Sabina & Pawel Piorkowski
- Scoliosis Advocate
To those closest to Pawel Piorkowski describe him as: “…a sunshine with a big smile who loves to share happiness through hugs with everyone!”
His older sister Sabina, “a caring, coffee loving, indoor plant fanatic”, was diagnosed with scoliosis at the age of 11 and underwent spinal fusion surgery by 13. Pawel, conversely, was only 1 year old when his scoliosis journey began.
Both siblings have positive outlooks on living their lives with the condition; Pawel does have his difficulties and limitations but finds ways to have fun and enjoy life while Sabina finds motivation in the recognition that although she had no control over her diagnosis, she does have control over her mindset.
Sabina hopes that someday there will be a procedure that corrects scoliosis without taking away the spinal mobility. In recalling her own surgery and recovery, Sabina remembers having to rebuild her range of motion and that additional stress was a lot to navigate during her teen years.
In the future, Pawel would like to see better bracing options and more advanced Physical Therapy after spinal fusion but for the moment he is enjoying going to Karate with his friends, playing sports at the Special Olympics and his truest love = trains.
Sabina’s advice for those who are newly diagnosed with scoliosis is: “Try to find support groups or others to speak to those diagnosed with scoliosis.”
I can only hope that my story helps others throughout diagnosis and treatment, as hearing others’ stories during my diagnosis helped me accept and understand scoliosis.
