Twenty years of support, more than 200 meetings and dozens of friendships formed is what founding member of the Sunshine Coast Post Polio Support Group, Nola Dunbar, most fondly recalls.
What started out as informal gathering at Nola and her late husband John’s Nambour home in July 1991 has continued on to support hundreds of people throughout the region who are experiencing the Late Effects of Polio.
On 1 July, around 70 past and present members, partners, carers and supporters of the Group will meet to celebrate the longevity and success of this community group at the The Red Bridge Motor Inn Connexions Bar & Restaurant in Woombye.
“For the past 20 years many different group members have met regularly to provide support and information to one another, advocate, promote independence, and help raise awareness within the community, health and government sectors about the condition,” Nola said.
Just 11 when she contracted polio, Nola spent two years in various Sydney hospitals recovering from the viral disease that plagued the world during its peak epidemic in the first half of the 1900s.
Nola can still vividly recall the pain and boredom associated with recovering in hospital and said almost 40 years had passed before she began to experience the late effects of polio.
“Because you’re trying so hard to maintain the lifestyle that you had and keep up with everyone else, you’re just exhausted and it takes a real toll on your health,” she said.
“Many post polio sufferers are now experiencing considerable pain as the result of the late onset of the condition, which is called post polio syndrome or known as experiencing the late effects of polio.
“Because they’re not commonly known syndromes, there is still a lack of awareness and knowledge about them in the community.
“However, since the group was established, we have been working hard to raise awareness about the conditions and to provide support for Sunshine Coast residents to assist them to live as independently as possible.”
Nola now enjoys being a member of the Group, helping Cathy Newman and Jim Carseldine, who are the current Convenors of the Sunshine Coast Post Polio Support Group.
Spinal Injuries Association CEO Mark Henley said the Sunshine Coast Post Polio Support Group was one of six such groups that the Association coordinated throughout Queensland.
“As the population ages, incidences of post polio syndrome and the Late Effects of Polio will continue to increase,” Mark said.
“Regional groups such as the Sunshine Coast Post Polio Group are very important at providing practical support for people as they come to terms with how this condition, which they thought they had long gotten over, impacts on their lives today.
“The 20th anniversary lunch next month will be a great opportunity to commemorate the success of the Group and to look to the future and continue to provide support for locals experiencing this condition.”
The Spinal Injuries Association is the peak body for people with Spinal Cord Injuries, including Post Polio Syndrome and Transverse Myelitis in Queensland, and since 1960 it has supported and empowered people to live as independently as possible.
Issued 10 June.
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