Our son, Reece, was born with an uncommon version of a rather common condition called Scoliosis, which means his spine was curved and twisted. Reece's condition was particularly severe. When he was only two years of age he had to wear a plastic body brace, which he endured for 23 hours a day. This was to try and halt the curvature - but, sadly, the brace did not do its job.

By the time he was four years old he underwent the first of many surgeries to try and correct his spine. The first stage was to remove some bone in order to loosen the spine. A halo was attached to his skull with screws and he was stretched in traction for a few weeks until he had the second stage which was to attach rods and screws to his spine. For most people, this would be enough treatment and they would go home with their spines straighter and walking tall - as they should. Sadly for our son, and for us, his was an unusual case and over the next six years 10 spinal operations would be performed. Most of the surgeries failed; the rods kept coming away and even penetrated through his skin. While little Reece was going through the multiple procedures, we actually camped out at the hospital, sometimes for three months at a time. The stress and strain on all of us was immense. My wife and I cried nearly ever day. We never thought anyone could cry so much as we did, but I guess a lot of people go through miserable experiences. I sat in my bedroom in the hospital praying that he would be looked after during the next surgery. Time and time again we saw the surgeon walking towards us with that look on his face. We knew straight away that something was wrong and that more surgery would ultimately be needed. And time and again, we would hold his hand as the hospital surgical staff would wheel him down to the operating theatre, trying to hold back our fear and tears so that our son would not worry.

Ultimately our son had to have a special procedure performed on him whereby vertebrae were actually removed, which was very risky and unstable for his spine. He had a halo attached to his head to support his spine. Reece lived his life for over a year with this apparatus actually screwed into his scull. During that time he won a Best Brave Child Award which was presented to him in London. The surgeons found it very difficult to correct his spine and even suggested experimental operations that had never been tried before; which we refused. We feel our son is a true inspiration to others. Having ten or more spinal operations and wearing a head brace for a year, which had to be tightened every so often to stop it coming loose. Spending months in traction... and yet he was still under ten years old.

My message to the readers is if you need this sort of operation to correct your spine, or your child needs the procedures, please don't be afraid. Your health may suffer in the future if you don't have it done living with a curvature and twisting of the spine is painful and limiting. The surgeons will take good care of you and they have special equipment to monitor you. Our son was one of the most unusual cases the surgeon had came across in twenty years and, of course, most cases will not be like his. Most of the time, after Scoliosis surgery, you are back home walking tall with your spine straighter within a week. We know all too well how stressful it is for someone to go through the illness or surgery of a loved one, but please don't procrastinate if surgery is needed.... conditions may get worse.

My wife and I have written a book about our family experience entitled Every Road Has a Bend... the True Story About a Child's Bravery which will, hopefully, help others on the same journey.

See our YouTube presentation: