I
was diagnosed with scoliosis when I was in middle school. Scoliosis is an abnormal curvature of the spine. We chose to "watch
and wait" and monitored the progression throughout my adolescent years. I
never wore a brace, but it was recommended. I took dance for most of my life
and I was in drill team throughout junior high and high school. My scoliosis
did not affect my ability to dance and it did not cause me much pain. Over
time, it became more apparent that my shoulders and hips were uneven. My
spine progressed into a double "S" curve and surgery was recommended
when I was 21 years old. I was finished growing and my scoliosis was progressing,
so I chose to do the surgery.
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| My Before Surgery X-Ray |
I
do not regret choosing to do the surgery, but I did have a lot of questions and
fears going into it. Would I look stiff with my metal rods and screws?
Would I be able to live a normal life? How much pain would I experience?
I
also knew that there were some very serious risks to having this surgery.
Overall, I felt a bit blind going into my first surgery. I had never even been
in the hospital before this for any other reason. I had so many questions and
all I wanted was to talk to someone that had been through this before. That is
why I am publishing this blog. I want to be a resource to help those that may have
to endure this "not so pleasant" experience. So if you have any
questions, feel free to ask! I can't guarantee I will know the answer, but I am
happy to share my personal experience.
I
am not going to sugar coat it, spinal fusion surgery is painful. I believe the
physical pain I endured helped to make me stronger and more appreciative of my
ability to run. Now that I am about to go through my second surgery, I am
trying to get mentally and physical prepared, AGAIN. My doctor encouraged me to
continue running and exercising to be in the best possible shape for
surgery. I'm sort of treating this like I would my half-marathon training. I am
working to build up my endurance to put my body through some major physical
stress. So the countdown is on for surgery #2 in December.
