Back in 2016 I suffered a spinal cord injury. But what is a spinal cord injury and how does this affect my body? Spinal cord injuries also known as SCI can happen to anyone at anytime. if your interested in knowing more carry on reading because in this post I will be talking to you about everything you need to know about this percific injury.

So there are 2 types of spinal cord injuries. There is an incomplete and a complete. I have an incomplete spinal injury. But you want to know the difference right? Well an in complete spinal cord injury is where the spine gets damaged but its not broken. When my spinal injury happened the nerves signals that travelled from my brain to my spine was effect due to my brain stem putting pressure on my spinal cord. This then created swelling. Although it didn’t break, this is still class as a brain / spinal injury.

On the spinal called there are different levels that affect the different parts of your body. Cervical (C1–C8) — neck region

• Injuries here can affect the arms, hands, trunk, and legs.
• Higher cervical injuries (especially C1–C4) may affect breathing and require ventilatory support.

Thoracic (T1–T12) — upper and mid-back region

• Often affects the trunk and legs (paraplegia), while arm function is usually preserved.

Lumbar (L1–L5) — lower back region

• Can affect the hips and legs, with varying effects on walking and sensation.

Sacral (S1–S5) — pelvic region

• May affect bowel, bladder, sexual function, and some leg/foot functions.

Coccygeal (Co1) — tailbone region

There are also different terms to describe how your body is affected.

Tetraplegia (also called quadriplegia)

• “Tetra” = four (refers to the four limbs: both arms and both legs)
• Caused by an injury to the cervical spinal cord (C1–C8, neck area)
• Affects:
  • Arms
  • Hands
  • Trunk
  • Legs
  • Often bowel, bladder, and sexual function

The amount of function depends on the injury level:

• High cervical injury (C1–C4): May affect breathing and often causes very limited arm/hand movement.
• Lower cervical injury (C5–C8): More arm and hand function may be preserved.

These are how different types of paralysis effects the parts of your body

Paraplegia

• “Para” = lower half
• Caused by an injury to the thoracic (T1–T12), lumbar (L1–L5), or sacral (S1–S5) spinal cord
• Affects:
  • Legs
  • Lower trunk (depending on level)
• Arms and hands are usually unaffected.

Examples:

• T1–T6 injury: Usually affects the trunk and legs; may affect sitting balance and abdominal muscles.
• T7–T12 injury: More trunk control is often preserved.
• Lumbar injuries: May allow some leg movement and walking ability depending on the level.

Quadriplegia (also called tetraplegia) is paralysis affecting all four limbs—both arms and legs—and typically the torso. It is usually caused by damage or a spinal cord injury in the neck (cervical spine), but can also result from conditions like cerebral palsy. 

Simple way to remember:

• Cervical injury → Tetraplegia/Quadriplegia → arms + legs affected
• Below the neck (thoracic/lumbar/sacral) → Paraplegia → mainly legs affected

I am a quadriplegia as my injury has effect all of my 4 limbs. My arms, my trunk. my legs and even my breathing. Like me some people can even get a tracheostomy but I will taik about all this in a separate post.

Ive been able to feel ever since I became injured. All spinal cord injuries are different. Some people can feel and other people can’t. My sensations completely normal just like before. I never felt numb or in pain. My body just felt really heavy like I always felt like I could move but I never had the strength to do it. It was just a very weird feeling. But all of a sudden due to intensive physio therapy my movement just started to come back. It was very slow at first But the more I worked out the more stronger I became.

At the start of my injury coming home from a year and a half away was very hard. I couldn’t breathe on my own, I was ventilated 23/7 I isolated myself for 4 years as I was just too embarrassed to go outside in my wheelchair. I would go to school come home and that was it. Ir was so hard to even get me out the house. But then after covid hit I found my passion for concerts and music. It helped me heal so much. Since 2023 I’ve been buying tickets and it’s the best thing I’ve ever done.

If your like me and also suffered a spinal injury just keep going your stronger than you think. I mean look at me. I was paralysed from the shoulders down I couldn’t even lift my head up and now im standing. I know how difficult the first few years of your injury but I promise you it does get better. Keep fighting keep going you’ve got this.