To honor National Spinal Cord Injury Awareness Month, we would like to draw attention to two groups that are leading the charge when it comes to giving back and give you some important educational information.

The Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation

On May 27th, 1995, American movie star Christopher Reeves fell off his horse during a riding completion and shattered his first and second cervical vertebrae. The injury left him paralyzed from the neck down. While recovering and rehabbing from his injury, he exhibited tremendous fortitude and strength-continuously trying to find a cure that would enable him to walk again. Unfortunately, Reeves passed away in October of 2004 at the age of 52. His memory lives on through a national non-profit foundation created by his wife, who subsequently passed away, and now run by his children, Matthew and Alexandra.

The Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation is dedicated to increasing spinal cord injury awareness and coming up with ways to help the and cure the 1.75 Americans who have been injured and are living in paralysis. Through education and research, the foundation is coming up with therapy programs that help paralyzed patients live better lives. A new groundbreaking type of therapy known as epidural stimulation exists because of the Reeve Foundation. The therapy reawakens nerve cells and restores nerve and organ function in some paralyzed patients. Because of this and other important research findings, the future is bright. To learn more about the foundation or get involved, please visit https://www.christopherreeve.org.

VetsFirst

Thanks to VetsFirst, a program of the United Spinal Association, veterans and their loved ones have a free outlet to help them with the many challenges associated with a spinal cord injury. Patients and families are connected in over sixty peer support and advocacy groups across the country. In addition, money received from donations is used to research treatments and therapies. VetsFirst hopes to one day be a part of finding a cure for paralysis caused by spinal cord injuries. Their website http://www.vetsfirst.org has a plethora of information for those wishing to learn more.

Educational Information

Spinal cord injuries may be caused by car accidents, falls, high-impact collisions, and other high-energy type accidents. If you or someone you know injures your neck or back in an accident, you should remain still while waiting for emergency medical professionals to arrive. Once your condition is evaluated, medical professionals will give you instructions regarding what to do next. Taking proper precautions is the first and most important treatment step.