However, when I was 15 I started to experience pain in my lower back. The pain wasn’t a problem to start with and my parents put it down to growing pains, but the pain very quickly became more severe and I was taken to the doctors.
After I was told I had scoliosis the next stage of events is just a huge blur for me. I had endless consultations with spinal specialists and visited a number of hospitals to enable my parents to make a decision regarding my treatment.
The only thing I do remember was being told on the morning of my surgery that I was going into hospital and that the surgeon was going to cure my condition. Looking back on these words I know he was wrong, as no one can cure scoliosis and the operation I had was purely for cosmetic purposes. If anything I actually think it was more for my mother than anyone else as she was very conscious of my condition.
Following the surgery I remember being in a huge amount of pain and being given a strong dose of medication. I remember doctors and nurses rushing around me and feeling rather confused and frightened.
Nevertheless after a few months I left the hospital and returned to being a normal teenage boy. I didn’t question my parents' decision to send me for surgery as I was too scared and at the time I just thought they were trying to do their best for me.
Several years passed and I almost forgot I had a spinal condition. I went to university and then got married. It wasn’t until my early thirties when one of my sons asked me to play football that I realised the problems with my back had not gone away, if anything they were only just beginning.
The pain in my back started off as small twinges and gradually got worse and worse. Finally after several weeks of persuasion my wife took me to see a specialist. At this point I was desperate I had always thought that surgery was the answer to my problems. I had even accepted that I may need further surgery so when I was told there was nothing more anyone could do for me I was devastated.
After I returned home I turned to the internet in a desperate attempt to find a way to treat my pain. It was at this point I discovered Scoliosis SOS. I had an hour long telephone consultation with a consultant at the clinic who explained in detail why I was experiencing so much pain. He told me that although my spine had been partially straightened with surgery my muscles were still imbalanced and this needed to be addressed in order to stop my pain.
Suddenly after years of living in the dark regarding my condition I finally felt in control. I immediately booked on a four week course of treatment in the UK. Living in Saudi Arabia it wasn’t easy making the arrangements to leave my wife and children for 4 weeks but for some reason I knew it was the right decision.
It’s now 2 years since I finished my course of treatment at the SOS centre and I can honestly say it was the best decision I have ever made. I have been pain free from day three of the course and I have never looked back. I have gained so much knowledge from the therapists and I can really say that I now understand my condition and how to control the symptoms.
I can run around for hours with my children, something that to me personally is completely priceless. My confidence has improved dramatically and my posture is continuing to improve every day. The only thing I regret is not being given the opportunity to make my own decision about the treatment of my condition, as if I was given my time again there is no way I would have gone through surgery. The surgery improves what you look like, not what quality of life you have.
Whether you live in the Middle East or elsewhere in the world, our non-surgical scoliosis treatment courses can help you to improve your quality of life and overcome the symptoms of scoliosis. Contact us now for more details about our courses and the accommodation we can provide here at the clinic.
Scoliosis SOS – London Clinic