During September of 2019 I ran a huge giveaway of scoliosis resource products on Instagram called Scoli September. I ended up sending 43 packages filled with scoliosis books, journals, workout videos, teaching videos, and swag out around the world. It was a lot of fun to be the scoli Santa.
The scoli treat packages were sent to 15 states in the USA and 14 different countries around the world ranging from India, to the Netherlands, to the UK, to Australia, to Singapore. I spent a lot of time writing loving notes of encouragement to these scoliosis warriors and filling out customs papers to ship them around the world.
To win these packages people had to interact with different scoliosis topics each week. One week we had three true/false questions people had to answer. Here they are:
- Scoliosis never progresses after your done growing. False!
- Boys don’t get scoliosis. False!
- Orthodontics and scoliosis can be correlated. True!
There is so much misinformation in the scoli community world-wide, and it was pretty interesting how many people answered the questions incorrectly.
I don’t think you can make peace with your scoliosis and treat it correctly until you know the truth about it—and there are millions of people around the world that don’t know the different truths about scoliosis.
One question I didn’t ask during Scoli September, but could have is, “is there a cure for scoliosis?” I am asked this question all the time, so as a little extension of Scoli September I’m going to shed some much-needed light on that question.
Understandably, people want an easy fix for their diagnosis—a pill, a short physical therapy treatment, a surgery. Unfortunately, there is no easy fix for scoliosis. There is no cure for scoli.
Most people’s scoliosis has an unknown cause or causes. Now, everything in life has a cause, but because scoli can originate from so many different pathologies and origins, there typically isn’t an obvious single cause. Thus there isn’t an easy “fix” for scoli.
In my book Analyzing Scoliosis I list over 50 different diagnosis that can lead to scoliosis. That means someone can end up with a sideways curve over 10 degrees in a whole lot of different ways. If you don’t know the cause of your scoli, I’d encourage you to be a detective and figure out what was going on in the time of your life when your scoli started to develop. That information will help your doctors and practitioners treat the root cause for your scoli. Here are some questions you can ask yourself to start your detective journey.
- How was your physical health?
- How was your diet?
- Were you getting enough sleep?
- How was your emotional health
- How was your family life?
- Did you have orthodontic braces on your teeth?
- Did you have an injury?
- What hobbies or extracurricular activities were you doing and how often?
- Does anyone in your immediate or extended family have scoliosis?
- When did you go through puberty?
Be sure to write down the answers and share the results with your doctors and movement practitioners. Something you say may lead them to an answer or new idea.
That being said, once the scoli has developed, fascial and muscular changes occur—and those need to be addressed in addition to the root cause. It’s not necessarily that fascial and muscular changes started the scoli, but once the scoli started, fascial and muscular changes happened. Changes to bone can also occur as a result of scoliosis. For example, the rib bones usually start to morph and change shape slightly.
Once someone has scoliosis the goal is to restack the body up as straight as possible. Movement therapy, like the Pilates I practice at Spiral Spine Pilates Studio, and bracing are considered conservative, non-surgical therapies for scoli. I know many people around the world, myself included, who have decreased their curvatures and lessened their pain using these therapies. While these don’t cure the scoli, quality of life can improve dramatically.
Scoliosis spinal fusion surgery is also a treatment for scoli and also attempts to stack the spine in a permanently “straight” position. Now, remember that because we don’t know the root cause of most scoli cases, the surgery doesn’t treat the cause of the scoliosis. Therefore, surgery doesn’t cure scoliosis, it simply treats a symptom of the original cause, a side bending, rotating spine.
When surgery takes place you trade a mobile, twisted spine for an almost straight, non-mobile spine. You’ve also created a ton of scar tissue in the body that you now must deal with. While I understand that there is a time and place for almost everything under the sun, I think too many people are looking for a quick “cure” for scoliosis by doing surgery.
While it may make you more upright, surgery hasn’t “cured” you. You still have the twisting fascia, rib rotation, and a sideways bend. Now that a large part of your spine is immobilized you’ll have to work even harder to address the muscular and fascial changes caused by scoli.
After working on my scoli and those of scoli clients all over the world for well over a decade, my conclusion is: the “cure” for scoliosis is that you must own your scoliosis. You need to find the root cause and address it. You also need to know what direction your spine twists and what exercises and other therapies help it to untwist.
A scoliometer (iTunes, Android) is my favorite tool in my toolkit for helping people with their scoli because it can give immediate feedback as to which therapies help and hurt your body. Since it measures rotation, a decrease in the scoliometer measurement correlates positively with therapies that help your body while an increase in measurement correlates with exercises that your spine doesn’t like.
If you’re interested in starting the process to own your scoli here are my suggestions:
- Check out these scoliosis resources
- Watch the Starting Point Series videos
- Come to a Scoliosis Intensive workshop
You need to know know that there isn’t a “cure” for scoliosis. Instead, aim at owning your scoliosis and being pain free. No one else is going to do it for you.
My son had a diagnosis of scoliosis at about age 11. The doctor did not initiate further treatment and said keep an eye on it. My son was very athletic, did all sports, never saw any problems, except that he didn’t like to stand still because his back hurt. We attributed that to his early rapid growth, always a head taller than friends, stopped in H.S. at 6″ 7′. In college sports I noticed a bulging shoulder blade. Scoliosis had advanced. He was told surgery would make him taller 2″ or more. Is that true? He refused to address the problem further. He is now 35. I am very concerned.
Your son possible would’ve been a bit taller had his scoli not happened, as scoli can decrease the height or the torso. Fortunately, your son is an adult now and his back is now his to address, or not. It’s no longer your job to manage. I’d encourage you to take a deep breath. “Parent guilt”, as I call it, when dealing with scoli is a real thing and I’d encourage you to work through those feelings or talk to a professional who can help you work through those feelings. When and if your son is ready to work on his scoli, my staff and I would love to help him along his journey. He’s going to be OK. Really. Hugs from one mom to another.
Blessings,
Erin Myers
How can I find out my scoliosis degree angle? I was diagnosed with scoliosis as a child but not worthy enough to seek further treatment. I’m 54 now and have had a low pain grade in my lower right back through buttock present at 26 but intermittent. Two pregnancies later, a lower lumbar spine fusion and R SI joint fusion with severe feet arthritis and now some palindromic arthritis, I’m perm disabled. No one made a peep about the scoliosis even though obvious on imaging. To date, that lower right pain still present.
Hi! Im 26 and I started invisalign and 5 months into the treatment I experienced awful back pain (and I never had back pain before).. when in for an Xray and my curve was off and shifted towards the left..
So invisalign causes the spine to shift?
Should I stop the invisalign?
Hi G,
Yes, Invisalign can absolutely cause the head, teeth, jaw, neck, and spine to shift. I’ve seen it make some scoli better, and others worse. I’d suggest you get a virtual lesson with me and I can help you assess and make the next best step.
Blessings,
Erin Myers
My daughter had her second appointment for her back and it did not worsen so the doctor said he didn’t think he needed to see her back. She’s 13 and that she has almost or has reached her growing size. She only has about 13 to 15 percent curve which I understand is not even close to bad as some others but for some reason I’m not sure that I believe she will not grow anymore and or that it will not get worse.
Hi Jessica,
It’s wonderful to hear that your daughter’s scoliosis seems stable right now. What a blessing. The hard thing is that no one has a magic ball to see the future. I was diagnosed with a 17 degree curve at age 14 and the doctor said nothing needed to be done. I had an Xray done in my late 20s after I’d given birth to my two sons, and my curve had jumped to 35 degrees and I’d developed a lower curve at about 25 degrees. Luckily I knew what to do, so as an adult I was able to bring my upper curve back down into the lower 20s/upper teens and lower curve below 10, but I still have a lot of ribcage rotation. The best thing you can do for your daughter is to act on the curves now and see if you can get them even straighter. My staff and I do virtual lessons with people around the world and we’d love to help if you’d like help.
Blessings,
Erin Myers
Why are doctors hiding the truth about Scoliosis. It is my view more people should be educated.
Hi Randy,
I, too, wish the medical community was more educated. I don’t think doctors are purposefully hiding this information from people, I think they don’t know it. I have many, many doctors who refer their scoliosis patients to Spiral Spine because we have more knowledge about scoliosis than they do. Keep educating yourself and moving your scoliosis.
Blessings,
Erin