Scoliosis Doesn't Stop Local Hairdresser

Schroth method helps to curb hip pain and increase energy

At age 11, Pat Casey was diagnosed with scoliosis. When she was young, Pat went through a myriad of tests and procedures in order to treat her scoliosis. "First we tried a chiropractor for about a year, and then we decided that wasn't going to work, so we went to an orthopedic specialist in Milwaukee," she said. "They put me in a body cast, and I wore that for about a year and a half."

Pat had two surgeries at age 13, which she says helped her, until she had a child at 21, when she began to experience renewed back pain. "I think childbirth woke up the pain," she said.

"I lived with the pain for a long time - about 20 years," said Pat. On her trips to the doctor, she would receive pain pills and muscle relaxants that would stop the pain for short periods of time, but it would gradually return. At age 38, she finally saw a physician in Marshfield when the pain became unbearable. At the time, she underwent two more surgeries at Saint Joseph's Hospital, where doctors placed Harrington rods in her spine. "That took all of the back pain away, and I'm now 59," said Pat.

It was a pain that developed in Pat's hip, which caused her to seek therapy. Pat's physician and physical therapist determined her hip pain was related to her scoliosis. "That's when I discovered the Schroth method at Saint Michael's Hospital," she said. "It made me feel great, and I was actually seeing correction to my spine."

She also appreciated the attention of the physical therapists at Saint Michael's Hospital in Stevens Point. They made a videotape of the Schroth exercises, which enabled Pat to continue her rehabilitation at home. "I don't do (the Schroth method) as well or as often as I did it with the therapist, but it helps," she said.

Besides the hip pain from the scoliosis, Pat's breathing had become difficult due to the curvature of her spine. Her lungs weren't functioning well because of compression from the curve. "The Schroth method opens up your lungs and makes you breathe out of your weak side, and it gives me so much energy, it's unbelievable," said Pat. "It's not the most comfortable procedure when you're doing it. The breathing is hard, and you put stress on a lot of the parts of your back you're not normally using. But about 50 minutes after you're done, you have so much energy, like you're a whole new person."

She admits that it's a challenge to continue the exercise at home. "It's just like anything else - when you're at home, you don't do it as often. But it doesn't take that long, and you feel better." In addition to her hairdressing, Pat continues to stay active in her everyday activities, like gardening. "It involves a lot of up-and-down and back-and-forth movement, which is good for me," she said.

Pat thinks her age and many years of hairdressing are causing her legs to give out. But her back and her hip are just fine. "I know a lot of people with back problems, and I don't have any of that," said Pat. "I'm still disfigured and slump over a lot, but I don't have any pain."