One of the most dedicated musicians at King Edward’s School in Bath, Georgia Gale in Year 7, undertook an amazing fundraising initiative, raising over £5,000 in a weekend by undertaking a ten-hour Drumathon on Scoliosis Awareness Day (24 June) , on behalf of Scoliosis Awareness UK and The British Scoliosis Research Foundation.
“I found out I had scoliosis when I was 9,” explains Georgia. “I never knew what it was until the doctors told me about it. It is where the spine has a curve in it and for me I have two curves so my spine looks like an ‘S’.
“The doctor talked about back braces and recommended I wear one. The idea was that the back brace could prevent my curve from worsening so that I wouldn’t need surgery.
“I’ve had four different back braces over the past three years. They are uncomfortable to wear and I have to wear it for 18 hours a day. I still do lots of sport and my favourite thing to do is drumming!
“After about two years of wearing the back brace, my curve progressed significantly in a short space of time due to a huge growth spurt – it went from 50 to 70 degrees in only four months. This meant that surgery was the right option and I’m now having my surgery in late July.
“My surgeon told me all about the surgery and the risks, including paralysis, and I was scared. Surgery was never something I thought of or something people talked about often, making it even more frightening.
“During surgery they fuse my vertebrae and insert metal rods, lengthening and straightening my spine. I will need to build up having the energy and strength to stand up by myself, walk upstairs and sit for a long space of time. My surgeon told me it will feel very strange at first. I hope that I’ll be back to doing sport after a year but I’ll need to learn to move differently as my spine won’t bend like before.
“I have been drumming for four and a half years, it’s my favourite thing to do! I’m currently doing my Grade 6 and am going to do my exam in the summer before my surgery because I won’t be able to drum for quite a while afterwards.
“I have also been playing in a band for about two years now, which has been an amazing experience! I did this through music workshop in Bath. I love it there because all the people are great and it’s such a lovely community.
“I decided to do a Drumathon for Scoliosis UK because there is so much we don’t know about scoliosis treatment like new surgeries and back braces, how to prevent it and where it comes from.
“With Scoliosis UK they rely on funding from charities so all the donations you give will be really appreciated by Scoliosis UK. Also not forgetting all the nurses, doctors, hospitals and people around the world who help people like me with scoliosis.”
To donate to Georgia’s fundraising, please click here.