Power in Knowledge

With any condition or illness, knowledge is power. Scoliosis is no exception from this rule.
To all patients and parent's of children who suffer from Scoliosis, the hardest part is often understanding it. I hope that my anecdotes and information can help everyone learn more, so that you can take action instead of letting the condition take over your body.

The keystone piece is first knowing that Scoliosis is primarily a neuro-muscular issue. It can be induced by trauma to the spinal column, hereditary or idiopathic, as is the case with mine. Idiopathic typically means that it developed some years after birth, often during puberty, without any apparent cause. Since many cases of idiopathic Scoliosis occur during puberty, it is believed that hormones may have an impact on the development. It is crucial to understand that just because you or your child might develop it during puberty, that does not mean it will stop when growing stops. Even as an adult, it can worsen--though often at a slower rate.

Once you know that the issue lies in the muscles and/or nerves, you can treat it with methods more akin to exercise rather than brute force by hard-form braces or surgery (if these treatments do not appeal to you or your child). Exercise-based methods will definitely appeal more to athletic or active patients.


There are two popular methods of approach within exercise-based practices.

Schroth: http://www.schrothmethod.com/about-schroth-method

This method heavily emphasizes body awareness, breathing and posture. The methods include posture and breathing exercises to work with and ideally improve lung capacity and comfort.

CLEAR/Spinecor:
http://www.spinecor.com/ForPatients/WhatisSpineCor.aspx
https://www.clear-institute.org/treating-scoliosis/alternative-treatments/clear-scoliosis-treatment/

These two methods, CLEAR being an exercise regimen and Spinecor being a dynamic bracing system, are often used in conjunction with one another. The focus of both is being body-aware as you move and exercise to move to strengthen weaknesses created by Scoliosis.


In summary, one of the most important things you or your child can do when getting a Scoliosis diagnosis it learn. Read as much as you can about different treatment options, forums where patients relate experiences, pains, gains and treatment.
The more you learn, the more you can help yourself or your child. You can avoid costly mistakes, and increase quality of life.