Year 10 pupil, Philippa, has made it her mission to raise funds to enable the purchase of 100 ‘Scoliosis’ braces for Sheffield Children’s Hospital.
After a personal struggle with Scoliosis, Philippa feels compelled to give back to the people who helped her. Read Philippa’s story, below.
Philippa’s Story
“My name is Philippa Walker, I'm 15 years old and I live in Sheffield. I was diagnosed with Scoliosis when I was 11, but recently after looking back over old photos, I realised I had it from the age of five.
So, what is Scoliosis? It is a medical condition where the spine twists and curves to the side. So many people are misinformed about Scoliosis. It is not just your spine that is affected, it is also your breathing, heart, neck, walking and the ability to do anything.
Before I was diagnosed, I did a breathing exercise in my singing lesson which involved bending over. That was when we noticed I had a hump on my back.
In summer 2018, I stopped growing, meaning I could come out of my brace. My curvature was 36, now it is only 20 degrees. This is a great result because the brace was only to stop it from getting worse. You can hardly tell that I have Scoliosis now.
I am fundraising because I would like to say thank you to the Sheffield Children’s Hospital and support their funds by raising £160,000 to go towards 100 Scoliosis braces (plus consultations).”
Philippa has been on a quest to spread the word about her fundraising mission, appearing on ITV Calendar News, BBC Look North and Radio Sheffield.
She has even created videos over on her Youtube channel to show her life ‘Living with Scoliosis’ and to educate on ‘How do you check for Scoliosis?’, which the Educational Authorities are sending out to schools, advising parents how to check their children’s backs.
To show your support for Philippa’s cause and to read her full story, visit her JustGiving page HERE.