disabled community (hence the name, Apparelyzed!). Although the design project has ended, the site has since grown organically into something larger, and now covers Spinal Cord Injury Anatomy, a spinal cord injury discussion forum, SCI Research area as well as a carefully picked links directory.

Who funds the site?

As Apparelyzed is a non-commercial website, it receives no grants, advertising revenue or third party finance to fund its ongoing costs, it's felt the site is more impartial than other sites, and is able to give an unbiased opinion on all aspects surrounding spinal cord injuries. All the costs are met by myself, a bit like an out of control hobby!

About the site owner

Simon, that’s me, the site creator of Apparelyzed is a C5/6 Quadriplegic, who was a front seat passenger injured in a road traffic accident in January 1992. The accident resulted in a burst fracture of C5, resulting in complete motor paralysis below C5/6, with sensory sparing. I am now classed in medical terms a Quadraplegic, as my paralysis affects both my arms, hands and legs. Road traffic accidents are now the most common cause of people suffering a spinal injury and becoming a Paraplegic or Quadraplegic.

Following the accident I was admitted to the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham, and transfered 3 days later to Lodge Moore Spinal Unit in Sheffield. I then spent 12 months in rehabilitation and returned home on the 24th December 1992. Whilst in hospital I met a nurse called Karen, and in 1995 we were married, in 1999 we had our daughter Charlotte.

The Spinal Injury Forum

As the site has grown, the discussion forum has now become the main focus of the website. The forum is a central focal point for anyone with a spinal cord injury, their friends, family members and carers. The forum covers every aspect of living with a spinal cord injury, and enjoys opinions and exchanges of ideas for those living with a spinal cord injury.

Joining the forum is free, and registered members can access aditional facilities such as a live chat room, and the ability to contact other members for private discussions.

The forum is moderated daily, to ensure healthy discussion, to remove unsolicited advertising, and to remove posts which are posted for the sole purpose of provoking offence.

The forum enjoys a wide cross section of members, and has a worldwide community, in 2011, the membership stood at over 15,000 members, who have contributed nearly 250,000 public viewable posts. Every day, the site recieves around 6,000 visitors looking for information on spinal cord injury related subjects.

The UK Spinal Center Forum and Directory

The UK Spinal Center Forum and Directory was created following a stay in hospital, as after talking to people, it became apparent there was no resource available for ex-spinal patients to keep in touch once they had been discharged. When a person suffers a spinal cord injury, they usually spend many months in acute and rehabilitation stages of recovery, usually in the same spinal center. As a result, the unit becomes a second home for many patients and their families, whilst rehabilitation and treatment takes place.

Over these months, a community develops within the spinal unit, which can become very close knit, and many friends are made over the duration as an inpatient. Of course, once the patient leaves the spinal unit to carry on with their own lives, they generally lose contact with the many friends they made in their spinal unit.

I therefore thought it would be a great idea if there was a central resource for all Spinal Centers in the UK for patients and friends, past and present to contact each other. Maybe you are wondering what ever happened to friends you made in the units you were in, well, post a request, or a little about yourself and you may get back in touch with friends old and new.

The support forum has now grown into one of the most active discussion forums dedicated to spinal cord injuries on the internet worldwide.

Talk to us

If you wish to discuss any aspects of this website or Spinal Cord Injuries, please email me at contact@apparelyzed.com

Thankyou