Overcoming the Curve: A Triumph over the Challenges of Scoliosis

Dr. Rita Roy: Hi everyone. My name is Dr. Rita Roy, CEO of the National Spine Health Foundation, and I’m your host for the Get Back to It podcast, where we tell real stories of healing and recovery. What does it mean to get back to it? It means overcoming a spine problem through treatments at work in order to return to the people and activities you love.

Whatever that looks like for you, it means getting back to your life. We’re here to share the success stories of those who did just that. And some of these stories

At the Get Back To It podcast, our goal is to tell stories of spinal champions who’ve been able to achieve a better quality of life through spinal health care. In today’s episode, I’m excited to be joined by John Paulson from Mill Valley, California. For many, a scoliosis diagnosis can mean a lifetime of limitations, but John refused to let his condition define him.

As a young athlete, he chose to forgo spinal fusion surgery, pushing through years of athletic competition. However, as he aged, the pain became unbearable. After exhausting every non surgical treatment, John finally found the right surgeon and underwent a life changing, extreme spinal fusion. The road to recovery was grueling, marked by complications and intense rehab.

But his journey is a testament to resilience. John’s determination never wavered. Now, as he rebuilds his strength and he sets new goals, we are here to share his inspiring story, overcoming adversity and reclaiming life on his own terms.

John was diagnosed with scoliosis as a teenager. 

John Poulson: Yes, I was diagnosed at 14 after a routine physical and the doctor ordered x rays which revealed an S curve in my thoracic spine. I didn’t have any symptoms at that point. 

Dr. Rita Roy: This diagnosis did not stop John. He continued on It’s very active lifestyle 

John Poulson: at the time.

It was recommended that I undergo fusion while the fusion would fix my abnormal curvature. You would also would have ended my participation in athletics. I was heavily involved in football, hockey, and lacrosse at that time. And I didn’t want to give it up. I declined the surgery with the consent of my parents.

So to stabilize my spine, I settled on wearing them Milwaukee brace for a couple of years. Brace was an uncomfortable setup containing a molded girdle, two vertical steel bars. that rose on either side of the spine to neck level. There were two pads connected to the steel bars designed to push the curvature back into a straight position.

I hated that thing. I took it off to play sports and often conveniently forgot to put it back on. 

Dr. Rita Roy: John went on to live a relatively normal life. He played college hockey. He was an active sailor. Trekker, climber, open water swimmer, racing cyclist, and an avid outdoorsman. As he got older, his back issues became more difficult.

John Poulson: At age 45, I noticed my pain had become nearly constant. I spent a lot of time in the tub or on ice. In addition to a strong ache, I experienced sharp pain in my thoracic spine and increasingly in my lumbar spine. I termed the sharp pain the stabbers, as it felt as if someone was sticking a sharp knife in my back.

I had my sh I had my first epidural injection about this time, which provided some temporary. Over the next 20 years, it became so bad that I had to decrease my activity levels. By the time I was 64, I could only hike, swim, and even then I had to push through the pain. As a lifelong athlete, this is pretty difficult.

Dr. Rita Roy: As John’s condition worsened, he began to seek more treatment options. 

John Poulson: I sought the opinion of my primary care doctor, Dr. Elizabeth Enemaud in Novato, California. with whom I have a great relationship and who is by training an osteopath. She suggested I get an MRI in my spine. Not only did this show complications stemming from my progressive scoliosis, but it also revealed other issues.

I had degenerative disc disease in both my thoracic and lumbar spine. I had spondylosis, which is just another term for arthritis in the spine. And I also had spondylolisthesis, which is when a vertebrae slips forward and out of alignment. Now 

Dr. Rita Roy: Now fully aware of these issues, John underwent a variety of conservative treatments to try to battle his condition.

John Poulson: Yes, Dr. Etemad recommended physical therapy, and I’m lucky to have a great therapist with whom I worked when I had my knee replaced a couple of years ago. Sarah Elson of Presidio Sport Medicine here in Del Valle gave me a routine that I followed religiously. I also sought out several chiropractors.

Those sessions only increased my pain. I had another round of epidural injections. At L four L five not only brought temporary relief, I then opted for a series of medial branch blocks, facet joint infections in my lumbar spine. None of these treatments brought much relief. In fact, ice and heat seek to be just as effective at pain reduction.

Dr. Rita Roy: Discouraged from these trials, John reluctantly sought out surgical opinions. 

John Poulson: I sought out referrals to orthopedists and had two appointments with physicians. I chose not to engage. At one practice, I never saw the doctor. I was shunted off on a physician’s assistant. At another practice, the surgeon told me that I needed an operation, but he wasn’t sure what he’d do until the actual surgery.

Well, that wasn’t going to fly. So at my wit’s end, I discovered Dr. Tawun Arora of the University of California San Francisco Medical Center. Dr. Aurora was part of a team that had successfully removed a tumor from my wife’s right optic in 2023. He reviewed my MRI results and told me that major surgery was necessary.

However, he wanted to bring my case to his team for further review and recommendation. I was reassured that a thoughtful practitioner wanted to take a measured approach to major surgery. At our next appointment, he told me his team was recommending extreme fusion from T8 to S1 required two days of surgery.

Surgery totaling about 24 hours. By then I felt that I exhausted all other options and was ready to take strong measures. Dr. Aurora was brutally honest about the difficulties of the surgery and the extensive and painful recovery. He told me that the vast majority of patients requiring these procedures were turned down because it was felt that they were incapable of withstanding the surgery and the rehab.

Despite the pain, I embarked on a serious training program to ensure that I’d be in the best possible condition for surgery. And surgery, and I wonder, underwent the procedures. In 2024, 

Dr. Rita Roy: John woke up from the first surgery in great pain. He was unable to stand without assistance or walk for more than 20 feet with a walker.

John Poulson: The night in the first surgery, they discovered that I developed an ileus, which is an air bubble at my colon, caused me to go into atrial fibrillation or AFib. I don’t recall much. In the next few days in an attempt to flush the ileus, they pump 30 pounds of water into me. The second 12. A 12 hour surgery was performed, but they pumped so much water into me that my kidneys were having trouble flushing it, and I was on Lasix, a diuretic, for days until normal function returned.

These complications required me to stay at UCSF Hospital for 20 days. I lost almost 30 pounds of muscle mass, couldn’t push the walker more than 20 feet, could barely stand, had balance issues, and experienced nerve pain in my legs. And then spent two weeks at St. Mary’s in In patient rehab in San Francisco for six hours a day.

I underwent intense physical and occupational rehab work concentrated on building endurance by walking with the walker, working on balance and building strength. The PTs in there told me they’d never seen a more motivated patient. They routinely had to shut down my sessions while I was ready to do more.

I eventually returned home, but still had to be pretty careful navigating the stairs of my house. Be cautious moving around. 

Dr. Rita Roy: After John returned home, he restarted. He started physical therapy at Presidio Sport and Medicine, where he began to make significant progress. 

John Poulson: After I got back into physical therapy, I could show myself improving day by day.

I was getting stronger, beginning to put on muscle mass. I’m now largely pain free and the residual pain is nothing compared to where it was. Today I’m still doing physical therapy, but I’ve also returned to the gym, to hiking and pool swimming. My weight’s returned to my pre surgical levels. I’m still dealing with some balance issues.

It’s a nerve pain, but I plan to return to open water swimming this spring. And I’ve also made a goal of climbing the 2, 500 foot mountain near my home by my birthday, this August. Although I had some setbacks after my surgery, I’m still so grateful for it. I’m also thankful for the care and support I received, medical staff, my friends, and my ever supportive wife.

Wow, John. 

Dr. Rita Roy: Wow. I’m sitting here on this podcast.

Looking at a video of you as we’re talking here on, on this video call, and I would have no idea what you have gone through if you did not share that story because you look amazing. 

John Poulson: Well, thank you. I appreciate it. 

Dr. Rita Roy: Unbelievable what you’ve been through in these, these recent months. This has not been too long ago.

Um, wow. I mean, May of 24 and we are now in February of 25. So. Just a few short months ago, I can’t get over how amazing you appear to be right now. 

John Poulson: Well, I appreciate that Rita. Thanks. I was pretty fragile when I, uh, when I came out, but I’ve worked pretty hard and, uh, and I feel like I’m really recovering well at this point.

Dr. Rita Roy: Yeah, it shows. John, your story is just so fascinating. It’s so amazing to hear how determined you have been. Throughout your whole journey, you know, despite all these symptoms that, that you’ve gone through. And I love hearing about your, uh, determination and physical therapy to not stop, that you’re not going to stop and, and, and, and, uh, pushing through that.

That is just absolutely amazing. Let’s talk a little bit, John, about, you know, this very long, lifelong journey you’ve, you’ve gone through with your scoliosis. Um, I, I actually want to, Talk a little bit about your experience with your race as a young person. That sounded really tough. So as a young athletic kid, you’re playing lots of sports, you played college sports.

I can’t imagine what that must have been like for you as a kid dealing with that race. Can you tell us about that? 

John Poulson: Yeah, you know, it’s tough because you’re, you’re wearing this brace and you’re an adolescent and you know, you’re different than the other kids. There was some fun making, quite frankly, nobody, uh, ever made fun of me twice because I took care of them.

Took care 

Dr. Rita Roy: of him. Don’t mess with John. 

John Poulson: It is difficult. And quite frankly, I don’t think I did a great job at wearing it, I would take it off when I was playing sports and forget to put it back on, or if I, there was a dance or something, I wouldn’t wear it and, you know, it may have contributed to the, to, you know, where I am today, but, uh, the idea was you wear this brace during your growth spurts, so it tries to straighten up your spine and, um, Yeah, it’s a, it’s a tough thing, but I’m really glad that I didn’t undergo the fusion when they first recommended it 

Dr. Rita Roy: and it sounded like the doctors were giving you the option of the brace like you had the option of the fusion, but you also had the option to wear the brace.

Is that, is that right? 

John Poulson: Well, I don’t know that I felt like it’s had much of an option reason. Um, it was kind of an either or situation and also, My parents, who thankfully didn’t push me into the fusion, kind of did reinforce the fact that the brace was required. 

Dr. Rita Roy: Yeah. And at that time, as a young person and discussing it with your family, was there the thought that, well, I’ll, I’ll wear the brace for now, but one day I might.

Need to have the surgery was that sort of in your mind throughout your life. 

John Poulson: You know, it really wasn’t Rita Interesting. I kind of thought that The brace had arrested the curve During adolescence and I never really thought that at some point down the line I’d have to undergo the fusion It really didn’t become apparent to me until I was about 45, I guess.

Dr. Rita Roy: Wow. And that’s, that’s a long time. I mean, you really got to do all the things that you wanted to do. And I, I can’t help but think that because you were so athletic and you were in such great physical fitness, that that really helped stabilize your spine so that. You know, as that curve was progressing over time, your body was sort of accommodating because you were so strong.

John Poulson: I think, I think you’re right. I think, uh, having maintained fitness throughout my life really helped me. I was pretty strong in my core, uh, and, uh, you know, when people ask me how I ended up with fusion surgery, I generally say because of a life well lived. 

Dr. Rita Roy: Yeah. I was 

John Poulson: able to do a lot of really interesting things and, um, I wouldn’t trade that for, for anything.

I, uh, uh, you know, I’m really grateful for the opportunities that I had and the fitness that allowed me to do that. 

Dr. Rita Roy: Yeah, that, that, that’s really incredible. And I, and I think that you were lucky that you were an athlete as a young person because it set you up for that lifetime, you know, 30 years of maybe not Um, knowing that you were managing your spine health that way, but that’s what was happening.

It was being managed through, through that, uh, that really good, uh, strengthening, you know, and conditioning programming that you were constantly doing as part of your regular life, which is, which is amazing. And that in and of itself, I’m sure has helped you until you got to a point when pain sets in, right?

John Poulson: Yeah. Uh, when the pain became debilitating, uh, that was pretty tough to take. I had to stop doing technical hiking and bouldering in favor of fire roads. And I realized at some point that it wasn’t safe for me to swim in San Francisco Bay. And so I had to kind of migrate to the pool. Um, and that was highly, highly frustrating and that’s kind of what drove me to, to seek a more, uh, uh, uh, intense approach to my treatment.

Dr. Rita Roy: Yeah. And when you were doing those activities, did it hurt after the activity or during the activity? What was the trigger for you to say, geez, I can’t do this anymore? 

John Poulson: I think, I guess I’d say I never knew what I was going to have when I woke up in the morning. You know, some mornings I’d wake up and I’d feel pretty good.

Some mornings I’d wake up and I’d be in a lot of pain. Sometimes I’d start a hike and I’d be in pain and the pain would ease up over the time I was out there walking. Swimming always felt pretty good. Um, but I was pretty frustrated not to be able to swim in the bay. 

Dr. Rita Roy: Is it because the waves, it’s just a harder swim, is that?

Yeah, and 

John Poulson: the currents and tides here are pretty significant. So, I didn’t trust my ability to swim against a five knot current, for instance. Wow. I had to give up sailing because, uh, that’s, you have to brace yourself a lot. Yeah. Um, you know, so I began to see diminished activities, and that was frustrating, and I just couldn’t live with that.

Dr. Rita Roy: Yeah, that’s, that’s incredible. Well, you know, one, another part of your story that’s just so fascinating is your journey to finding the right surgeon, and that’s something that we talk about a lot here in the Foundation. You know, you, you want to get yourself in the hands of a well trained spine expert, and Also have that person be somebody who you feel comfortable with.

And it’s, it’s really great that you pursued that. In other words, you didn’t feel comfortable the first or even the second, uh, expert that you went to is really, you know, it took, it took a couple of times to find someone who you trusted and who you felt comfortable with. And I really commend that John, because that’s a hard.

thing for many people to do. Can you talk to us a little bit about that journey? 

John Poulson: Sure. Um, I had the experience of searching for the right doctor to do my knee replacement. Got it. And, uh, so I found a surgeon who was actually the team doctor for the San Francisco Giants baseball team. 

Dr. Rita Roy: Okay. 

John Poulson: Uh, but I interviewed a couple of physicians before that.

So I had that sort of, I was what I’d call a sophisticated medical consumer. 

Dr. Rita Roy: Yes, absolutely. 

John Poulson: And so that really helped me a lot. And I think, uh, I definitely encourage all patients out there to not be afraid to say, this is not the right person for me. I don’t have the right rapport with that individual, I’m going to keep going until I find somebody that I can work with, because that’s an important relationship, not only are you entrusting that person with performing significant surgery, but you’re going to be following up with that person, and that person needs to really understand you, and I was lucky, that’s what I found in, in Dr.

Arora. 

Dr. Rita Roy: Yeah, that, that is so awesome, John. How do you think you became? A knowledgeable health care consumer. What, what things did you do to educate yourself to get you there? Is it was through your work, through your training or, um, just reading trusted sources of information? How do you get to that point?

John Poulson: Well, I’m a curious person by nature. And so whether it was my knee or my back, I read extensively And was able to educate myself about what my problem was and what the possible solutions were. And so I was fairly well armed with information. Uh, and um, quite frankly, the two surgeons that I spoke to, actually one surgeon and one PA, it was just clear to me that these weren’t the right people for me to work with.

And, uh, I was also lucky that Dr. Arora had been part of the team that did my wife’s brain surgery. And so I knew him and I respected him. And he was great with us during that situation. He also was a physical therapist. He was a PT before he went to med school and became a neurosurgeon. So, and he’s an athletic guy.

So we just kind of clicked. Yeah. During my wife’s procedure, and so he was a natural for me. 

Dr. Rita Roy: Yeah, that’s great. And you hit the mark there with, um, using the word rapport. I think that’s so important. You’ve got to feel comfortable with your care team, with your surgeon, and really the whole team. Because the surgeon, you know, is leading the operation.

But there’s a whole team around that surgeon, um, from his office staff to the OR staff. It’s, it’s, it’s a, it’s a big team that does these kinds of procedures. And, you know, the, the surgeon is the leader of the team. And so you’ve got to have that rapport and trust, um, with him or her. And. And everybody around them.

So, you know, it’s, it’s, what’s it like when you’re making the appointment? And do you feel comfortable talking with the nurse or the PA staff? And, you know, all, all of those components there. Let’s talk a little bit about the, the staff that works with the, the surgeon. One of the practices that you went to interview, um, you mentioned that you never actually got to meet the surgeon.

You only met with the physician. physician assistant, and that just didn’t sit well with you. Can you tell us how that experience went? 

John Poulson: So I was referred to this individual through a friend of my wife’s who had had surgery, who this fellow had performed surgery on. And so I, I was referred to him and, and so I kind of felt that since I was referred to him, I kind of had a right to see the doctor.

Dr. Rita Roy: Yeah. 

John Poulson: And, uh, you know, the, the PA was a nice guy, but I wasn’t there to talk to a PA. I was there to talk to the doctor. Yeah. And. So that really kind of, kind of put me off and obviously the second fellow that I spoke with who didn’t really have a plan of attack, I’m an engineer by training. I don’t like not having a work plan, particularly when somebody is going to fool around with my spine.

Dr. Rita Roy: Yeah. 

John Poulson: So I felt like. I needed to go through those, uh, those interactions in order to get to the point where I found somebody with whom I had rapport. And I just encourage anybody out there who’s patient to just make sure they are comfortable with the individual they’re trusting their health to. 

Dr. Rita Roy: Yeah, that’s such a great point, John.

Thank you so much for sharing that. I think a lot of times people feel like, you know, if they’re getting a second opinion, they’re hurting somebody’s feelings or they’re, you know, uh, you know, somehow violating some, some health care code. And that’s not the case at all. You know, no, no great Surgeon will ever feel bad if you want to have a second opinion, in fact, they should be happy for that, right?

And that’s, that’s what the experts tell us is that we want our patients to get multiple opinions, to feel like they’re making the right choice and that they’ve landed in the right place for them. Um, but that’s sometimes that’s hard to do, right? 

John Poulson: Yeah. Uh, you know, I think you just have to recognize that it’s your body and you have stewardship over your body.

And who you would trust your care to. And, um, you know, my parents were sophisticated medical consumers. I was lucky enough to be educated in general and to, you know, have the wherewithal to research. And so that, I think, really helped. 

Dr. Rita Roy: Yeah, that’s, that’s fantastic, John. That’s um, really so, so important. And the word that you use there, you are the steward of your own body.

You know, and we tell people, you’ve got to be your own best advocate. Empower yourself with knowledge. And that’s what the National Spine Health Foundation is here to do, is to just give people the knowledge. And the tools and learn the success stories, learn from other people so that you can understand maybe even what questions to ask, because sometimes that’s hard when you’re facing a new diagnosis and you don’t know anything about it, how do you learn?

And how do you even know what to ask? Um, but it’s important that you do because it’s your body and it’s your choices. Yeah, 

John Poulson: we’re lucky to live in the internet age. Yeah. So there’s a lot of information online with which you can arm yourself, you know, uh, I’m a, I’m 66 now, and so when I was, uh, you know, when I was a kid, there wasn’t much information.

And so I was really lucky that my folks didn’t push me into that future at that time, because we really didn’t know very much. 

Dr. Rita Roy: Yeah. Yeah, that’s, that’s, uh, that’s, that’s lucky. And that’s also, you had sophisticated consumer, healthcare consumer parents. So again, arming yourself with knowledge, um, and again, that’s what we’re here to do.

We’re here to share stories of success and healing and the journey and, and what. Steps people take to get through and what they go through to get there. And, um, speaking of what they go through, John, your, um, surgery was not straightforward in the sense that you went into the OR and then you went home.

It was, you went into the OR and you had a few little bumps in the road and that sometimes happens. Tell us about what that felt like to you as you were going through the surgeries. There were two days of surgery for your, your complicated case. And the medical, the surgical team had to manage these medical complications that you had along the way.

What was that like for you? 

John Poulson: Well, uh, I was somewhat prepared because Dr. Arora had said that it’s not uncommon to have some bumps in the road. Because of these intense surgeries are each 12 hours, so it’s a big hit for your body to take and luckily after the first surgery, when I had that Ilias and the eighth experience, I was kind of out of it.

Uh, as well as heavy pain medication and so I really wasn’t spending much time thinking about my situation. I was just kind of, kind of out of it. And then after the second surgery, when they, when I was on the Lasix, my kidneys were kind of struggling. I was just impatient at that point. Because I laid there day after day and they were giving me tests and I kept coming back and saying, you know, we’re not really happy with their kidney function and By that time I was just frustrated to get on with it.

Mm hmm and and I think I go back to my athletic background is you know, I was able to just kind of accept where I was pain level and so forth and just kind of Push through it. And it was, it was probably was harder on my wife than it was on me, quite frankly. 

Dr. Rita Roy: Yeah. Yeah. Having your support team around you is so important as you’re going through these, these big surgeries and, and the recovery.

Again, so, so lucky to have your wife there and, and the support that that is needed as you go through this. 

John Poulson: I was lucky. In a variety of ways in terms of support here in the San Francisco area UCSF where I was or Stanford are two great medical complexes that offer state of the art care, the spine unit at UCSF, but people travel from all over the country.

Uh, to go there to be treated and, uh, some staff support was great. Nursing care was fantastic. And my friends, gosh, you know, they, they came to the hospital and visited. Afterward, I was home, they came and they took me out for coffee or for lunch, or they just stopped by to visit or we’d talk about books.

And, uh, you know, my wife is just You know, fantastic in terms of, of helping me. So I was really lucky and that’s kind of what, what spurred me to get involved with, uh, with your organization is I just felt I had such tremendous support and it’s really up to me to, uh, to really try to give back and pay it forward.

As a matter of fact, when I was talking to my doctor, I was still in the hospital. I said, let’s go on the road, man, let’s, you know, I’ll describe the surgery you do, surgery and, and, uh, we’ll do this. You know, now that I think about it, I think it was probably Dr. Aurora that turned me on to National Spine Health 

Dr. Rita Roy: Foundation.

That’s awesome. I’m so glad to hear that. We do work with a lot of the neurosurgeons and the orthopedic surgeons actually as well at, uh, at UCSF. They are Great, great center and wonderful collaborators over there. And what, what an incredible place. So you’re so lucky to have had that team. Um, yeah, that’s, that’s amazing.

Um, John, you said you played college hockey. How do you think playing college hockey did for your, your back? Um, you know, it’s a, In retrospect, 

John Poulson: 20 years of contact sports probably wasn’t a great idea, but I wouldn’t change a thing. The certainly the position that you’re in skating and stick handling with hockey, you tend to be in sort of an athletic squat.

And that was certainly hard. Uh, on the back and I actually played league hockey after I graduated for a bunch of years as well. Um, so yeah, probably not great, but, uh, you know, from where I sit today, I just appreciate all of the opportunities that I had to, uh, to live a life, uh, of self adventure and, and, uh, you know, this was the payback for it.

Dr. Rita Roy: Well, and again, that level of physical fitness required to play that sport probably helped you, uh, keep that spine in check as it’s, as that curvature is, is, is moving over time. You know, you’re again, that extreme physical fitness that you were, uh, that you were in helped you, helped you to be able to be out there on the ice and stay, uh, stay in your sports and until it didn’t, right.

And, and, um, That’s pretty cool. That’s pretty cool. 

John Poulson: Yeah. I, I’m really grateful for the athletic opportunities that I had, and I’m also, my wife is an athlete as well. And so we have that, pardon me, that experience, as a matter of fact, for our honeymoon, uh, years and years ago, we climbed Mount Kilimanjaro.

Dr. Rita Roy: Nice. Congratulations. Yeah. 

John Poulson: So awesome. Awesome. She has the same mindset as me, and we both understand that there’s pain involved with training, you know, I, I tell people that I come in contact with that are facing this kind of challenges, you just have to embrace the suck, as I say, that’s right, pain is only debilitating if you don’t.

Buy into it and attach an emotional component to it. 

Dr. Rita Roy: Yeah, well, and pain that’s there’s a whole study of pain, right? And how people experience pain and how they manage pain. And, um, you know, there’s there’s pain that is a is your body telling you that there’s something wrong. There is also pain that’s.

That comes with pushing your body to do more, so it’s, it’s, it’s knowing when the pain is telling you danger, danger, something’s going on and then there’s the pain of just powering through fitness and conditioning and, and, and building, you know, muscle and, and so forth. Sometimes that, that the pain message telling you that something may be wrong is like with the spondy.

Just putting myself, using my, my own pain experience is that, you know, as, as my unstable spine was moving and it was generating pain for me, um, I began to have paralysis in, in my leg. Oh my goodness. And so the pain, I, I kept pushing through that pain. I’m not going to, you know, get into the pain. But the pain was actually a message that, hey, there’s, pay attention to this, something’s going on here.

So there’s understanding that, that pain message, when is it time to maybe listen more to that pain, that maybe there’s something more there. And that’s, it’s, it’s a hard thing to know, right? Yeah, it 

John Poulson: is a hard thing to know. I’m kind of a slow learner. 

Dr. Rita Roy: I don’t think you’re a slow learner. 

John Poulson: I, uh, I probably should have listened a little bit more closely to what my body was telling me as opposed to just going, you know, Darn it.

I’m going to keep pushing. 

Dr. Rita Roy: Well, it’s, it’s hard to know. I mean, it’s, it’s important to push through and to persevere, but it is hard to know where that line is. And, and I think, you know, for you, John, and for many people, myself included, the line really comes when the pain plus not living the life that I want to live.

Something’s got to change, right? And, and that’s been going on for too long. Like if that’s going on for too long, you sort of know as the steward of your life and your body, I got to do something different. I don’t want to live this way. And are there options for me? And that’s exactly what you did. And that’s what we’re here to do is to share your story, share stories like of people like you and Present the facts about, um, modern spinal health care, and it doesn’t always involve surgery for a lot of people.

Nonoperative measures are excellent for getting them back into their lives, but for people with very advanced conditions like a scoliosis that’s getting worse or spondylolisthesis where the spine is unstable, really, the only thing that’s going to fix that is surgical correction. And then it’s. Yeah.

Figuring out where and who and, and what surgery to have done, right? 

John Poulson: Truth. 

Dr. Rita Roy: John, I can’t tell you how grateful I am that you found the National Spine Health Foundation and were willing to come to us to share your story to, as you say, pay it forward to others. I know that this kind of information sharing is so helpful to so many people and we’re so grateful to you for taking the time to work with us to.

Come on the podcast and to be so candid and forthcoming with everything that you’ve been through in your life. It’s just, it’s amazing to meet you and to hear again, I’m looking at you and you’re vibrant and you’re healthy and you’re handsome and you’re doing all the things that you never know that that back is metal.

John Poulson: Well, really, it was a pleasure being with you. Thank you for the opportunity. And I am most. wholehearted believer in your mission at National Spinal Health, and anything that I can do to further your mission, I’m open to. So feel free to call on me. 

Dr. Rita Roy: Thank you, John. We absolutely will. Congratulations on being a spinal champion, and thank you for being a beacon of hope to so many.

who will hear and learn from your story. 

John Poulson: Thank you. 

Dr. Rita Roy: John, it is such a pleasure to talk with you today, sharing your lifelong story of complications stemming from scoliosis with our community demonstrates that staying active and seeking the advice of the experts were the keys to success in overcoming your spinal condition.

You’ve taught us that no matter what. We should have the courage in the face of whatever our spine journey brings. Thank you so much for sharing your triumphant story. At

the National Spine Health Foundation, something we believe in most is providing hope for recovery through sharing stories of success and expertise. It isn’t always easy to find someone. Someone to relate to, even though a hundred million adults suffer from neck or low back pain every year. To hear more stories of spinal champion recovery and access educational materials about spine health, visit us@spinehealth.org.

If you’re interested in supporting our show financially, you can contribute at the link provided. Thank you for listening.