New Update Coming Soon...

So I went shopping again yesterday with Christmas gift cards and money and such so hopefully I will be putting more pictures up really soon! But tomorrow's my birthday so maybe not tomorrow. :)

Ann Marie *>*

Fashion...

Forget about me putting the outfits up in a couple of days! Here they are in a like, an hour! Also, excuse my hair. I took a shower like, an hour and a half ago and it hasn't quite dried yet.

Alright so I kept the same jeans on the whole time because I was lazy and didn't want to keep changing them. The shirt and jeggings are from American Eagle. This is one of those under-over technique shirts. I have a tank top over the brace and under the shirt. It's black. You could add a cool colored one underneath it to give it a little more color.

Everyone likes a good old Superman shirt every once in a while right? For this, there is a tank top underneath. The same black one, but I tucked it in. I thought I looked cooler that way. :) The shirt I found at Plato's Closet. Gosh, I love that store.

This is one of those shirts that I'm really not sure how to wear. The shrug and the shirt are from American Eagle. This is yet another one with the under-over technique. I kept the same black tank top on for all three of these. Sometimes if you want to add a little bit of a pop of color to your outfits, you can add like a neon green or pink shirt underneath. I have a green-yellow one that might look cool under this that's from Aeropostale.

 

So that's about it for right now! I'll do some more tomorrow 'cause this girl's off school for two weeks! Yay! :)

 

Fly on for now,

 

Ann Marie *>*

CHRISTMAS! :D

I LOVE CHRISTMAS! Seriously guys it's like my favorite time of the year. There's no school, no stress, SNOW, free time, people are nicer, hot chocolate, staying inside and reading books, feeling really good, Christmas, making people feel good, New Year's, my birthday, and so many other things! Let's not forget about marshmallows.

Christmas is a time to give and get. It's a time to be thankful and to be someone that someone else is thankful for. And, as much as we all hate it, we need to be thankful for our brace.

Yes, I know, you're probably all like, "No I don't!"

Well, actually, you do ya little grunge nuggets!

I'm gonna tell y'all a story and y'all are gonna like it.

There once was a girl by the name of Ann Marie. Ann Marie had a special friend. She was special in many ways. She was Ann Marie's best friend (and still is, I suppose). She was also a little bit special in the brain (I mean, she HAS broken the oven, the microwave, her door, and many other things in her house).

Now, this girl had a sister, who is now a senior at the high school where Ann Marie and her special friend are freashmeat. This girl had scoliosis. But guess what? I'm gonna tell you a story within a story (wow! such a plot twist!).

The sister's mother thought that the sister might have scoliosis because she could see that when she sat, her back wasn't straight. So she went to the doctor and the doctor checked her out and said that she didn't have scoliosis. Then, SIX FUDGING MONTHS before the sister was to be done growing, the doctor said, "Oops! I was a dumb butt! She does have scoliosis. And very bad scoliosis at that!"

So the sister got a brace and wore it every night for six months until she was done growing.

And now my best friend's sister's worst curve is 49 degrees because her doctor cannot see well (or at least, that's what I choose to believe).

And that, ladies and gents, is why we need to be glad that we have scoliosis braces. These things help us in more ways than I think we realize. Not only do they help straighten your back, but they help everything. Your back is the big connector to everything else in your body. So if your curve gets bad, it affects other things in your body. This can be life threatening.

We need to be thankful we have a brace or have had surgery or whatever to prevent these bad things from happening. We need to be thankful we don't live somewhere where we can't get ahold of this kind of stuff. Because honestly, it is helping us a lot. We need to be thankful that we have the help of doctors and hospitals to help us stay safe and happy. And I know that as much as you may hate it now, you'll be really thankful in the future. :)

ILY,

Ann Marie *>*

P.S. Gosh! I do a lot of these! But within the next couple of days I will probably be uploading some photos of outfits because I finally got to go shopping again and I'm so happy! :D

Well...

So sorry for the LONG wait! High school is literally crazy. It is my most favorite and least favorite thing in the history of "things". But that's life.

 

I've finally found a free moment so I am going to write! Not much has happened. I think since I've posted, I've been to the back doctor. My curves (from bottom to top) are 15,30, and 35. Not bad but not good. It's okay though. He said no talk of surgery- especially for someone like me who hides it so well. I really have not had any problems with back or brace pain ever.

 

I have only ever had one brace- Pablo. Pablo is literally my constant companion. He's with me 24/7. We have what you'd call a love hate relationship. :) Scoliosis doesn't really bother me anymore. At school, I’m very open. When I bring candy to some of my friends and people ask where I got it, I tell them I got it from the hospital (my mom works in the gift shop so we always go get candy after appointments). Everyone knows. And guess how many people care? None. Guess how many people can’t look at me the same again because I wear something plastic around me? NONE. When we go to the hospital and we have to carry my brace in so I can put it back on after my appointment, I carry it proudly. I smile and laugh in the hospital because I CAN. I like to think I'm assuring people with my smile, my body language. "Everything is going to be alright." And it will be. Everything will be alright in the end. Everything will end and really- does it even matter? Ugh. I'm getting very philosophical. Yeah that's what I get for being a nerd in school. :P

 

But I just wanted to tell you, it’s okay. And it’s okay to cry about having a brace too. I remember the first time we took Pablo home and I put him on, I told my mom I looked like a freak.  I thought I did. BUT I DIDN’T. No one does. I just want everyone to know if you ever need someone who it may be easier to share with because you don’t know me personally (but someone who still understands), I am here. Or if you just wanna talk. Or if there’s something else. My email’s always over in my bio. Feel free to use it. I love friends!

 

Fly on for now,

 

Ann Marie *>*

 

P.S. Sorry this is super long! I just thought you guys deserved a lot for sticking with me and ma blog through our first few months of high school! Because you guys deserve the best of me! J ILY

For Anonymous...

So I had an awesome person ask me a question. Or, a few questions. So here are your answers. And the question.

"Hi do you mind putting up a pic of you in side view? And which kind of brace do you have and about how much did it cost? I'm planning to get one because my doctor said I have mild scoliosis. However she didn't suggest any corrective measures. But I don't want this to get worse that's why I'm planning to buy a brace."
- Anonymous

Well Anonymous, have I got some answers for you!

 

Ignore the horrible quality. Please and thank you! These are pictures of me in side view in my brace. Stunning aren't I? ;)

Here are the answers to your other questions:

I have an Original Boston Brace. Or at least that's what my brace says...

I do not know how much braces cost. That is something that I never asked and my parents.

I wish you the best of luck Anon with your brace adventures if you decide to get one! I really wish I would have had the idea you do with getting the brace before I actually did needed it. But oh well! :)

Mwah,

Ann Marie *>*

September Scoliosis Marathon...

Alright I was super busy yesterday guys but yesterday marked the beginning of another Scoliosis Marathon! Yay! So get your timers out and I'll see you guys at the end of the week!

Ann Marie *>*

Stay Fit...

Okay so one really important thing to do once you find out you have scoliosis is to make that back work! Yeah, you do. You need to find something to keep that back of yours strong because a weak back is no good in a fight against scoliosis. Whereas a strong back could very well help you in more ways than one! You can dance, play a sport, run, do yoga; the choices are limitless! You just need to find one that fits you and your lifestyle.

The first way it could help you is pretty obvious, but not necessarily the main reason. Well to be frank about it... Making your back stronger makes you stronger. It makes you a stronger person physically. That can only be a good thing. Right?

Also, a stronger back means that you have a better fighting chance with scoliosis. I don't know all the medical stuff to go along with it but I just know that it helps- surprisingly a lot. I guess a stronger back means that it can hold it's own and when you grow, it will help straighten your spine even further. I don't know. I have no intention on becoming a doctor or anything to do with doctors so you can rub it in my face if I get something wrong, okay?

When I went to my scoliosis doctor I think maybe one or two times ago, he had an assistant with him. The woman must have been shadowing him or something, and in college or further by the looks of it. Dr. Bono, my doc, did his examination like he usually does, ya know, making me bend over and checking to make sure your hips and shoulders aren't uneven and stuff. And all of a sudden the lady speaks up and she sounds to be honest, quite shocked. She said, "Wow, you can't even tell that she has scoliosis as bad as hers is!" Okay so my scoliosis is just like in the twenties but you get the point. It's not GOOD is what she was saying. People with my same degrees usually show it a bit more than I do. In fact, without the brace, you can't tell I have it at all.

And you wanna know why that is? My mom replied to the lady, "She dances ballet." I dance about three hours of ballet bare minimum. At the most, I was dancing 6.5 hours per week. Ballet is just about the strongest thing you can do to strengthen your back. I'm not saying you need to take ballet or anything close to that. I'm simply saying don't just be a sitting duck, letting whatever happen to your back. Give yourself a fighting chance. Do something about it. Strengthening your back DOES help!

Stay strong, stay fit, stay beautiful!

Ann Marie *>*