If I had a pound for every time someone had never heard of axial SpA, when telling them about my arthritis condition, I would be a very wealthy man.

Axial SpA is a chronic inflammatory arthritis that primarily affects the spine and pelvis. It can cause severe pain, stiffness, and fatigue. In fact, in the UK alone it’s estimated that approximately 1 in 200 adults live with this condition, totaling around 220,000 individuals. Despite its prevalence, many remain unaware of axial SpA, leading to significant delays in diagnosis—on average, about 8.5 years. 

Raising awareness matters. Early diagnosis and treatment can make a huge difference and greatly improve the quality of life.

Having lived with axial SpA for most of my adult life, writing this book represents the first time I have stopped to reflect on how it has impacted me, my relationships and overall mental health.

Cricket and AS have both undoubtedly shaped who I am. I wanted to share my incredible journey, not only to demonstrate the challenges it poses, but also raise awareness of this invisible, debilitating and still relatively unknown disease, all against the backdrop of my passion for the game.

What began as a series of short stories written during lockdown quickly snowballed into a journey of renewed personal discovery and development.

I am immensely proud to be supporting the National Axial Spondyloarthritis Society, with all profits from the book sales going to empower my peers living with the challenges of axial spondyloarthritis (axial SpA) including ankylosing spondylitis (AS) to manage their treatment and to stay in control of their lives.