29 Jun 2020
My journey with scoliosis began when I was 8 years old (I was in year 2 at Milton Public School). On a visit to the doctor for an unrelated reason he saw a slight curve in my spine to my parent’s surprise. We were given a referral to a specialist, Dr Angus Grey who was located in the children’s Hospital in Randwick, Sydney. Dr Grey measured the curve and to start it was ok but if the curve went past 30 degrees, he said I would need to wear a brace. And so I was given a brace to wear every one and a half years or so every day and night until I was 16 (year 10) and I got to choose what different type of pattern I wanted each time I got a new one, I usually chose the army, navy or air force camo colours.
It was pretty uncomfortable at first, I hated wearing it and made up every excuse not to wear it. I was really self-conscious of what my peers at school would think and it limited my flexibility, especially during school sport. But I was lucky to start at a younger age to fix my curve faster and also grow confidence in myself and wear my brace with pride. As my primary school friends started to realise my brace more, I began telling them fake stories about how I needed to wear a bullet proof vest because I was a target for assassins. I even told my friends to punch me in the gut when I had it on to get a laugh seeing them in surprise (sorry Ethan).
As High school came around, I became a little less confident in myself as there were many unfamiliar faces and as you would know as you grow people begin to develop their own opinions about an individual’s differences. At times when conflict grew within the friends closest to me, it became an insult, people calling me deformed and crippled. But it never fazed me as they would never know the struggle and so I would tell myself to forgive them as they are so uneducated of the circumstances of my condition. It will always remind me of how it shaped my life for the better and how it has allowed me to meet new people and build my character with leadership qualities, which has led me to where I am now as School Captain. Without my Scoliosis journey I would never have become the person I am today and to step forward as a cured Scoliosis patient and to have the opportunity to share my story is such a privilege and I encourage many more people with Scoliosis to their share journey too.