By Richard Mills

A PINEHURST woman who was born without her left forearm says her life would change forever if she could reach her £10,000 target to get a bionic arm.

From the age of three to nine, Sadie Cowdry, who grew up in Swindon and works at Medion in Faraday avenue

of Saddleback Avenue, in Shaw hated trying various prosthetics and bionic arms, because they were either too heavy or restrictive and she was bullied over their appearance too.

“At times I hated them. They were a big hindrance to me at times. It was difficult growing up because I was bullied as well, so I refused to wear it,” said the 29-year-old.

“When I was three, I had a hook prosthetic with a pulley system that went around my back and over my right shoulder which allowed the hook to open and close. It was awful and I refused to wear it.

“Then came my bionic arm. It was heavy, the wire to the battery pack irritated me and it only had an open and close function which got stuck and was about as useful as a chocolate teapot.

“Simple tasks would take longer or were more difficult and I couldn’t carry things in both hands but I managed to get by for a long time.”

That changed last September when the 29-year-old was diagnosed with De Quervain's Syndrome - a painful condition that affects tendons where they run through a tunnel on the thumb side of the wrist.

Then, courtesy of a friend sharing it on Facebook, she came across the Open Bionics creation, the Hero Arm - a custom made, multi-grip bionic arm that allows for greater control, dexterity and flexibility.

Soon afterwards, the admin assistant set up a just giving page and she is now almost a third of the way towards her £10,000 target.

“This would change my life forever. It is becoming more and more of a struggle and this Hero Arm could hopefully take the strain away,” she said.

“Despite shunning prosthetics for 20 years, I was struggling more and more with the most basic tasks. It was putting extra strain on my functioning arm so I decided to take action.

“The Hero Arms are incredible. Some of the videos they have of people using them is so inspirational. I could do things that others may take for granted.”

She added: “The amount that has come in so far is over £3,000 which is incredible. I am overwhelmed by it all.

“Strangers and people who don’t know anything about me have donated. A complete stranger donated £500.

“How do you put into words how grateful you are? I would love to be able to give back to these kind of people.”

Mrs Cowdry says her husband Richard, her younger brother, Richard Scott, her mum, Debbie Scott and her late father, Gary Scott, have all helped her over the years.

“My family have always been helpful but I was left to my own devices,” she said.

“They taught me how to cook and bake. When I was younger I had a rolling pin that had a handle at the top and we had non-stick mats to help me.”

She also has a wicked sense of humour.

“I saw in Sinking the Ink tattoo studio that there was a special offer going on Friday 13 in July so I got a ‘born unlucky’ tattoo – I thought it would be funny, so I went for it.”

To donate visit https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/gotanarmoff