Dancing Through Scoliosis My name is Aika Takagi. I’m 13 years old. I wanted to share my scoliosis and dance journey. My scoliosis and dance journey are intertwined through my love for dance and pushing myself to do better in everything I do. When I was 11, I was diagnosed with scoliosis. Scoliosis is where Read more about Dancing Through Scoliosis[…]
Questions To Ask Your Orthotist Being measured and fit with your brace can be an overwhelming experience for lots of new bracers. You may forget to ask questions or not know what to ask. We’ve got you covered! Here is a list of questions to get you started. Brace Type and Function Is bracing commonly Read more about Questions To Ask Your Orthotist[…]
Evie’s Bracing Success When I was in 5th grade, my gymnastics coach first spotted my scoliosis. I was then diagnosed with around a 40° lumbar curve and 22° thoracic curve in my spine and was placed in a Boston brace that I wore 20 hours a day. I remember the first thing I did was Read more about Evie’s Bracing Success[…]
Lydia’s Curvy Journey My name is Lydia and I live in Columbia, South Carolina. My journey with scoliosis has been just as curvy as my back. It all started when I was in 5th grade with a routine back test during gym class. When I got out of the dressing room, I got a note Read more about Lydia’s Curvy Journey[…]
Megan’s Scoli Journey in Malaysia Hi, my name is Megan and I’m just a regular 16-year-old who lives in the south of Malaysia. I first found out I had scoliosis when I was 12/13-years-old when a doctor noticed I was standing a bit slouched. Fast forward half a year with all the appointments and chiropractor Read more about Megan’s Scoli Journey in Malaysia[…]
What Do We Know About What Causes Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis? HINT: It’s not caused by your child’s posture, backpack-carrying habits, or body mechanics Every so often, during my physical therapy evaluation with a family who has just discovered their teen has scoliosis, I will be asked the following set of questions: “Is it their posture Read more about What Causes Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis?[…]
National Scoliosis Center Uses iButton to Track Brace Wear Time in Patients Successful scoliosis treatment for teens and children who select bracing to help them avoid surgery primarily depends on two factors – competency of the medical care team and brace wearing compliance by the patient. One of the biggest challenges for parents and the Read more about National Scoliosis Center Uses iButton to Track Brace Wear Time in Patients[…]
We’re In This Together: Creating A Support Network For Girls With Scoliosis Abby is 12 years old and was diagnosed with scoliosis in 2018. Shortly after, she was fit with her scoliosis brace at Shriners Hospitals for Children — Portland. She and her mom, Christine, began looking to connect with fellow bracers around Abby’s age. Read more about We’re In This Together[…]
Turning Lemons into Lemonade Try to turn your bracing experience into a positive journey. Just think, when you bump into things where your brace is, it does not hurt since you hit your brace instead. You also have an instant table to write on when you take it off, and you can open straws really Read more about Turning Lemons into Lemonade[…]
Advice for Parents of BracersHaving had scoliosis herself, Aika’s mom shares her perspective and advice for parents of scoliosis bracers. Watch below!
A Day in a Boston Brace & Brace Tips Hi my name is Aika. I wanted to share a little about a day in a Boston brace. I have to wear my brace between 16-18 hour a day, so I choose my “off” time for when I am training as a competitive Irish dancer. I Read more about A Day in a Boston Brace & Brace Tips[…]
Aika’s Adventures: My Biggest Supporter My name is Aika. I was diagnosed with scoliosis a month after my 11th birthday. I was scared when I first heard but then was quickly relieved. My biggest supporter, my mother, is a scoliosis success story, although during her journey, she had days where she did not feel that Read more about My Biggest Supporter[…]
Aika’s Adventures My name is Aika. I was diagnosed with scoliosis a month after my 11th birthday. Within 10 months, my T/L curve had jumped 11 degrees to 32 degrees, which meant bracing was the next step. I was nervous when I heard I needed to get a brace; however, there are a LOT Read more about Aika’s Adventures[…]
What Is Physiotherapeutic Scoliosis-Specific Exercise All About? Author Kelly Grimes, Physiotherapist (Full disclosure: I am a physiotherapist who has PSSE training. This is my take on PSSE.) Here is your brief lowdown on specific exercise for scoliosis and spine structural variations. If you’re an individual with scoliosis, kyphosis, or other spine structural variations, or a Read more about What Is Physiotherapeutic Scoliosis-Specific Exercise All About?[…]
Hailey’s Road to Bracing My name is Hailey, and this is my story! I am 12 years old, and I am from Hickman, Nebraska. I discovered I have scoliosis about 2 and a half years ago, but did not start bracing until this summer when my top curve reached 48 degrees and my bottom curve Read more about Hailey’s Road to Bracing[…]
Sophia’s Scoliosis Story Hi everyone!! My name is Sophia (@sophiasscoliosis on instagram), and this is my scoliosis story!! When I was 15, I battled back pain and stiffness for months before finally making an appointment with a spine specialist at Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children. On October 12th, 2018, I was diagnosed with severe Read more about Sophia’s Scoliosis Story[…]
Four Years and Four Braces Later: Lily’s Bracing Journey Hi! My name is Lily and I am 13 years old and live in Sunriver, Oregon. When I was 9 and in 4th grade I was having a really hard time taking deep breaths so my mom brought me to the doctor. My mom has asthma and Read more about Four Years and Four Braces Later: Lily’s Bracing Journey[…]
Emma’s Scoliosis Story Emma created this wonderful video to share her scoliosis story and to raise awareness during Scoliosis Awareness Month!
No Schroth Physiotherapist in Your Area? What Now? By Rosemary Marchese (Physiotherapist, Schroth and SEAS methods for Scoliosis) Schroth Physiotherapists can be found all around the world. However there is definitely more need in some areas. It might be frustrating if you find yourself with Scoliosis and in need of a Schroth physiotherapist and you Read more about No Schroth Physiotherapist in Your Area? What Now?[…]
Self Posture-Check! Screening Your Back for Scoliosis or Scoliosis Changes By Rosemary Marchese (Physiotherapist) A healthy posture is a great goal to aim for! You can have scoliosis and still make great improvements to your posture in many cases. Checking your back for scoliosis or scoliosis changes is best done by your treating doctor or physiotherapist Read more about Self Posture-Check! Screening Your Back for Scoliosis or Scoliosis Changes[…]
By Rosemary Marchese (Physiotherapist)
A healthy posture is a great goal to aim for! You can have scoliosis and still make great improvements to your posture in many cases. Checking your back for scoliosis or scoliosis changes is best done by your treating doctor or physiotherapist trained in this area. However there are definitely a few things you, or even your family members, could look out for, to promote a healthy posture. When I am working with patients with scoliosis, the aim is to achieve as much postural correction as we can, without causing new problems somewhere else in the body.
Scoliosis Signs to Look Out For:
If you haven’t been diagnosed with scoliosis, and you want to do a self-posture check, here are some things to look out for:
If you are concerned, or you can see any of these signs, you will need to visit your doctor for an assessment.
Checking Your Posture Once You Have Scoliosis
If you have been diagnosed with scoliosis, you will have to work with your doctor to decide on a plan of action that is best for you. However taking positive action towards checking your own posture can be a great way to really help your treatment along. Your physiotherapist should be trained in Physiotherapeutic Scoliosis Specific Exercises (PSSE), for example the Schroth method (this is just one method that they may use). Using PSSE is a great way to learn how to improve your posture when you have Scoliosis.
When working on your posture you should be aiming to achieve the best possible correction, but without creating compensations somewhere else. For example, if you are trying to sit and stand taller and hold your body strong for a lumbar scoliosis, you will need to also look after your upper back. When you are exercising, or just getting on with life, you can do the following checks to see how things are moving along during your treatment.
Of course, it is not easy to achieve symmetry with scoliosis. But you can work with your physiotherapist to improve your posture. Using these simple checks listed above can help empower you to help yourself as well!
About the Author
Rosemary is a physiotherapist with twenty years of experience in physiotherapy, fitness consulting and training. After years of practicing physiotherapy, her passion grew for the physical treatment of Scoliosis. So, she traveled to New York to become certified in the BSPTS Schroth Method of Scoliosis treatment under the Barcelona School of Physical Therapy. She followed this up by attaining the BSPTS C2 Advanced certification in New York. She has traveled overseas multiple times for conferences and further learning including Dubrovnik, San Francisco, Milan and Barcelona. Rosemary is also certified in the Scientific Exercise Approach to Scoliosis (SEAS).
