Language around Scoliosis
(Part 2 of 2) If you are reading my blog posts you just heard me talk about the delicate scenario of taking pictures of scoliosis patients at a doctor’s office. On a similar train of thought, I sometimes hear practitioners and researchers use standard language around scoliosis that makes me …
Read More
Images of Yourself
(Part 1 of 2) I just returned from a Scoliosis research conference I try to attend once a year. I love going to this conference. It’s usually in some interesting place (like Turin!), and it is filled with physiotherapists, orthotists, researchers on the latest scoliosis technology, and surgeons from all …
Read More
Why does Back Bending hurt with scoliosis?
Many years ago when I was an early yoga teacher, not yet a therapist, one of my colleagues mentioned that back bending made her unhappy. This woman had scoliosis. I was immediately curious, and my untrained mind was trying to figure out the source, but I didn’t know anything about …
Read More
Do I have a C curve or a low back curve?
Last week I was demonstrating an exercise to a delightfully curious woman with scoliosis. I highlighted the fact that this particular exercise was targeting her lower back muscles. “But wait, don’t I have a C Curve?” “Techinically, yes, but you also have a low back curve.” The confusion might have …
Read More
Understanding your Cobb Angle
I was recently working with a client who was asked to get an EOS x-ray to measure the degree of curvature in his spine, and repeat the x-ray a few months later to see if there had been any changes. When the client showed me the reports he asked why …
Read More
EOS Imaging- a low dose x-ray
Did you know there are alternatives to X-Ray Imaging? Although I try my best to keep up with the latest research, I was surprised when a client told me about EOS imaging that I hadn’t yet heard of. Luckily I was on my way to a research conference in Croatia …
Read More
To Side Bend, or not to Side Bend,
IS that the Question? How I got curious about Side Bending and Scoliosis Years ago, I was working with a client with severe scoliosis. I noticed she was experiencing some discomfort when I asked her to bend towards the side of her more prominent curve. I remember being confused by …
Read More
Getting Ahead of your Curve (Type)
Do you know what type of curve you have? Whenever I meet someone who has scoliosis, one of the most common answers to this question is, “I. Don’t. Know.” I don’t blame them. This could be for a number of reasons— maybe they were diagnosed with scoliosis at some point …
Read More
Back off! Yoga therapy and scoliosis: Part 2
During a class I was teaching on scoliosis, one of the students—a vital, stylish woman in her 80s—mentioned that her friend was constantly pestering her about her posture. “Tell her to back off!” I said. Let me explain. This woman was in possession of an S-shaped scoliotic curve. This means …
Read More