Paola Bassanese, director of Energya Ltd www.energya.co.uk, is preparing a study on how massage therapy can help scoliosis sufferers. The main research assumption is that massage can significantly reduce discomfort and back pain in people with a pronounced curvature in their spine.
If you are interested in participating in this study and can commit for 6 months to receive free massage therapy once a week please get in touch: paola@energya.co.uk.

Sometimes nature needs a helping hand

I was diagnosed with scoliosis as a teenager. So, statistically speaking, I was ticking all the boxes as a scoliosis sufferer because:

• scoliosis affects mostly young girls (80% of the cases)
• scoliosis develops mostly during puberty.

My spine had a 45 degree curvature and when I was told I had to undergo surgery I panicked (and so did my mother). As a teenager, the last thing you need is to give your peers yet another excuse to mock you.

Not only I needed to have surgery, but I was also told I had to wear a brace for one year after the operation (not a good look). If untreated, my scoliosis would aggravate in a matter of months and it would have left me in a serious debilitating condition with severe complications to my breathing, blood circulation and nervous system.

Spinal surgery is extremely invasive and high risk as  a small minority of surgery patients can become paralysed. My surgery straightened the thoracic part of my spine which was more affected and a Harrington rod was attached to my vertebrae from T4 to L1.

After my operation I was bed-bound for 1 month and was not allowed to sit up for a few weeks  (this was the hospital policy in Italy, where I had the operation; in the UK you are told to sit up the day after the operation).

After being dismissed from the hospital I had physiotherapy but I was unimpressed with the low levels of motivation and care the State-paid physiotherapists had.

The worst part of the recovery programme was being told what I was NOT allowed to do:

• parachuting (ahem, not that I had planned to do it anyway…)
• long distance running
• boxing
• martial arts

I have always been rebellious so I set off on a mission to challenge all these limitations.

Over the years, I enthusiastically threw myself into all sorts of fun and exciting activities (DISCLAIMER: ALWAYS CHECK WITH YOUR DOCTOR WHAT ACTIVITIES YOU ARE ALLOWED TO PERFORM IF YOU HAVE SCOLIOSIS).

My list of achievements grew bigger and bigger:

• climbed Machu Picchu in Peru
• street dance performance at the Royal Festival Hall in London
• paragliding in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
• kick boxing classes at the gym

I set up my own business, Energya, as a way to raise awareness of health and wellbeing issues. As a massage therapist, I put my body through a lot of physical challenges and I love it, although I will not be able to practise massage in the long term because of wear and tear.

I have a support team of fellow massage therapists, physiotherapists, osteopaths and chiropractors who look after my back and I have been symptom-free for years.

I hope my story will inspire others who suffer from scoliosis.

Sometimes nature needs a helping hand

As a scoliosis sufferer myself, I know how disheartening it can be to be told that your child/you have scoliosis. Scoliosis is a severe curvature of the spine that can have grave consequences if untreated. I was operated in Italy as a teenager and my thoracic spine is held together in place with a Harrington rod. Thanks to regular exercise, Pilates, chiropractic adjustments, osteopathy treatments and massage I am completely pain free and go through my daily life without even thinking I might have a back problem.
If you have scoliosis, don’t suffer in silence: get a referral from a GP to see a specialist and catch it while it’s still in its early phases if possible.
More work has to be done to educate children and teachers in schools to spot this problem early.
Adults with scoliosis can also considerably reduce the amount of pain and discomfort by having regular treatment.
I will be at The Back Show in Earls Court on Sunday 4th October. Feel free to contact me at paola@energya.co.uk

Recommended reading: Energya’s fitness page.