Invisalign & Scoliosis

OK, those 2 things are not related…it just that I wanted to post an update on the odds and ends that have been going on around here and it happens to involve both those things. 🙂  First, K. is on tray #4 of her Invisalign. The dentist has put us on a once-every-4-weeks schedule, so we actually walked away with tray sets #4 and #5. We will swap out the trays ourselves a week from this Thursday. We’ve learned a few techniques for popping off the Invisaligns now that K. had the buttons on her teeth. Start at one side of the mouth in the back and pop it up slightly with your thumb; then work your way around using both thumbnails to pry it up. Usually before you get to the front teeth, the whole tray has popped loose.

I am very impressed that, after about 7 weeks of wearing Invisaligns, the position of K.’s top front teeth has noticeably altered – they were flared out at the bottom, and now you can see that they’ve pulled in quite a bit…that’s what we like 🙂

The next bit of news is that K. and I are spending the week in Hollywood, FL, for some intensive physical therapy related to the scoliosis. We found a lovely lady in Aventura who is a physical therapist/Pilates instructor – her studio is called Transform Physical Therapy & Pilates.  She is also certified in the Schroth approach to physical therapy for scoliosis patients.

I got interested in Schroth last year when K. was first diagnosed with scoliosis.  I was looking for some alternative therapy to having the surgery where rods are placed along the spine to hold it straight.  I came across the Schroth approach, but it seemed that there were only 3 places in the U.S. where it was offered.  I decided to wait until K. finished her school year to schedule something.

By the time I got around to checking into it again last month, I found that there were a few more therapists scattered around the U.S. who were certified in this method, and luckily, one of these people was located not too far away in Aventura, FL (Just north of Miami).  Kimberly Ganz runs the Transform Physical Therapy & Pilates Studio here, and is just the nicest lady.

We will do a week of intensive therapy here and then head home with a customized exercise program laid out for us.  Later this summer, we will come back down for a review session and maybe additional exercises.  My goals are to alleviate the pain K. experiences as a result of the scoliosis and hopefully halt the progressive of the curve.  Some people even experience a curve reduction, but I’m not getting my heart set on that…I think if she can avoid the surgery and live a healthy, painfree life, that will be enough for us.  Of course, we’d take curve reduction, too 🙂

For anyone looking to locate a Schroth certified therapist, here is the list I used to find one.  We’ll let you know how the program works for us.