My diagnosis story

Hello everyone!

Today I wanted to share my diagnosis story. While I was in middle school, my mom said that she had noticed that my shoulders were uneven before but thought it might be from the heavy backpacks. At this time, my parents and I did not know what scoliosis was so we did not know what to look out for.

One day I was at home trying on my new swimsuit for the summer. My aunt stopped by the house and I bent over to pick up my cat (while still in my swimsuit). My aunt noticed that my back looked uneven and I remember her gasping but not wanting to say anything in front of me. My aunt was currently working in a middle school so she knew about the scoliosis screenings that are performed at the end of middle school (at least where I'm from). I went to change and my mom and aunt went to talk where my aunt told my mom her concerns. My mom immediately called my pediatrician to set up an appointment ASAP.

Fast forward to my first doctor's appointment. I don't think I quite understood what we were doing or what we were looking for since I was 9 years old. My general doctor did an x-ray where it was determined that I had 2 curves.

The first doctor that I went to for my scoliosis recommended the Boston brace to prevent further progression of the curves. My mom went home and did more research online and had an uneasy feeling like this may not be the best option. So, my mom decided to start searching for a second opinion. Well it turns out that one of our good church friends worked for an orthopedic surgeon who specialized in the spine. My mom decided to make an appointment with him to get a second opinion. Again, it was confirmed that I had 2 curvatures in the spine. At this time, I believe they were around the mid 20s and mid 30s (I do not remember exactly). The doctor recommended a Milwaukee brace and my mom and dad felt a lot more comfortable with this doctor and his recommendations.

We continued on with treatment to a recommended orthotist so I could get fitted for my first brace. I had a total of 3 braces over a year and a half in the hopes that they would prevent further progression of the curves.

After learning more about scoliosis from the doctor, we realized that I was exhibiting more signs of scoliosis (but again, before speaking to the doctor we did not know what to look for). As you can see in the pictures below, I had uneven shoulders, uneven hips, uneven waist line, one shoulder blade that stuck out more, a thoracic and lumbar hump, and of course the curved spine. Also pictured below is one of my first x-rays.

That is the shortened version of my diagnosis story! Comment below when and how you found out that you were diagnosed!

I hope everyone has a great weekend :)