Hi everyone,
I am so glad to have found this forum. I have had a very positive experience with spinal fusion surgery for my scoliosis. I hope that no one thinks I am gloating, because that is not my intention, but I wanted to share this story with those who are going through the stress and uncertainty of dealing with moderate/severe scoliosis.
I had spinal fusion surgery for a 42 degree thoracic curve when I was 13 years old. I had titanium rods put in and my vertebrae from T4 to L1 were fused.
I was a dancer my whole life and played the snare drum in marching band. I was able to return to dance and band in about 3-4 months, though I still felt stiff and not quite "back to normal" for about a year, I think. I was never super flexible (especially my back and hamstrings, which is weird for a dancer), and while I noticed a loss of flexibility, I still wonder if this was because of the fusion, or because I stopped stretching my lower back.
My surgeon told me that after a year post-surgery, I had no restrictions on activities. I returned to dance (but didn't do layouts or backbends) and band for the rest of high school. I never had any abnormal pain or complications.
Since high school, I have taken dance and yoga classes sporadically, and done free weights and other strength training pretty regularly. I even took up distance running and have run a marathon, a half marathon, and several 10-mile races! I'm fairly sure everyone's back hurts after a marathon , but I didn't have any particular problems because of the scoliosis or fusion.
I am 28 now, so it has been 15 years since the surgery. Most recently, I have taken up belly dance, and I have a fantastic but challenging instructor who has noted that some of my movements are limited, especially rib cage circles. I would really like to improve my lower back flexibility so that I can improve my dance ability. I may consult with a doctor to find out 1) how much more flexible I could expect to get if I worked hard vs. what I'll never be able to do, and 2) whether trying to improve my lower back flexibility significantly will cause problems for the vertebrae below the fusion. Any experience or insight with this would be welcome!
In any case, I feel very fortunate that I have not had complications and have not lost that much flexibility. Of course, everyone's situation is different, and I'm not saying that everyone with fusion should go and run a marathon , but in my case, I have been able to really push my body's limits and have been successful so far!
I am so glad to have found this forum. I have had a very positive experience with spinal fusion surgery for my scoliosis. I hope that no one thinks I am gloating, because that is not my intention, but I wanted to share this story with those who are going through the stress and uncertainty of dealing with moderate/severe scoliosis.
I had spinal fusion surgery for a 42 degree thoracic curve when I was 13 years old. I had titanium rods put in and my vertebrae from T4 to L1 were fused.
I was a dancer my whole life and played the snare drum in marching band. I was able to return to dance and band in about 3-4 months, though I still felt stiff and not quite "back to normal" for about a year, I think. I was never super flexible (especially my back and hamstrings, which is weird for a dancer), and while I noticed a loss of flexibility, I still wonder if this was because of the fusion, or because I stopped stretching my lower back.
My surgeon told me that after a year post-surgery, I had no restrictions on activities. I returned to dance (but didn't do layouts or backbends) and band for the rest of high school. I never had any abnormal pain or complications.
Since high school, I have taken dance and yoga classes sporadically, and done free weights and other strength training pretty regularly. I even took up distance running and have run a marathon, a half marathon, and several 10-mile races! I'm fairly sure everyone's back hurts after a marathon , but I didn't have any particular problems because of the scoliosis or fusion.
I am 28 now, so it has been 15 years since the surgery. Most recently, I have taken up belly dance, and I have a fantastic but challenging instructor who has noted that some of my movements are limited, especially rib cage circles. I would really like to improve my lower back flexibility so that I can improve my dance ability. I may consult with a doctor to find out 1) how much more flexible I could expect to get if I worked hard vs. what I'll never be able to do, and 2) whether trying to improve my lower back flexibility significantly will cause problems for the vertebrae below the fusion. Any experience or insight with this would be welcome!
In any case, I feel very fortunate that I have not had complications and have not lost that much flexibility. Of course, everyone's situation is different, and I'm not saying that everyone with fusion should go and run a marathon , but in my case, I have been able to really push my body's limits and have been successful so far!
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