Friendship and Scoliosis: the bonds that last

There is a kind of friendship that begins in the most unexpected moments. Not during carefree afternoons or between school desks, but in those times when life asks you to grow up a little sooner than you expected. That is how they met: at a summer camp for teenagers with scoliosis. Not the typical camp filled only with games and laughter, but a place where every backpack carried something more. A brace. A struggle. A quiet fear.

At first, there were only shy glances and hesitant smiles. Then came whispered conversations in the evening, jokes to lighten the mood, and small gestures of encouragement when wearing that brace for just one more day felt almost impossible. And without even realizing it, a true friendship was born. The kind that needs no explanations.

The years passed. The brace came off, life moved on, and their backs changed. But some things are never left behind. They simply transform. And then comes a special evening: Anna’s eighteenth birthday.

Anna walks into the room wearing an elegant, light, beautiful dress. A dress that reveals her back. The very same back that, just a few years earlier, had been enclosed in a rigid shell of plastic and perseverance. But those who are there with her do not see only the dress. They see the journey. They remember the tears held back, the laughter they shared, the difficult days and the ones when it felt as though they could fly.

They look at each other and understand, without needing to say a word:

“We made it.”

And above all:

“We’re still here.”

This is for all of you—boys and girls who are facing scoliosis and wearing a brace today. I know it isn’t easy. There will be days when it feels unfair, heavy, endless. But please remember this: you are not alone.And what you are living through now, even if it feels like nothing more than a burden, can become something incredibly precious.

Because somewhere between an adjustment and a moment of discomfort, between a restless night and a difficult day, you may find people who truly understand you.

And perhaps, a few years from now, you too will find yourselves together again—laughing, celebrating, looking back with pride.

With a different back, yes. But above all, with bonds that were never broken.