A Perthshire man who suffers from a severe spinal condition has praised specialists at a clinic in England who taught him how to improve his posture to eradicate some of the pain.
Greg Price first complained of back pains at the age of 13, and was diagnosed with scoliosis – a condition that causes the spine to curve sideways. With little help from his doctors, he grew to live with the problem which last night he described as a “constant dull pain”.
The 42-year-old said: “At the time the NHS didn’t suggest anything really, they just diagnosed me. I just had to keep going back and forth for check-ups.
“It never really bothered me, because it never stopped me doing anything I wanted to do – like working in a heavy engineering environment or riding motorbikes.
But when I hit 40 I wanted to know if the scoliosis was going to progress with age.” Scoliosis affects more than 4% of the population in the UK and if left untreated can cause heart and lung problems.
Sufferers face a major operation, which involves metal rods being inserted at either side of the spine.
Desperate to avoid such a procedure should his curvature become that severe, Mr Price looked online and found Scoliosis SOS, a clinic in Suffolk which offers an exercise-based therapy.
“The instructors at the clinic give you a good understanding of what is going on with your back and how it (scoliosis) starts and progresses,” he said. “You do exercises for your posture, and during the four-week course they just hammer home how your feet and head should be positioned in relation to your back. The exercises become second nature.”
Mr Price now does his exercises in his home at Gladstone Terrace, Dunkeld, and finds work for an offshore company much easier.
“I think the clinic would be really beneficial for teenagers suffering from scoliosis,” he added. “It all starts in adolescence – if they can get the hang of the exercises as soon as possible maybe their curve will stop progressing.”
For information visit www.scoliosissos.com or call 01394 389670.