About Me

I was diagnosed with a 54 degree Scoliosis C-Curve and rotating spine, when I was 13. The only option was surgery, so just before my 14th birthday (in 2001), I was fused with harrington rods, screws, and hooks from L3 to T3. Despite the fact that I didn't suffer from any pain at the time of diagnosis, the surgery was truly life-saving. The curve and rotation were so severe, that my doctor predicted that my body would have crushed itself by age 18.

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Please note: The image I'm including below is not of my spine. It's really difficult to get the old records from 2001 (in fact, it's likely they've been tossed in the trash by now) so I'm including an image of a before and after that is very similar to mine, but is not actually me. 

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Nasty stuff, right? 

I am actively working on my full story, but for the sake of a concise, and simple "about me" page, let's continue....

Following my surgery, life was pretty normal. I went back to dance classes and even tried my hand at cheerleading. 

It wasn't until a car accident in 2010, at age 23, that the chronic pain story, truly began. 

Following the accident, X-Rays were done (my Lawyer had to order them, since we were fighting for a settlement from the party at fault) and nothing was found. My pain was inexplicable (or so they said).

I was then repeatedly misdiagnosed with a whole slew of things, from Fibromyalgia to Narcolepsy (it still makes my blood boil when I think about it) until I finally gave up. I stopped seeing doctors and decided to manage things, all by myself. 

Fast forward to today, 10 years later, 2020. My fiance (who happens to be a chiropractor...  the irony!) insisted on taking an updated X ray. 

We found that I had spondylolisthesis in L4 and L5.

"Spondylolisthesis is a spinal condition that affects the lower vertebrae (spinal bones). This disease causes one of the lower vertebrae to slip forward onto the bone directly beneath it."

my spine, Spondylolisthesis in L4/L5

So what this means, is that the wings on the back of my L4 had actually BROKEN OFF at some point, which allowed the vertebrae to shift. 

We couldn't pin down how it happened, until Eric (my fiance) and a group of other doctors visited the X-Ray from 2010. Sadly, we discovered that the fracture actually was visible (to the medically trained eye) on the 2010 X-Ray.

It had somehow been missed by my doctors in 2010..

The spondylolisthesis explains the pain I live with now, and the fracture from 2010 explains how the pain started. 

The trauma of being sent through a whole crew of misdiagnoses and being treated as if your pain is "all in your head" because "you don't look like you're in pain" is something that hurt me on a regular basis, for years. 

To now have the validation of knowing that there really was/is something wrong, has been hugely helpful. However, knowing that this pain could have been avoided, had my MDs caught it in 2010, turns my stomach. 

I have spent 10 years paying the consequences of their mistake, and will continue to spend the rest of my life paying for their mistake. From the minimal settlement I received, to the surgery I'm currently facing, to the fact that I will never carry my own children, and beyond. This is my cross to bear. And while it may not be my fault that this happened, it is my responsibility to care for myself. 

Today, I manage the pain through an active and healthy lifestyle. I do my best to manage things through conservative care, but I am facing surgery at this time (we will likely be fusing L4 and L5 within the next year). 

That's what this blog is here for. To share all my conservative care tips and tricks, from proper diet to self care habits, and also to share my story, as it continues to unfold.

Thank you for reading, and if you are going through anything similiar. Please reach out and/or follow. I want to be a support to anyone else who may be suffering.

Chronic pain is a difficult and often mysterious journey, but we have to keep going. Just like anyone else, each day is one foot in front of the other. I believe in the power of a positive mind set and that everything we put in our bodies, matters.

Wishing you good great health,

Lauren