more photos on flickr >>

 

** UPDATE: I posted a picture of my back in this post, 11/9/2006.

I had surgery to correct a curvature of my spine on July 26, 2001.

Every year since, when I fill out a new calendar in January with upcoming birthdays, wedding anniversaries, etc., I make a special mark on July 26th. A few days ago I noticed the upcoming date and decided that this year I wanted to tell my story. Why? Because three years ago, when I was trying to decide whether I was going to have corrective surgery or not, I did a lot of research online. I knew what scoliosis was, I read descriptions about what the surgery would entail, what I should expect, how bad the spinal curve had to be before someone elects to have surgery, and I even found a few personal stories. I wanted more of those personal stories. It’s nice to know the technical stuff, but what people contemplating surgery really want to know is, “How is this going to affect me?”

Due to the length of this topic, this will be the first of four parts.
Part 1: My History, Pre-Surgery
Part 2: Surgery and Hospital
Part 3: Afterward
Part 4: Today

I wish that I had written all of this stuff down at the time, but I can remember enough about the experience, including episodes leading up to it and then after the fact, to give a coherent rendition. Another reason that I’m doing this is, after seeing the random, crazy searches that hit my site every day, I thought I might offer a link that could actually be informative. So for anyone searching for information about: scoliosis, corrective surgery, steel rods (or if you’re just curious)…read on.

What is scoliosis?
If anybody is interested, there are multiple sites online to find out about scoliosis. Very quickly: most cases develop in adolescents, although some people are born with it. Most cases occur in girls, but the reason for this is unknown. If scoliosis is caught early enough, some people choose to get a back brace (it stops the curve from advancing, but doesn’t correct it); but once the curve is past a certain point bracing can no longer be used. Some people have surgery, and some just decide to live with it, depending on how bad the curve is. It’s not really genetic, but I think it does occur more frequently if you have a history of scoliosis in your family. In my case, my mom’s half-brother wore a back brace for a few years when he was growing up, but he’s the only one on either side of my family that we know of.

History:
My curve was discovered initially because one of my ribs was sticking out. The spine tends to curve in one direction (my upper spine curves toward the right), and the force of that curve puts pressure on the ribs of the opposite side of your body (in my case, my front-left ribs). When I was about twelve or thirteen, my mom discovered that one of my left ribs was sticking out farther than the other side. At the time, she was scared, because all she could feel was the hump, and she didn’t know it was one of my ribs. I don’t remember exactly how she discovered it. I suspect that she may have been hugging me from behind, and she noticed it when her arms were wrapped around my chest, but I’m not positive.

My parents took me to the doctor. The doctor examined the hump while I was lying on the table, then had me stand up, and bend over from the waist, which—as anyone with scoliosis can tell you, or anyone who has had this test in school could verify—is a quick way to see whether your spine is not growing the way it should. The diagnosis was quick. She explained to us what it was, and referred me to a specialist at the University of Virginia Medical Center.

Consolidation of the facts: I had x-rays taken, and I went back for periodic checkups for a few years to see if the curve was progressing. The surgeon told my parents that my curve was bad enough that he recommended I have the surgery, but that it wasn’t SO bad that he would tell us it definitely had to be done. In other words, it was our (my) decision. Life went on. My parents separated, I left for college, I started working.

I had been working for my current employer for almost three years when I decided to have the corrective surgery. I was able to take short-term disability for six weeks, fully paid. Other than paying a $100 deductible for my hospital room, my HMO covered 100% of the surgery, as well as the 5-6 days that I spent in the hospital afterward. In preparation for the surgery I had blood collected on two different occasions; this was so that my own blood could be returned to make up for whatever I lost during the procedure. Side note: I had never been admitted to a hospital before in my life. I was born at home, no emergency room visits, no broken bones, etc. I have not been admitted to a hospital since.

A spinal curve isn’t something that you’re ever NOT aware of. The curve made my right shoulder blade stick out a lot farther than the one on my left. This is one of the most obvious ways to tell if a person has scoliosis—the “cosmetic” factor. I avoided wearing fitted shirts that accentuated my shoulder blade. I also, of course, avoided bathing suits with large cutouts that exposed my back, as well as small bikini-tops. The only two-piece bathing suit I have ever owned has been a tankini.

I never experienced a lot of pain, other than just general discomfort, which probably played a big role in not having the surgery earlier. However, like I said, I was always aware of it. I could tell that I was crooked, and that when I stood up straight, I wasn’t straight. One of the biggest factors in my decision to have the surgery was that I didn’t want to regret not having it done; I didn’t want twenty years to go by and wish later that I would have gotten it over with. The younger you are when you have the surgery, the better the results, and the healing time is much faster since the spine is more flexible.

Part 2: Surgery and Hospital