Hi, my name is Katie and I am 14 years old. I am organising a JustGiving page to help raise money for Scoliosis Association UK. I am asking people to sponsor me to cut off at least 12 inches of my hair and that money will go towards SAUK. My hair will be donated to The Little Princess Trust. 

Scoliosis Association UK is a charity that helps support people with scoliosis and their families. This includes providing advice, support, and information to people affected by scoliosis and their families and raise awareness of scoliosis. SAUK help people to feel less isolated, improve body image and reduce pain and worry. 

Scoliosis is a condition that affects around 2-3% of the population and affected by all ages. Scoliosis is where the spine twists and curves to the side. 

People with scoliosis may experience the following things: 

• Clothes fitting awkwardly

• Trouble breathing

• Cardiovascular problems

• Pain - this can vary between a dull ache to a shooting pain

• Stiffness 

The two main ways in which scoliosis can be treated are having surgery and wearing a back brace. The surgery for scoliosis is a spinal fusion. The idea is to realign and fuse together the curved vertebrae so that they heal into a single, solid bone. Another option is to wear a back brace. A back brace is designed to slow or stop progression of the spinal curvature. However, this will only work if the person’s spine is still growing. Rigid braces put pressure on your spine in several places to help prevent it from curving more than it already has. 

I am someone who has been affected by scoliosis and it is something I have to deal with every day. I was first diagnosed with Idiopathic Adolescent scoliosis at the beginning of September 2020 after my mum booked me an appointment with an osteopath because I had been complaining about having a painful back. Since then, I have been to multiple hospital appointments in both Brighton and London. During the majority of summer 2021, I wore a back brace for roughly 20 hours every day. I haven’t worn the brace since September last year because I was having a very difficult time with it. It caused me a lot of pain and discomfort and it also lowered my self esteem massively. My spine had also stopped growing by that point so there wasn’t any point in continuing to wear it. I am not saying this to put anyone off wearing a back brace because everyone’s experience is different. I know that there are plenty of people who had a very positive experience with the brace. During my last appointment in early May this year, we found out that the middle curve in my spine had increased by about 20 degrees in the past 6 months. For now, I have chosen not to have surgery as the ways in which my spine is curved would cause too many complications. If I were to have surgery now, the majority of my spine would need to be operated on. Unless there’s an emergency, I won’t be having another hospital appointment until November 2023 as the specialist isn’t too concerned about my spine becoming too painful or difficult to handle. When we see the specialist again next year, we will then decide what to do next. For now, I just have to find ways to work around the pain and difficulties I face due to scoliosis. 

Raising money for Scoliosis Association UK is very important to me because I want other people like me to be able to get the support they need, whether that is advice on how to deal with physical and emotional pain caused by this condition or to reduce the chance of miss-information about scoliosis. I believe that it is important for everyone to understand what scoliosis is and how it impacts peoples lives. I’m tired of hearing people tell me that I’ve just slept weirdly or that if I improve my posture it will be fixed. The more we spread awareness about scoliosis, the less we will see this ignorant behaviour. 

All donations, no matter how small, will be gratefully received.