A WOMAN needs to raise more than £30,000 to secure "life-changing" head and neck surgery.

Zoe Elliott, from Shrewton, has suffered with seizures since she was 15-years-old, and after private tests she was diagnosed with craniocervical instability (CCI).

The 26-year-old knew already she had ehlers-danlos syndromes (EDS) from an early age, which causes her frequent body dislocation and ligament failure, but it wasn't until ten years later she received the private CCI diagnosis.

Now three parts of her neck are deteriorating, including the top vertebra closest to her head, and she is on a mission to raise £35,000 to get private fusion surgery.

"I need my neck fixed to my head, but this is something the NHS does not offer and I need to pay for myself, but I used all my money on getting this CCI diagnosis," explained Zoe.

"I'm in bed most of the day - my ligaments don't work and dislocation is awful. I'll yawn and my shoulders pop out, if I fell I wouldn't be able to stand up again, and the joints holding my head up just hurt.

"When I was 23-years-old my limbs stopped working well for me, it feels like the heavy, dull feeling after a hard workout everyday. I have numbness almost everywhere, I find I can't get my words out well without tripping up over myself and getting confused."

According to Zoe the surgery, costing tens of thousands of pounds, will involve fusing parts of her upper neck and growing muscle on the lower neck.

She added: "It was a dream come true when I finally found out what was wrong with me fully, although frustrating it was ten years later. Now I just need to have this life changing surgery.

"I really want to be normal, as normal as I can be with a partially fused neck, I want to be able to talk to people and remember things and names, I want to buy nice dresses and shoes and wear them out.

"I lost most of my 20s without celebrating very much and the nights I did celebrate often left me bed-bound for a week afterwards, or sometimes with broken bones."

By having the surgery Zoe will also be able to continue supporting her mother who has terminal cancer.

So far around £250 has been raised online, and if Zoe exceeds the target she will use the surplus funds to help with her recovery program and her mother's care.

For more information and to donate visit Zoe's GoFundMe page.