A young woman with scoliosis has revealed her incredible transformation after surgeons straightened her curved spine with 20 screws.
American influencer Paige Mackenzie discovered she had a curved spine at the age of 14.
The Texas-native, now 22, recently took to Instagram to share the results of her ‘intense’ spine surgery that was so painful, it left her unable to touch her toes or brush her teeth.
‘I was basically a stick figure,’ Paige said, recalling the procedure that involved ‘ripping apart’ the entire back and using rods and screws to straighten the spine before ‘stitching you back up’.
‘It’s the worst pain you’ll ever experience in your life,’ she admitted.
Paige opted for the surgery after her condition began to worsen, eventually reaching a 44-degree curvature as she got older.
‘Typically as you get older, your scoliosis progresses and gets worse,’ she explained. ‘When I was 14, my curvature was probably maybe 15 or 20 degrees.
‘By the time I had spine surgery, it had progressed to 44 degrees,’ Paige continued, noting the curvature had ‘more than doubled’ in just seven years.
A young woman with scoliosis has revealed her incredible transformation after surgeons straightened her curved spine with 20 screws
American influencer Paige Mackenzie discovered she had a curved spine at the age of 14. The Texas-native, now 22, recently took to Instagram to share the results of her ‘intense’ spine surgery that was so painful, it left her unable to touch her toes or brush her teeth
Paige opted for the surgery after her condition began to worsen, eventually reaching a 44-degree curvature – as shown in the X-ray above
Over the years, she tried various treatments – including the use of a brace, physical therapy as well as chiropractic care – but none of them were effective in straightening her spine or alleviating the pain she was experiencing.
‘They like to try to put a brace on you if you catch it at a young age,’ she said. ‘But I don’t think braces work at all.
‘I’ve known many people who’ve tried a brace, and it doesn’t work.
‘It’s like wearing braces on your teeth and a retainer – eventually, they go back to their original state,’ she explained.
‘Physical therapy didn’t help. Honestly, it felt like it made my back kind of worse,’ she admitted.
‘And chiropractic, which I did multiple times a week from 14 to 18, sadly didn’t help either.’
Over time, her pain worsened; Paige – who is an avid golfer – found herself unable to go a round or even go for a run.
‘Sometimes my back pain was so bad I could feel it in my chest, like someone had a foot on it, and it was hard to breathe.
The ‘intense’ surgery involved inserting two rods and about 20 screws to correct the curvature
‘My spine was crooked, but it was also twisted, which made things even more challenging.’
In search of relief, Paige met with several doctors but struggled to find one willing to perform surgery.
‘Most doctors I saw said that typically someone with this type of curvature doesn’t really have much pain, so they wouldn’t recommend surgery,’ she recalled.
Eventually, however, she found a surgeon in Arkansas who was willing to help – with Paige describing the doctor as ‘absolutely fabulous’.
The ‘intense’ surgery involved inserting two rods and about 20 screws to correct the curvature.
‘They’re basically ripping apart your entire back, putting rods on either side of your spine, and stitching you back up.
‘It’s horrible,’ Paige admitted.
She then embarked on a long and recover process that took several months, but Paige remained determined to get back to doing all the things she loved.
Despite the pain and limitations, Paige has embraced her journey and continues to share updates with her followers
‘For the first three months, I couldn’t touch my toes or bend over. Even brushing my teeth felt impossible. I was basically a stick figure,’ she said.
Despite the pain and limitations, Paige has embraced her journey and continues to share updates with her followers.
One of her most impactful posts features a photo taken the day after her surgery.
‘That’s where they had cut me down my spine to insert the rods,’ Paige said.
Her surgeon even shared photos of her spine before and after the procedure, with Paife admitting they were ‘crazy looking’.
‘I can’t believe he took those and gave them to me, but I’m quite appreciative.’
Months later, she is back on the golf course and continues to share snippets from her life post-surgery.
‘Golf is a large amount of the content I post, so I’ve been showing my followers how I’m getting back into it and working my body up to being able to golf again,’ she shared.
The response from her audience has been overwhelmingly positive.
‘Some people have an emotional connection to my journey because they’ve had the same problems.
‘Others just think it’s crazy looking,’ Paige said.
Scoliosis isn’t uncommon, particularly in girls, but Paige was surprised to find just how many people could relate to her experience.
‘I’ve posted my whole journey about scoliosis, and I never realized that so many people struggle with it. The amount of comments and DMs I get is crazy.
‘People say, ‘I’m thinking about having the surgery,’ or, ‘I did have the surgery-here was my experience.’ Some ask for advice, tips, or even what surgeon I went to.
‘It’s incredible to connect with so many people who share this experience.’