Hi! I'm Olivia, Livi for short. I'm nearly 14 years old. I was diagnosed with scoliosis when I was 11. This is my story:

The Diagnosis
I went into the doctors office for a routine physical. Near the end I was told to stand up straight. My doctor ran his fingers accross my spine. I remember thinking "yes! I'm almost finished!" Then my doctor told me to bend forward. I was thinking "okay, this is wierd he's never had me do this before." Then he said I could stand back up and that I was done. I stood next to my mom and the doctor looked me in the eye and said "She has scoliosis." I was speechless! I knew what it was... I just couldnt belive it. Then he sent me down for x-rays.

Went into the room and they told me to go and put on a gown. They took 2 x-rays and i was finished. They said that I could go home. And I cried the entire way their. Later that night we go a phone call, it was my doctor. He said my single curve measured at 14*. He said that he wanted me to come back in 6 months and see how it was doing. So we did. Six months later, I went back. They took two more x-rays. Then I was told to go wait in a room. We waited a few minutes, until the x-rays devloped. Next, my doctor stepped in and told me that I now had two curves. The lumbar was small, and hard to measure. But the thoracic was 21*. and I was refured to an orthopedic sugoen. My appointment was set up for 2 months away.

The day finally came. My mom, dad and I drove an hour away to the clinic. Once their we meet with my new ortho. His name is Dr. Pence. He's a large man, with gray hair and glasses. He pushed around on my back, and told me to bend forward. I was told that my flexability was horrible. Dr. Pence was very worried about that. He asked my a bunch of questions, and couldn't figure out what was causing my back to be this way. Then he noticed something, my back was curved the opposite way than normal. It's called Atypical. He immediantly ordered an MRI to make sure that thier wasn't a tumer or cyst pushing it that way. I was sooooo scared!

I was put tino a long tube a week later. I had nothing to wear but a very very lose hospital gown. They put this weird plastic thing over my head so I couldn't move. I was given ear plugs and a blanket, it was freezing in that room! I was in a noisy tube for an hour and a half. When I was finnaly finished, my legs felt like jello. I fell over! It was actrully very funny! I got changed and my parents took me shopping the we went back an hour later to hear the results. When we got back, I litterally held my breath when the doctor came in. Dr. Pence said "Their is nothing to worry about, Olivia. Theirs nothing there. It's all normal" I about screamed! I was so happy! I don't think that ive ever been happier! He said that we would just watch my back for now. My mom set up an appotintment for 3 months later.

The Brace
My mom and I went back. They took two more x-rays and we went and sat in the room again. Dr.Pence came in and said ( ohhh do I remember these words) "We're going to go ahead and brace her." I sat thier, dumb-founded. Then out of nowhere, I laughed! Looking back, I think I may have been hystarical. Then I bawled. I cried until thier was no fluid left in my body. Dr. Pence cut in and said "I relize that isn't what you want to hear, but it will all be okay." Then he told me that my Lumbar curve is 14* and Thoracic is 29* He refured me to a small prostetic place.

On April 1st 2009,I went back and met Jason. Jason fitted me for my brace. He took TONS of measurements and gave me a picture of what my brace would look like. I found out that my brace was a Boston Theoracic Brace. I got a phone call two weeks later telling me my brace was finished. We drove back down to the prostetic place. and Jason showed me how to wear my brace, fastin the strapes etc. At first I thought, "Oh! this isn't bad at all!" Jason let us go and my mom took me out to eat. But I hardly ate a thing, the brace pressed on my stomach so much that every bite i took felt like my stomach was going to bust out of my brace. So I did as best as I could and we went home.

The car ride home was difficult, even to this day, I cannot sit for more than an hour without pain. So that was a deffinate challenge. I was gradully wiened into my brace, my hours increaces 2-4 hours everyday. until I was in it for 20 hours a day. The first night I slept in my brace was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. I got 2 hours of sleep that night. It was funny because I had to take the State assesments the next day and I did suprisingly well! haha!

Looking back on my journey I think, "Wow! I really mad that big of deal over a plasic suit?" I'm so used to my brace now that I offen forget to take it off! My friends think it's the coolest thing ever. They've established that it's not a brace, it's simply my 'Abs of plastic' hahaha! My next appointment with doctor Pence is on April 1st 2010! exacally one year since I got my brace! :)

Thank you for taking the time to read my story.

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