MissSwat

Hi there! Big fan here!

I have an overall question regarding the reaction of the humor of your films between North American and European audiences. Do you find that the 'Britiness' of Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, The World's End is treated differently in North America when compared to more Hollywoodish films such as Paul?

Also, please do more films with Dylan Moran. Run Fat Boy Run was amazing.

I had a very gammy spine. I went from a 30 degree curve at 12 to 75 in just over a year (from what I remember. It may have been 40 to 75. Honestly, I've blocked a lot of that time out.)

My fusion was quite extensive, from T1-L4, and from what the doctors can figure despite the fact that I was fused with 2 Harrington rods, my spine just wanted to keep moving (twisting instead of curving however), and began to knock the bits and pieces associated with the rods out of places, which then had to be removed multiple times.

I'm told it was a very, very unusual case, which is both delightful and horrifying! (Delightful in "I am a special snowflake" sort of way Horrifying in the "Please not another surgery" sort of way.)

It was certainly character building if nothing else! I will have to have one more to fuse the rest of my lumbar spine. The curve is sitting right on the 50 degree mark, however we're trying to wait until after my husband and I have kids.

Absolutely. Adolescence was brutal. It is tough enough being a teenager, but dealing with the mental issues that come with chronic pain, surrounded by kids who are as, let's say, self-interested as you are made it very tricky. Let's face it. When we're teens we don't really have time for our friends problems. As I got older I learned to be more open about my pain and the struggles with it, and in turn I learned to be more understanding to others struggles.

So while it was psychologically hard (I honestly don't remember much about my middle school years), I came out better for it.

The biggest impact on my life at the time was on my lungs. Because of the way the curve moved, my ribs were pressing into my right lung. Prior to that I was taking vocal lessons and, to put not too fine a point on it, I had one hell of a set of pipes for a tiny person. Losing the ability to wow people with that was tough. I felt like I lost a bit of my identity. But I did keep singing after, and it came back to me!

Oh please no on Lea Michele. She has a lovely voice, I'll grant you that, but if she's suited for any role, it would be Glinda. Elphaba always had some husk to her and I just can't see Lea Michele pulling it off. There's something so delightfully gritty about Elphaba...

Edit: I bet Johnny Depp gets cast as Doctor Dillamond or....Jonathan Pryce.

At our local chronic pain clinic they really encourage trying to engage the other senses when flare ups happened. Things like putting on a heating pad or ice (depending on what feels better), watching a favorite show or movie, something that counters that sense of hopelessness that comes from the pain. Personally, my escape has always been music. I made myself a playlist of songs that I love listening to, and turn it on the minute I feel like the pain is becoming too much to handle.

Weather impacting it doesn't surprise me at all. My surgeon told me once that the best thing I could do was move to a warm climate (so here I am in Calgary, Alberta.) I can't imagine how challenging it must be for you, with your daughter being non-verbal. As a parent you want to be able to make the pain go away, or at least ease it in some way, but you have no way of knowing what will help. She's very lucky to have you.

I guess from a patient point of view, I would just try to pay attention to how she acts or moves during different flare ups and try different methods to see what she responds positively too. Depending on where her curve is, and how big her fusion is, things like lumbar pillows, memory foam, etc, are lovely to give support. If she is lying down and in pain, I would try placing a thing by very soft pillow under her hips, waist or knees (I've found it helps a lot when I'm feeling pain from the curve versus pain from the arthritis).

A family member of mine is disabled and has scoliosis. I'll ask her mom how she's learned to 'read' bad pain days and see if she has any advice and get back to you!