In this serial blog, Martha’s Healing Journey, Martha Carter talks about her personal journey, beginning with her diagnosis of scoliosis at age 13, all the way through her Harrington rod removal, along with sharing her past and ongoing in-depth explorations and discoveries with many different healing modalities and health practitioners.
We encourage you to start with Part 1.
Part 33 of Martha’s Healing Journey
When our bodies are relaxed and open, we are ready to absorb other new sensations, discoveries ,and experiences. And to do this in a place like Mexico adds to the richness of the experience as we find ourselves interacting with the people, culture, language, food, music, and astounding nature of the area.
Read MorePart 32 of Martha’s Healing Journey
Thanks to the many online connections throughout this past year, including hosting a monthly Fusion Support Group, I have had the incredible opportunity to talk about scoliosis more than usual, and with a larger and growing community from around the world than ever before.
So, to bring in this New Year, I thought I would share some of my new insights and lessons right here... in point form, and in no particular order!
Read MorePart 31 of Martha’s Healing Journey
“The body does not need to be corrected. It needs to be understood.”
This is what my friend and osteopath, Simon, said to me today as he gave me a treatment. It made me sigh, then smile, then frown. I immediately wondered if there was any chance my teenage scoliotic body could have been better ‘understood’ – rather than ‘corrected’ through dramatic fusion surgery – so many moons ago…
But I digress.
Read MorePart 30 of Martha’s Healing Journey
Throughout this blog, I have been writing about my healing journey, starting with the removal of my Harrington rods in 1995 when I was 35 years old — until today, where I am quickly approaching 60. Eek!
In some ways, I feel in better shape now than I was back then. That is because, regardless of the increasing wrinkles, extra flab, and age spots, I am much more mindful and aware about all aspects of my ‘soma'—my entire physical, emotional, intellectual, spiritual being—than I have ever been before. Part of this has to do with life experience, but most of it is due to my constant search for different ways to be comfortable with my mostly uncomfortable fusion.
Yoga for Scoliosis, and yoga in general, has helped me tremendously, but I continue to find new layers of the ‘healing onion’ to explore.
Read MorePart 29 of Martha’s Healing Journey
A few weeks ago, I went to bed feeling fine.
When I tried to stand up the next morning, I was completely crooked.
I had such a sharp pain in my right sacroiliac joint that I was forced to tilt way over to the left, which made me feel completely crippled. I limped to the washroom, mumbling to myself about how this was impossible, and then dragged myself back to bed. I was fine the night before... What happened in my sleep?
Shit!!
Read MorePart 23 of Martha’s Healing Journey
In my December 2018 blog post, I wrote about how I was starting to learn a gentle body-mind technique called Somatics. Since that time, I have continued to explore this work, finding many interesting and helpful connections.
Today, I want to follow up about my progress with addressing my own sensory motor amnesia, specifically regarding scoliosis.
Read MorePart 21 of Martha’s Healing Journey
On New Year’s eve, I was chatting with my wonderfully ‘alive’ 83 year old mom. We were reflecting on the past year, and thinking ahead to 2019, when she asked: “So Martha, with all of your exploring of healing techniques, what do you think I should do next to look after myself… to be healthier; to feel better?”
That made me laugh out loud, as she is already more health-conscious and active than most people half her age - she does weekly pilates, senior’s exercise, regular massage, a yearly yoga retreat, walking, swimming, and more! Nevertheless, it got me thinking there is always more we can do for ourselves.
Part 20 of Martha’s Healing Journey
In my last blog about pain, I addressed how, for most people with scoliosis, pain is a constant companion. And although it may seem obvious that a compressed spine that curves and twists the body into a crooked position will cause some discomfort, it is not quite that simple.
In fact, it is well documented that a person's response to pain is heavily influenced by many individual traits, as well as the particular psychological, emotional and social factors affecting their life.
Read MorePart 19 of Martha’s Healing Journey
Have you ever noticed that pain can be LOUD?
There have been a few times in my life when I have experienced such crazy ‘loud’ pain that I could not even think, or be, or feel anything -- except that pain