Siobhan’s Story

I was 14 when I was diagnosed with scoliosis and was given a choice of wearing a Milwaukee brace or taking part in a trial that entailed using a traction attached to my bed. Being a teenager, I opted for what I thought would be the easier option; the traction, I thought that at least no one would see me using it and it was the better of the two options.

I was supposed to use the traction every night, strapping myself in around the waist and under my chin; weights at either end of the bed, pulling in opposing directions with the aim of ‘straightening’ me out. The first night was horrific. The pulling effect on my chin gave me toothache and I found it very difficult to lie flat all night. In addition, the pulley at the top end kept slipping, causing me to be yanked upwards suddenly. All in all, it was not a good experience. I kept the traction for about three years, but I hardly ever used it properly. I was just delighted not to be wearing a brace! Naturally, in my case at least, the trial was not a success and I ended up having a Harrington Rod inserted just before my 21st birthday.

My right-sided thoracic curve was pretty bad by this time and after the initial surgery, I had to have two further operations to straighten out my ribs, which had become ‘humped’. The effect was good and I was discharged after a couple of years without any advice as to what might happen in the future, I thought I was cured and that was the end of it. I sailed through my twenties and most of my thirties without any problems at all and it was only after my second pregnancy at 38 that I began to notice quite serious changes. My left-sided lumbar curve, which had always been much less serious than the thoracic one, had become much worse. I had a lot of lower back pain and one hip was higher than the other, as well as the whole pelvis seeming to shift to one side. I went to my GP who offered me painkillers and suggested I might need further surgery in the future. Having two young children, I was very keen to improve my quality of life, but wanted to avoid surgery at all costs.

I was referred to the pain clinic at my local hospital, but the only advice I received there was to rest frequently between activities, not easy with a job and two young children. I began to research scoliosis on the Internet, not sure what I was hoping to find. When I found information about SpineCor, it seemed to make a lot of sense. I knew I was too old to hope for a correction of my scoliosis, but I wanted to do everything I could to prevent it becoming any worse, or at least slow its deterioration. I was also hoping for reduction in pain.

After my initial consultation, I was fitted with my brace. When I was strapped into it for the first time, I thought that there was no way I would be able to tolerate it. All the way home on the train I felt very uncomfortable and couldn’t wait to get home so that I could remove it. However, the next day, I decided I had to give it a chance so I put it on and went off to work. By the end of the week, I was almost unaware that I was wearing it. From the first day, my back pain disappeared completely. I have not had to take a single painkiller for back pain in the three years I have been wearing my SpineCor brace.

In addition, my hips stay largely where they should, so I feel less like The Leaning Tower of Pisa! The only downside for me is that, especially during very hot weather, the brace limits my choice of clothing; however, this small problem is far outweighed by the benefits. I wear my brace for between 12 – 14 hours per day without a second thought. If I leave it off for a couple of hours, I do tend to start leaning again so, I think I will not be able to reduce my hours. This does not mean, however, that I never allow myself a little brace ‘holiday’ now and again. If I want to wear a sleeveless dress for an evening out, I just take my brace off, secure in the knowledge that I can regain the benefits the next day.

It’s such a shame that I only happened to stumble on this treatment by chance. My GP and physiotherapist had not heard of it and were not encouraging when I mentioned giving it a try. I hope that this attitude is changing, and that more people are able to gain the benefits that I currently am. I am fifty years old now and feel far more optimistic about my future. I do everything I want to: play badminton, swim, do all my own housework, and all without a twinge. I only wish I had heard of SpineCor years ago.

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