Welcome to a new blog post, I know it's been a while! This blog post we have the lovely Georgina from Purpl Discounts talking about her journey with MS and why she set up Purpl Discounts. So let's hand over to Georgina...
My MS Journey and how it led to Purpl Disabled Discounts
I’ve had MS for almost 22 years now but it wasn’t until 2018 that my walking went downhill and I considered myself disabled. Living with a chronic health condition does make you put everything into perspective. I was such a busy person up until that point, always on the go, always wanting to do everything and get ahead. Sometimes I wonder if that’s what led to my MS emerging - many other people with MS who I’ve met over the years say similar things, so it is intriguing.
I work really hard to keep my body in the best shape possible, this includes doing many holistic therapies like acupuncture, chiropractic sessions, neuro-physiotherapy and much more. Without these sessions I am convinced that my health would be in a worse place, whereas aside from my MS I am actually very healthy.
Being Disabled is Expensive
If you are disabled or have disabled members of your family, then you will totally understand how expensive it is when you live with a disability. Not only do my therapy sessions cost a fortune to maintain but there are many other factors like supplements, exercise equipment, assisted technologies that enable me to move more easily and help with my spasticity levels.
My body doesn’t do well in extreme weather, so we used more heating in the winter than your average household. I have to stick to a strict diet to keep my inflammation down and buying gluten free products are expensive as well as eating mainly fresh non-processed foods. I also try to avoid chemicals and toxins where possible and it’s funny how being ultra healthy and wanting more natural products is actually more costly.
A Mission to Make a Difference
Whilst my son was getting his student discount recently, it made me think about how there was nothing similar for the disabled community. I know I am not alone with the cost of living with a disability, as Scope have done research on this and determined that on average it costs nearly £1000 extra a month if you are disabled.
I knew I had to do something to help, I became obsessed with the idea of launching a business to help offset these extra costs. As someone who has always loved shopping and especially loves a bargain, I knew it would be successful.
In May this year, I launched Purpl to our first brand partner and since then we have gone live on nearly 30 websites signposting Disabled Discounts
Our website went live in July this year and we now have almost 60 brands working with us and more to come. It’s been surreal how quickly things are moving, and I love how I really will be making a difference to other disabled lives.
Introducing Purpl
To join Purpl, visit Purpl Discounts and register with your proof of disability. We accept government and council documents as well as Access and National Disability ID cards. For more information, you can read our blog post on How to Get Verified on Purpl.
My mission with Purpl is to help our community save money, as well as building a supportive community. I want us to share our stories, offer relevant advice and guidance, and give back to disabled charities. Eventually, I hope to create our own foundation to provide grants directly to those in need of extra financial support. Please join Purpl and share the site with your disabled friends and family.
I truly believe everything happens for a reason. My disability led me to create Purpl, and it has given me a way to help our community.
