My Story

Scoliosis is a sideways curvature of the spine, which can cause the spine and rib cage to curve and twist with no known cause. I was diagnosed with scoliosis when I was 14. In my case, I had two spinal curves in the shape of an 'S'. They were very severe, requiring a huge spinal surgery operation to fuse and stabilise the spine to prevent it slowly getting worse and causing issues with my heart and lungs. 

I had scoliosis surgery on July 29th 2010. I’m now fused T3 to L3, which basically means that pretty much my whole spine is fused apart from 3 discs at the bottom. 

Following my surgery, it took me over a year to fully recover and I had to learn the basics again. It was a very painful and long recovery, I couldn't even sit up in bed or get in the shower by myself for some time. 

Today, I still get pain, my breathing is affected and I have numbness and nerve issues but my quality of life is so much better than before I had the surgery. Going through something like this makes you really appreciate life and I still find it hard to believe all the things I can do now, it's truly amazing what the human body is capable of. 

To celebrate 10 years with a titanium spine, I decided to push myself further than I have before by running an actual marathon in April - Manchester Marathon 2022! I did it woohoo! 

Then in OCTOBER 2023, I plan to take on my biggest challenge EVER - a 10 day trek to Machu Picchu, which is something I've really wanted to do for a while now. 

This challenge has been moved a few times due to the pandemic, and now political protests... but hopefully soon I can finally get it done!

I'll be posting updates on my training over on my Instagram YouTube and blog, so be sure to follow me and keep updated :)

The Trek to Machu Picchu is graded as Tough and will involve:

-Trekking an average of 8 hours a day

-Trekking at high altitude

-The maximum altitude reached is 4600m above sea level

-Trekking through remote areas where facilities are basic

My aim with these challenges is to push myself and inspire others with scoliosis but also to raise awareness of the condition, as although very common, it is still relatively unknown. 

I really need your support in raising as much money and awareness as possible. All money donated will go towards the Scoliosis Association UK.

Thank you for your support <3

Louise X

Follow my journey - https://www.youtube.com/c/LifeWithScoliosis/