Zoe’s Story

Diagnosed with Scoliosis at 14 but it was suspected at 11, I wore the Milwaukee brace for two years (under Sheffield Children’s Hospital), and I was discharged at the age of 16. Not wearing the brace felt a bit weird initially, but I got used to life without it again.

Throughout my 20s I found that I needed extra treatment for aches and pains, which I sought from various disciplines; physiotherapy and chiropractic sessions until my mid thirties.

In my 30s I had occasional bad spells, like lower back pain. One bout of pain was significant enough for my Doctor to refer me back to Sheffield Children’s Hospital. I saw my previous consultant again, Mr Douglas, he recognised some of his correspondence on my notes. Looking at a new X-ray of my spine, he confirmed that the pain I was experiencing was due to degeneration of my lower discs, but thought that nothing could be done for my lower back pain, other than pain killers. I didn’t accept this and due to my persistence he referred me to the physiotherapy department to see if they could help. They introduced me to Pilates, after 12 months l felt great; in much better health, and my pain was reduced considerably without the use of pain medication.

Other than that episode of lower back pain, my main area of discomfort was usually mid-thoracic, around the area at the sharpest part of my curve. I have nicknamed thatmuscle my ‘scoliosis muscle’.

By maintaining Pilates and swimming, I kept the pain at bay for the next few years. During this time I was not receiving any additional treatment as my favourite Chiropractor had moved to Wales and I had not found anyone else that I had got on with the same.

Six months after giving birth, my ‘scoliosis muscle’had flared up again and was far more severe and frequent than ever before. I tried all my old tricks, I even drove to Wales to have treatment with my old Chiropractor, but that didn’t work. I upped my swimming sessions, had more physio, I had one to one Pilates, and I even tried osteopathy. Again, I was referred to Sheffield by my Doctor because I was struggling with so much pain on a daily basis, and nothing was working.

After offering me surgery and me refusing, I was monitored and eventually sought a second opinion. This took me to Nottingham Queens Medical Hospital, under the care of Mr Boszczyk. He was part of a much younger team, who monitored me for a year with X-rays and an MRI scan. They felt no operation was necessary, but they could offer me Osteopathy within the clinic to see if that would ease the pain.

After 6 weeks of treatment with the Mr Winton (the resident Osteopath) it did start to make a difference, both with manipulation that he administered, but also new exercises at home. It had a positive impact, but it was short lived. Within months of the treatment stopping, I had the same level and frequency of pain as I did before.

Whilst researching Scoliosis treatments online, I came across the SpineCor brace and read as many articles and case studies as I could. I spoke to Tim Cook at length, as well as my Pilates teacher, before deciding to go ahead and try it. It was like it was made for me, I couldn’t believe that it hadn’t been mentioned before.

Fortunately my mother offered to fund the SpineCor brace for me, and after further discussions we decided to give it a go, with nothing to lose and everything to gain.

I already had my X-rays and copies of my MRI scan, they were useful during the consultation process. My SpineCor brace fitting went well, it’s very unusual to wear to start with but I was soon wearing it for up to 12 hours per day. The discomfort is greater as the day goes on and I found it did pinch my skin across my left hip, which is where all the Velcro straps meet, but now that I only wear it when I need to, it’s much more manageable.

I found the first month wearing the brace a little disappointing; I didn’t feel much pain relief initially and became a little despondent with it. However, I stuck with it and at my next appointment (2 – 3 months later) I was relieved to let the consultants know that I had experienced some pain relief whilst wearing my brace.

My overall opinion is that it has been a life saver for me, I don’t mind the discomfort in the slightest, and it far out ways the pain I was suffering before. Now that I am over 12 months into this project and the Clinicians are happy with the results of the initial few months, I wear my brace when I choose. I end up wearing the brace from 4.00pm until 10pm every work day, equating to approx 6 hours each work day.

At the weekends, if it is a day at home, I always start off in my brace because I am usually doing housework. But if I’m out then I don’t wear it, but may put it on when I come home. If I’m on holiday, I take it with me just in case I feel I need it, but I find I rarely have to wear it now, I have had spells where I have not had to wear it for up to 14 days in a row, with very little pain. As soon as I return home to daily life and chores, I can feel my ‘scoliosis muscle’fire up again and out comes the brace; my saviour, thank goodness!