Writing a book isn’t easy, especially when it involves personal experiences. My book has enabled me to understand and process my life. No apology needed. I’ve been let down. My writing helps me come to terms with things.

Lily Allen Book

I remember watching a documentary about Lily Allen, who was particularly blunt about her experiences writing her book – and her explaining that her book didn’t go down well with her family. But she didn't care. It was her life, her story, to stay true to her. I like her honesty. It's clear her parents struggled with that. If anything, they should have been apologising to her.

My 'story' was a book that also needed to be written, that I also make no apology for. It wasn't easy growing up, not knowing I had a physical, mental and emotional disability.

Cerebral Palsy 'A Story'

My book is a personal and honest account, of discovering later in life that I have cerebral palsy and autism. I was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at 46, and later at 56, with autism. These late diagnoses helped explain a lifetime of experiences, a lifetime of struggles that I had never fully understood. Writing Cerebral Palsy: 'A Story' gave me the opportunity to reflect on my early years and the challenges I faced – challenges that now make sense, challenges that are long overdue.

It has been a way of making sense of my past and coming to terms with things I struggled with as a child. The process has helped me move toward acceptance, for me to see my story not with judgment on what I had to do, but through clarity – on why I had to do it.

My Writing...

I write sensitively in a way that brings clarity on some very difficult years. As authors, we shouldn’t feel bad about speaking our truth, as long as what we’re writing shows sensitivity, understanding, and our words come from the heart. Finding out there was a diagnosis at 2 and not knowing about both my diagnoses, isn't something a child should have to go through. No one should have to fumble around in the dark.

If you fancy reading either of my books, you can grab paperback and Kindle copies on Amazon, or through the following link https://www.thecpdiary.com/my-books