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Top of the world for Martin
Martin Hibbert has published a new book ‘Top Of The World: Surviving the Manchester Arena Bombing to Scale Kilimanjaro in a Wheelchair’ and has announced that he will be making a personal donation from the proceeds to SIA.
He made the announcement at the book launch last weekend in Manchester along with special guest, TV Presenter Dan Walker, who wrote the forward for the book. Dan said afterwards it was a real privilege to be there and said of Martin he considers him a true friend:
“In this book he carefully walks you through the darkness, but he is always moving towards the light.”
There are moments in the book where Martin speaks the truth about what he and many others with spinal cord injury must face on a daily basis due to a health and care system which all too often fails them.
He speaks of how in a general healthcare setting he was shocked and traumatised about the lack of specialist care saying he’d never been so scared:
“I just want to go home. I don’t feel safe here. I thought how others with SCI would fare, you can’t just hop out of bed and shuffle off in search of a nurse.”
He quotes Gary Dawson our support network manager who he credits with giving him a reason to live after SCI.
“Gary Dawson puts it so well when he says, ‘Imagine a couple discovering they are pregnant -then being told by their GP, you’re on your own now. We can’t do any scans or monitoring and you’re going to have to deliver the baby yourselves, ok?’
It’s unthinkable, isn’t it? But that’s the reality for too many people with spinal cord injury. You’re given a wheelchair and it’s a case of…. Off you go, Good Luck”.
He explains how the idea of climbing Kilimanjaro came about and that many doubted it was possible, which just gave him even more motivation.
Describing the moment he reached the summit of Kili, Martin says:
“With a satisfying bump, my front wheel rose and cleared the final ridge. My back wheels followed. And bloody hell, we’ve done it. Top of the world, I really was on top of the world.”
Martins Book is available to buy on Amazon.