Behind The Brace Podcast

Dr. Mandy Dietz
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2025 Update: New Episodes Available Now! Hosted by Dr. Mandy Dietz, the Behind The Brace Podcast is a place for conversations and resources to help families and providers navigate the world of scoliosis. This is your place to find hope for a better solution so that you can live your best life.

  1. Season 1: Episode 14 - Exciting Update! We Are Opening A ScoliCare® Clinic in North Dakota

    10/21/2025

    Season 1: Episode 14 - Exciting Update! We Are Opening A ScoliCare® Clinic in North Dakota

    In this episode, Dr. Mandy shares some exciting news about her clinic and the new resources coming to the North Dakota area. Listen in to find out helpful tips and be sure to check out the links below for more information!   *****Resource Links You Need: Contact Dr. Mandy's office to learn how to work with her by calling (701) 223-8413 or email her at info@drmandychiro.com.  Free Online Screening Tool: https://app.scoliscreen.com/ Find out more about ScoliBalance® at https://scolicare.com/patients-scolibalance. Find out more about ScoliBrace® at https://scolibrace.com.    *****Transcript*****  Hi, I'm Dr. Mandy Dietz and you're listening to The Behind the Brace podcast. Each week I'll be sharing conversations and resources to help families and providers navigate the world of scoliosis. This is your place to find hope for a better solution so that you can live your best life.Welcome back. This is the last episode of the season and I have some really exciting news for you guys. I actually am not really sure who knows and who doesn't know because we've been working on this for quite a long time and I know that we have shared on social media some of the updates in the news with our clinic, but I really wanted to officially let you know that we're taking a break, mostly because as we move into this fall and through the holidays, that we are opening a ScoliCare® clinic here in the state of North Dakota.And so, that's actually really exciting. And what that means is, as you all know, I've been doing this work for over a decade and we've been using ScoliBrace®, we've been adding new tools, we've added ScoliBalance®, we've done more trainings. But this is different because this is an official ScoliCare® clinic here in our state, in our rural community, which is a huge asset to our families and our patients.And it really allows us to focus more fully on more specialized care and to be able to bring more trainings, more people in, more rehab therapists, and to be able to reach more people and do more with the tools that we, that we have and that we've been working on. So I wanted to let you know, because there's gonna be some changes as we move, uh, through this next couple of months and into the holidays. So what that's going to look like is right now I am in my current clinic. You guys will still come to the normal space and we'll still be seeing you as we always do, and we'll actually be opening the ScoliCare® Clinic in a new space. So our friends over at Jones Physical Therapy are expanding and they're building a new building. And that's amazing. And we're so excited for them. And what's really fun about it is that in conversation, that space kind of came into our circle and we're actually going to be moving into that space as they move out of that space which is just a blessing to us, honestly, because, Dr. Liz Jones has been such a friend to us and we've coordinated together in the community, and as they move forward and they are growing, we get to move into their space as a ScoliCare® clinic. And I really just couldn't be more excited for that. So that will look like the end of the year.So as we're going through Thanksgiving and into the Christmas season, the ScoliCare® Clinic will be being built in that space. And then come January 1st, we'll be starting to function out of that space. So in the new year, you'll have to look, um, to our website, into our podcast. We'll have the address, the details, the location.So if you're a scoliosis patient of ours, you'll be seeing me out of that office in 2026, which honestly seems a little crazy to say that out loud because I don't know where this year went. And then even more exciting as we move into the new year.We've got a team of people coming over, uh, from Australia that are going to be doing some intensive trainings with us and some new staff members that we're going to be bringing on.We'll have some additional rehab therapists that are going to be coming in to give some help with some ScoliBalance® tools to our patients, as well as some new staff at the front desk. So you'll be seeing some, new faces and meeting some new people. And then our plan is that as they come over and we do these trainings, um, we get into February.At the end of February, we're going to do a really big celebration at the new clinic and invite our community and other providers and our patients into the space so that you can see it, you can take a look at it, you can see all the cool new things that we're doing. It's gonna look different than the office that we have right now and be more functional and have just a lot more to offer you.And so, we'll have the ability to open up that space as well so we can offer some trainings to other people in the community and work with other providers. So there's just a lot of really cool, exciting things that I've been waiting to share until we had some more details. And so as we move into this break, we'll have additional resources that we're going to link.Like on our social media. So as always, we've got a ton of different podcasts and topics, and so we'll be circling those back a little bit, uh, as you go into the next couple of months so you can still jump on and get information and find the things that you need. And of course, you know, as, as we've talked about before, our goal is really to partner with people in the community and to be able to give some information, uh, to families when they're looking. So we always offer a discovery call. So if you are either a provider or a patient who's wondering if our office can help you, we offer a 15 minute call where we jump on. We can even look at some of your images and talk through the situation just to see if it's something that is appropriate for our office or if we can direct you somewhere else.So in the meantime, if you're not hearing from us regularly. If you are looking for those resources, all you have to do is jump onto our social media or our website, shoot us an email or even a text message to our office, and we can help you get that scheduled. Also you can email information over to us as well if you're looking for some input on that.We always love to help with those scenarios. Um, so as we go, please be watching. We'll have an updated website as well. So, new websites, new, uh, location, new address, new faces, new people, lots of really big exciting things. There'll definitely be a little bit of a transition as we're moving from one clinic to the next.And of course we'll make sure that we're sending that information out to you. So if you are someone who is in our office regularly. Don't worry about that, you'll have the information at hand. If you're somebody that's new here and you are just finding our podcast for the first time feel free to go back to some of our earlier episodes this season.We've got some really great content. Um, the last week we had Dr. Tara Harding on our podcast and we were able to talk through a lot of different things, regarding hormones and testing and local options that we have. So many things that you can go back and, and just take a peek at while you're waiting for us to come back early next year.So if you need us, you know where to find us. Hope you guys all have a fantastic holiday and we'll see you next year.Thanks for spending time with me today. If you could leave a review before you go, that would help us reach more people that need this message. To learn more about the services and resources that we have available, visit us at behindthebrace.com. This show is produced by RAYMA Team Media. To learn more about how they can help you with your podcast, visit raymateam.com.

    8 min
  2. Season 1: Episode 13 - The Effect of Hormones on Scoliosis with Dr. Tara Harding

    10/07/2025

    Season 1: Episode 13 - The Effect of Hormones on Scoliosis with Dr. Tara Harding

    In this episode, Dr. Mandy has a conversation with her friend, Dr. Tara Harding, on the effect of hormones on scoliosis and what patients need to consider when looking for answers on the internet. This is a MUST LISTEN TO episode for parents of teens, teens, and women in your 20's, 30's, 40's and beyond. Listen in to find out helpful tips and be sure to check out the links below for more information! Dr. Tara Harding is the owner of Simply You Wellness and an experienced doctorate family nurse practitioner and fertility coach with patients worldwide. She received her master’s and doctorate degree from George Washington University and has received an additional certification through the American Society of Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) and Marquette Method Certified. After facing personal health challenges, she decided to leverage her experience and knowledge to help individuals and families improve their health and wellness. As a result,she created a unique approach to healthcare at Simply You Wellness. Dr. Tara empowers her patients to understand and take control of their health while being a partner in their health journey, supporting them as they navigate the path to optimal health and well-being. Connect with Dr. Tara at simplyyouclinic.com and subscribe to her podcast, Hopeful Hints, at https://simplyyouclinic.com/podcast/ or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.   *****Resource Links You Need: Contact Dr. Mandy's office to learn how to work with her by calling (701) 223-8413 or email her at info@drmandychiro.com.  Free Online Screening Tool: https://app.scoliscreen.com/ Find out more about ScoliBalance® at https://scolicare.com/patients-scolibalance. Find out more about ScoliBrace® at https://scolibrace.com.    *****Transcript*****  Hi, I'm Dr. Mandy Dietz and you're listening to The Behind the Brace podcast. Each week I'll be sharing conversations and resources to help families and providers navigate the world of scoliosis. This is your place to find hope for a better solution so that you can live your best life.Welcome back. This week we have a guest on our podcast that I'm super excited to introduce. Today we have Dr. Tara Harding, the founder of Simple You Wellness. She's a doctorate prepared family nurse practitioner that specializes in hormone health for men, women and children, and integrative women's care.She's passionate about helping patients move beyond being told everything is normal, and instead uncover the root causes of symptoms like fatigue, weight changes, mood swings, and cycle irregularities. She brings extensive clinical experience, a personalized approach, and a shared dedication to helping patients feel like themselves Again, her clinic is leading the way in transforming how hormone health is addressed, and she empowers patients to be heard, understood, and truly cared for.Welcome.Hey, thank you.Yes, thanks for coming on today. So I'm super excited to have you here because there's a big conversation happening in the scoliosis world that it doesn't have a ton of research behind it, but we know that it's affecting patients that have scoliosis. And as I do more of this work, I've got patients that come in my office, they have questions, and it's not within my, it's not within my specialty.Specialty. Yes, yes. And I know about it, but it's not something that I have dedicated my career too. Right? So, this is within your wheelhouse. Yeah. So thanks for coming on. Yeah. You know, I'd like to just shout out patients, right? Like, I think sometimes patients have to get a degree. You know, we always joke about Dr. Google, but what do patients do when they're left with no answers? You go to one side of medicine and they're told. Everything's fine. Nothing to do here. You can't fix that. You can't change that. That won't help that. That's not FDA approved. And then you go to the other side of the spectrum and it's like, here, take a bazillion things.I'm gonna cure you overnight and give me this timeframe, this money and everything will be fixed. Right? So patients are really put in a hard spot. From every avenue of healthcare, whether they're young adolescents, um, young women, young men, I mean, really. We could go on and on about that, but it's really hard when you're met with a diagnosis and you get a diagnosis, right, such as scoliosis.Mm-hmm. And it's like, now what? Yeah. Now what do we do? What do we do here now? No, it's hard. Um, in the conversations that I have with patients. You know? Okay. So we all probably do it, even though we say don't do it. But you get a diagnosis and what do you do? You Google it. I encourage it. Right, right. I'm gonna say it.I encourage it. Let's go to the socials. Go. There's great content out there nowadays, right? From good resources and bad resources, but there's a lot out there. Yeah. You have to discern the difference. You do, right? You do. So if you have a hard time discerning the difference between resources that are Yeah.Reputable and resources that are not, sometimes you fall in this crack that can be pretty dangerous. Very. And expensive. And expensive and waste a lot of time. Yep. Actually, so, so that's really, that's why I wanted to have you on and talk about this today, because what I'm finding is, um, so there's this piece of it where patients come in, they're diagnosed with the scoliosis, whether they're a juvenile, adolescent, their kids, right.They're growing, or maybe even they're adults and they've had scoliosis for a really long time. And they find all of this information, and we do know that there are certain things that come along with that diagnosis. Like for example, just like a quick rundown, right? So we know that kids that are diagnosed with scoliosis, it typically, uh, it tends to show up between the ages of 10 and 14.It's typically right before or during puberty. There are a lot of changes going on. We know there are some link to hormones, but. We haven't, nobody's been able to really nail it down. Yeah, exactly. We know that oftentimes there are other things that are, that affect that, whether that's like vitamin D levels or sometimes, um, people have been talking, they'll come in and they'll talk about, um, copper levels that are too high or they'll talk about, um, just a lot of different things that we know that oftentimes those patients might struggle with.But at the same time, there's not really anything in the research or in the science piece of it to say. You know, okay. Like if you have this problem, like say you have this hormone problem or this vitamin D or whatever it might be. We don't know that that for sure makes you have scoliosis, but we do know that patients that have scoliosis oftentimes have those things that are problems.Yeah. So then what do we do with that? Well, if we had a magic wand, we'd have better research and funding for research. Right, right. So we can't, patients have to be very careful about where they're getting their information from. Like you said, is it research back? Like what is there to show that this claim is going to work?What we do know, as you mentioned, some very key times, 10 to 14 puberty. Hormones are rapidly changing during that time. Nutrients, vitamins, supplements, rapidly changing during that time. So it would make sense that bone formation situations would arise during that time. Right. And genetics, mm-hmm. Go hand in hand.So not everyone has information of their genetics, but if you do, it's again looking at is there someone in the family that has this diagnosis or other hormonal issues as they progressed in life? And looking back on that. Estrogen, testosterone, thyroid, insulin, cortisol. When people hear hormones, they think like estrogen, like that's the first thing that comes to their head.Maybe progesterone, maybe testosterone. We're lucky. Thyroid, insulin, cortisol. There's all these different hormones and most we're lucky if we, if patients come in and they've had one or two looked at, never is the full picture being looked at. Then we look at iron, nutrients, vitamin D, magnesium. Let's not forget about gut.You can take all the things in the world, all of the, whether it's even in a prescription or a supplement, and if your gut health isn't working or not on point, how are you gonna absorb all of that? And is there an absorption issue that's, you know, tailing back to some of these things too. People forget.Providers, let's just say providers sometimes forget to look at the whole picture and that pivotal time where you're seeing this happen, there is a cascade, rapid cascade of things going on that we could interject and help with. We have to look at them as a whole picture though, right? We have to do the appropriate workup.These, these children aren't getting in a workup. They're going in. Bringing forward maybe a symptom or a concern and it's being dismissed, or they're not even getting adequate lab levels drawn to look at vitamin D levels, look at nutrient levels, look at their hormones, talk about their periods if they're a female, right?Like these things just aren't happening, so how can we intervene appropriately to help maybe slow down that process or intervene in that process if they're not even getting a full workup. The conversation's even happening at their provider's office to offer that as an option too. And the other piece of that too, is that sometimes it's the other way where, you know, maybe they go to a medical provider and they're not getting the workup, so then they're not doing anything.But I've also had families where they go somewhere and sometimes it's states away. Right. So we're in North Dakota. Yeah, we're rural, right. That we don't have access to a ton of things, but sometimes I've heard where they go to a facility. They get zero workup, but they get handed a box of whatever supplements or this or that, and it's, you know, $900 a month and woo.Red flakes. You know what I mean though? Yeah. So then th

    47 min

  3. 09/23/2025

    Season 1: Episode 12 - The Art Of Bracing And What You Need To Be Aware Of

    In this episode, Dr. Mandy explains the differing reasons why bracing is used and the intricate pieces of bracing that make each case so unique. If you've ever received differing recommendations from a handful of providers that has left you confused and not sure what to do, then you need to listen to this episode! Listen in to find out helpful tips and be sure to check out the links below for more information!   *****Resource Links You Need: Contact Dr. Mandy's office to learn how to work with her by calling (701) 223-8413 or email her at info@drmandychiro.com.  Free Online Screening Tool: https://app.scoliscreen.com/ Find out more about ScoliBalance® at https://scolicare.com/patients-scolibalance. Find out more about ScoliBrace® at https://scolibrace.com.    *****Transcript*****  Hi, I'm Dr. Mandy Dietz and you're listening to the Behind the Brace podcast. Each week I'll be sharing conversations and resources to help families and providers navigate the world of scoliosis. This is your place to find hope for a better solution so that you can live your best life.Welcome back. This week we're talking about the art of bracing and what you need to be aware of, so lots of conversations around bracing and what that's used for. So last episode, we talked about kind of the details of what that looks like, and just some general basic information. And today I wanna talk about more how it applies to you and how we use bracing. So traditionally speaking, when we're talking about bracing, most of the time we're talking about either juveniles or adolescents, kids that are growing, that are diagnosed with either scoliosis or hyper kyphosis that are wearing a brace because they're growing.And essentially what that means is when kids are growing, if they've got a scoliosis, if they're not in a corrected position as they grow, that curve can progress. When the spine grows and growth plates continue to grow, when there's pressure on certain sides of that growth plate, the the bone and the spine will actually start to grow in a deformity.So that's essentially what the goal is for bracing in kids that are growing. And that's why when you go see an orthopedic surgeon or any other primary care provider that works with scoliosis, if you have a child that's got a scoliosis or a hyper kyphosis and they're growing, they're going to put them in a brace.So that's pretty straightforward. That's general recommendations. Everybody that would see a case like that should be doing that if that's where you're at. And then based on where they're at, specifically with their age and where their growth plates are at, the severity of their curve, lots of different things.Family history, that's where they determine, you know, are you wearing a brace? How long are you wearing a brace? What kind of brace? So whether that's a brace at night or that's a full-time brace or what that might look like. So that's pretty general, and I would say most people know that that's something that's coming.If you have a child that's growing with a scoliosis. So here's where the intricate pieces come in because there's a lot of different recommendations across providers, and I've personally had conversations with families and even other providers about these scenarios and then different recommendations and why they might be different.So that's really what I wanna speak into because there can be some confusion, and I know when parents come in. You come in and you talk to us in our office, and then for whatever reason, whether it's insurance or a second opinion, or maybe there's something else going on, you go see an orthopedic surgeon, they give you a different recommendation.That orthopedic surgeon says, "Hey, why don't you see our physical therapist while you're here?" And then you go see the physical therapist. And the physical therapist gives a different recommendation from the orthopedic surgeon and from our office, right? And then you're left with three different recommendations.And they're kind of all similar, but they're also different. And then you leave all of these appointments and it's overwhelming. So I wanna help clear some of that up today because there is different scenarios, and different goals and purposes that play into some of these recommendations. And so I'm gonna speak about a scenario that happened in my office that looking back at that, I was like, gosh, you know, we really should have been more clear in some of this information because it would've been really helpful.So, say you have a child who maybe is a little bit older, say they're 13, 14 years old, they are more towards the end of their growth. So they measure that. If you're not familiar, they talk about like, Risser sign, right? So Risser 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. So, Risser five done growing. Growth plates are closed.If you are like Risser one , 2 0 1 2, you know, you're still gonna be growing. You've got that fast growth phase coming up. You know, Risser three. So they base it off of those classifications. So if you're not familiar with that, of course you can always go Google it and you can look and see what it, what it shows as far as the bone and what that means and what that looks like.So we've had more than one case where somebody will come into our office and they've never been diagnosed with a scoliosis or anything. They come in, we find that they have a scoliosis. We take an x-ray, and it's in this range of say like 27 to 35 degrees. And patient might be between the ages of like 13, 14, 15 , maybe they've already had their menstrual cycle for a while, and we look at their growth plates and they're like a Risser four.So when we're looking at that and parents are coming in, some of the history of that might be, you know, our child's really active, they're having some trouble with sports, or maybe they're having trouble pitching in softball. They're having pain in their back. They're concerned about their posture.You know, most of the time it's girls like going into high school that, you know, in a swimming suit, they're like, gosh, you know, this one rib is sticking out, or my shoulder is down. When I put on my clothes, my clothes sit funny. And so they're coming in with these concerns, but then also the parents are maybe new to this too. And they're wondering, okay, well we have this curve, like we don't want our child to have surgery and you know, this is at 28 degrees or 32 degrees, you know, whatever it might be. And so what do we do with this? And so from our lens. So using a ScoliBrace®, when we're looking at that based off of our braces that we provide, that are made through 3D technology that are over corrective, that when we fit you with that brace, we actually get correction in that brace.When we're looking at that, we approach that scenario from knowing that if you've got a curve that's under 30 degrees, when you are done growing, it's less likely to progress as an adult. So essentially what that means is if you've got a 32, 35, 36 degree curve, even if you're done growing, those curves can progress as you age through your adult life.So especially if we've got a kid in that range, they're having pain, it's affecting their daily life, even if they're close to done growing. We can utilize that brace to give correction in the brace, and if the patient is compliant, we've been able to get correction of those curves where.We look at multiple things.Are we able to reduce pain? Are we able to help correct the posture to make their posture more balanced? So essentially their body functions better, more biomechanically, and also they have less postural issues, meaning that aesthetically then that child is happier with what their posture looks like.But then also a goal of, can we reduce the curve, keep it under 30, or if it's over 30, can we get it under 30? Even though they might be a little bit older than say what an orthopedic surgeon might brace. And so we've had these conversations and we've chatted about this and then, you know, for whatever reason it might be, they go see an an orthopedic surgeon.And the orthopedic surgeon is like, "well, they're Risser four. Um, they've had their menstrual cycle for a while and their curve is 27 degrees or 33 degrees, and so essentially they're kind of done growing, so they don't need a brace, you know, no worries. Go see our rehab person. They'll work with you and then we'll see you in six months."Or maybe, you know, sometimes they might say 12 months. Depends on where they're at. Then they go see the rehab person and they'll show them some exercises and they'll say, okay, here's your exercises. When you come back in three months, six months, or whatever it might be. Then we'll go through them again, and then the family leaves and comes back, and then we get a phone call, talking about saying like, well, the orthopedic surgeon said we didn't need a brace.The rehab person said that we just need to do these exercises and come back in. Six months, three months, whatever it might be that we don't need to do this regularly. And then it comes back to the conversation we had where we were talking about utilizing a brace and utilizing our specific rehab program that we have, which essentially, depending on the patients as far as like the, how often we see them, but we generally do like a 12 session program initially and hopefully see those, that patient every week for 12 weeks to build on that.It's very corrective focused and specific, and it's a scoliosis specific exercise rehabilitation program. So as you can imagine coming back from all of these recommendations, we now have three different providers, three different recommendations and three different pieces of information. And the reality is that they're all accurate.Which is frustrating. And so that might sound odd when I say they're all accurate to you, because when I think of something like, well, somebody has to be right, like who's giving the bogus recommendation, right? B

    27 min

  4. 09/09/2025

    Season 1: Episode 11 - The Basics Of Bracing That Every Patient Needs To Consider

    In this episode, Dr. Mandy explains the basics of bracing such as: The difference between casting and bracing. Front closure bracing v. back closure bracing. Rehabilitation plans and using a brace for physical fitness goals. The most comfortable time of day to wear a brace. How often you need to get a new brace. What to wear under the brace for skin protection. The types of braces we use in our office (it's not just a solution for scoliosis - bracing works for kyphosis and hyperkyphosis patients, too!). Listen in to find out helpful tips and be sure to check out the links below for more information!   *****Resource Links You Need: Contact Dr. Mandy's office to learn how to work with her by calling (701) 223-8413 or email her at info@drmandychiro.com.  Free Online Screening Tool: https://app.scoliscreen.com/ Find out more about ScoliBalance® at https://scolicare.com/patients-scolibalance. Find out more about ScoliBrace® at https://scolibrace.com.    *****Transcript*****  The Basics Of Bracing That Every Patient Needs To Consider Hi, I'm Dr. Mandy Dietz and you're listening to The Behind the Brace podcast. Each week I'll be sharing conversations and resources to help families and providers navigate the world of scoliosis. This is your place to find hope for a better solution so that you can live your best life.Hi, welcome back. This week we are going to talk about the basics of bracing that every patient needs to know about. There's been quite a few questions and just some conversation regarding bracing, and we've covered this in the past a few years ago, but a lot of the protocols and different clinics have changed some of the things that they're doing with bracing.And even in our own office, we're using bracing differently than we had 10 years ago. So I wanna go through just kind of the basics of: what is bracing, what do we use it for, and what does that look like. I know when patients come into my office, they have a lot of questions. Of course, this is typically something that they haven't been familiar with.So unless you have a strong family history or you've been through that experience yourself as a parent and now bringing your child in, a lot of these things seem pretty foreign. So the things that I wanna talk about are, what does getting a brace look like? What are the steps involved in that? What are some of the different options and what comes along with it?So we use bracing in our office. So the ScoliBrace® is very specific. It's a 3D over corrective brace. We make that brace using 3D imaging, so it's an actual 3D image of your body, it's custom to you, and it's made in an over corrective way. What that means is it's very specific, so no brace is the same.And even if you say had, you know, a thoracic curvature and the next patient has a thoracic curvature, your braces are going to look different because you and your body are different. So it's made specific for you and we have that shipped to us. We have you come in, we do a brace fitting, we tailor that brace, we modify it to make sure that it's more comfortable for you to wear as comfortable as it can be.And then there's also a lot of other options. So parents that come in talking about brace options have shared some of the experiences that they've had at different clinics. And so I wanna talk a little bit about that because. Just because you have a hard brace doesn't mean that all of those braces are similar or the same, or function the same way.And so some of the things that come up in conversation are patients that go in, they get casted for braces, so it's like a plaster casting that they'll do at different facilities and then they make a brace off of that casting. Most of the time, then once you get that brace, they'll add some different padding inside of it and things like that.Sometimes they'll use measurements. So I've had some patients where they've not had to do the, the plaster casting, but they've laid down and, you know, straightened their spine as much as they can. They've taken different measurements on their body and then they've formed a brace based off of that.And then I have had some patients that have had like the 3D scan in different facilities that have had braces made off of those as well. So a lot of the ways that the brace is utilized and made for a patient is dependent on the provider that's making it. So, for example, you know, if you're casting a patient or if you're doing measurements on a patient, you know, those are a little bit more subjective, so everybody does it a little bit differently.So the consistency can be a little different depending on, you know, if you're seeing different people when you go or how they're trained or the different types of ways that they may do it in their own facility. And then in addition to that, depending on how they utilize that brace once it's there.So I'm going to speak mostly about what we do in our office. But all of those are different scenarios that I've heard families and patients talk about, that we've actually seen and, and talked and worked with different, orthotists and rehab people and things like that as well. So some of the questions that come up is about the closure on the brace.So the majority of our braces that we use, we've actually only had front closure braces in our office, which means that on the front of the brace you've got some Velcro straps. You've got a little guide that goes in and you put the brace on, and then it closes in the front. That way you can take it on and off.You're able to maneuver that if you need to loosen it after you eat or if you need to. Take it off to use the restroom, things like that. I do know that some braces, they have it close in the back. Those are braces that sometimes, you know, depending on how that works, parents have talked about, um, you know, having to assist to get the braces on and off, which if you have small children that don't wanna wear their brace, obviously that can be a benefit because they might not be able to just whip it on and off and take it off when you're not paying attention.But it can also be a hindrance too, because if you have a lot of trouble getting it on and off, especially if kids are at school, that can be something that can affect their compliance and whether or not they wear it. So the majority of our braces, when you're coming in, we have front closures. So the brace opens up, you put it on, you, Velcro it shut, and you're able to change that as you need to throughout the day.So in our braces, so ScoliBrace®, you'll take those braces off when you're active. And so that means anything like, you know, volleyball, basketball, running, if you're biking, you know, any sort of active time swimming, you know, we want you to be active. We want you to be strong. The only time that we have you wear a brace when you're being active is if we're incorporating that into a rehabilitation plan.And that can actually be really beneficial. But we use it in specific ways and it wouldn't be all of the time. So, for example, I just actually had an athlete come in my office this week and one of her main goals is to be able to continue running and to be able to prevent injury. So we talked about utilizing a brace that corrects her spine, hold her in her correction, but then doing some of those core stabilization exercises.So she's actually strengthening her body in a corrected position so that she can maintain her strength and help prevent injuries when she doesn't have her brace on. And so sometimes we'll utilize that, even as adults. Um, I've had adult patients that one of their goals would be to, you know, run, run, jog, a half marathon.And so part of her training would be that we would do part of the walking part of the jogging, in her brace, either on the treadmill. Or down the road for the first mile or two to get her body moving and, and strengthening in those movements in her corrective brace. And then obviously, you know, she's not wearing her brace for a 10 or 13 miles, but once she worked that into her routine, then she would take her brace off and she would complete her training after that.But that was really helpful to be able to help her body stay in that corrected position and get the maximum benefit of the brace. But essentially you get the time out of the brace to be active. Most patients actually say that sleeping in it is the most comfortable time, which surprised me as a provider.Obviously I haven't worn a brace, so I'm not exactly sure what it would be like to sleep in it myself, but a lot of the patients that I work with say that the easiest time to wear the brace is when they're sleeping. It takes a little bit to get used to, but over time, that's probably easier because there's not gravity, we're not standing up.And when you're lying down, your curve's reduced. So it's probably more comfortable. So once you get used to actually having the brace on, the sleeping time can be the easiest time to wear it. The other things that have come up over conversation is how often do we need a new brace? And so obviously that answer depends on the circumstance, but, generally speaking, I'll kind of break it down into like juveniles, adolescents, so like kids that are growing, usually 12 to 18 months you'd have a new brace if somebody is growing really quickly. I did have a couple of patients that needed a new brace, but then 10 months, but they had hit a massive growth spurt, so they had grown a lot in that period of time.But for the most part, generally 12. 13, 14, maybe 15 months. As long as the brace is still doing what we want it to, you'll get at least a year out of that brace and then potentially, you know, need a new one depending on where your child is at for growth. Now, for adults, that looks a little bit different and it's dependent on what our goals are, what your goals are, and what clinically our goals look like.I've had some adult patients that have had their braces fo

    22 min

  5. 08/19/2025

    Season 1: Episode 10 - How To Manage Your Scoliosis When You Can't Be At 100%

    In this episode, Dr. Mandy shares guidance on how to handle the delays and disruptions that come up when life happens and you're trying to handle brace wear at the same time. Listen in to find out helpful tips and be sure to check out the links below for more information!   *****Resource Links You Need: Contact Dr. Mandy's office to learn how to work with her by calling (701) 223-8413 or email her at info@drmandychiro.com.  Free Online Screening Tool: https://app.scoliscreen.com/ Find out more about ScoliBalance® at https://scolicare.com/patients-scolibalance. Find out more about ScoliBrace® at https://scolibrace.com.    *****Transcript*****  Hi, I'm Dr. Mandy Dietz and you're listening to The Behind the Brace podcast. Each week I'll be sharing conversations and resources to help families and providers navigate the world of scoliosis. This is your place to find hope for a better solution so that you can live your best life.Welcome back. This episode is called How to Manage Your Scoliosis When You Can't Be At a hundred percent. I'm actually really excited to do this episode because these are real conversations I have in my office every day, all week, like months and months on end, and it's just real life, real people situations because as I'll tell you when you come into my office or in any conversation, there's this very nice box of diagnosis, look at the x-rays, look at the situation, get all the data. It's this very scientific process, and you put it up on the screen and you say, you know, okay, based on all of these things, this is the recommendation. This is the best treatment approach. This is how we do this. And it, at least for me, it makes me feel really good, right?Like I'm that analytical. I like to see it out on paper. It makes me feel good to know that this is the data, this is how you do it, and if we follow the plan, everything should go as expected, and this is what we should see. But what I've learned in working with real humans is that there's also a human part to it, and life is messy and things happen and it doesn't always go to plan, even though, that can stress me out a little bit, right? As I'm sure anybody listening to this can attest to is that when things do not go according to plan, it can be stressful and it makes us uncertain and we're not as sure how to make decisions.And so what do we do with some of these things and how do we take this very like nice linear process, where we can lay all of the black and whites out, and then how do we incorporate all the gray areas of actual life and how things are going for you and combine it together to make something work? Like that's the magic in it, right? That's where being a good clinician is being able to look at the perfect scenario, look at what's in front of us, and combine the two to get the best result that we can.And so I'm gonna share just a few things. Some of these things might, some of these things might trigger you. If you're listening to this and you're relating to a story, it's not necessarily about you, but if it kind of triggers you, it might mean that you need to pay attention to it. And a lot of these things that I'm talking about are things that I've also experienced in different ways in my own life. But these are really the scenarios that patients come into my office with.So first of all, I'm gonna put a disclaimer out here that this isn't to validate any of your excuses, just like any of my excuses as to why I should be doing things that I shouldn't be doing. So we all have this tug of war with what's realistic in our life and sometimes, you know, if we're just making excuses as to why we can't do something, so I'm not saying that you shouldn't be doing your stuff or you shouldn't be doing the recommended treatment or any of those types of things. But I am saying that there are times in life when we just can't do all of the things that we should be doing. And if you're a perfectionist, at least even like in my own mind and a lot of the patients that I work with, it's kind of this thought of I either have to do it perfectly -the scenario has to be perfect, it has to be. At the right time, it has to be the right space. I have to be feeling a certain way. I need to have a certain amount of time in my schedule. It like everything needs to be perfect in order to either start it -or to be able to continue it. And the reality is that time passes anyway.And if you don't start, you'll never get started. And so there's, there's a few situations in there that we'll kind of talk about that may or may not follow that exact line. But the first thing that I want to talk about is if you have a delay or a disruption. So at least I'm speaking specifically about my office now.So a lot of patients come in and the first thing we determine is, do we need a brace? Do we not need a brace? Where are we at in that regard? And then we follow that appropriately. And then we look at the next layer of things and we say, okay, now that we have that figured out, and any under other underlying medical things that we need to, you know, discern and make sure.Are handled appropriately. We look at is ScoliBalance® appropriate for you? So that's our scoliosis specific rehabilitation program. And is that appropriate for you? And if so, what does that look like? What would be an appropriate prescription of care for your situation?And then we also look at other things like coordinating other providers. So like, are they seeing other providers and are, are we coordinating with them? And how are we working that together? Because when we're looking at this, right, a lot of people have different things going on, so they might be seeing a physical therapist or they might be seeing a chiropractor, they might be seeing, like a fitness coach or a personal trainer or different things like that.And so when we're starting something in our office, we have to be able to communicate with those people so that everybody's kind of on the same page of what are we doing to help you move forward? And I would say a majority of people have more- like it's more than just me or our clinic working with them. And so that's an important piece of that. How do we make this work in your life?Now, once we have that laid out, obviously with any type of care, if you're at a hundred percent, that's the best case scenario, right? So say we've got somebody wearing their brace, so if they're supposed to be wearing their brace full time, so they're wearing their brace full time.They're doing their ScoliBalance® program. They're doing, they're at home stuff, right? They're at, you know, full capacity. They're able to fit it into their day. Um, they're able to continuously work through that, and they're checking the boxes and, you know, doing all of their things at a hundred percent.Obviously we get the best results that way, but there are multiple instances where we have a disruption or a delay or something happens. I've had patients come in as adults that were really wanting to get after their scoliosis and you know, maybe they're in that family stage and then they find out they're expecting another baby.Well, we can't, we can't use a brace when you're, you know, pregnant. Right? So then it's like, okay, we have this little bit of a delay. But then instead of going to, "okay, well we're just going to not do anything right now until down the road, then we talk about," okay, well we can't use this tool, but what tools do we have left that we can use to help you continuously gain ground?Until we can come back to that initial plan. Or, for example, I've had quite a few patients that have had injuries. So whether we had somebody who had a surgery, so with an abdominal surgery, they were out a couple of months. Obviously we're not utilizing a lot of the tools that we're having if you have a surgery and you're in the hospital and you're recovering from incisions and stuff like that. Or we've had people that have had some pretty serious illnesses where maybe they ended up in the hospital for a week and they had to come back out of the hospital and they had to get better and they had to heal.And so in all of those situations, it's gonna be a little bit different for everybody. You know, what can we utilize? Um, or example, a broken leg. Multiple people that have either had like fractures in their legs or fractures in their feet or, because a lot of the people we work with are active, right? So athletes, if they are playing football and something happens, or I've had somebody that does cheer and they were thrown up and they had a fall, and so now all of a sudden we have a concussion that we have to deal with in addition to the scoliosis.There's just these nuances that come about real life, that doesn't make it perfect on paper. And so what do we do about that? How do we work with that?So no time is the perfect time. I will tell you that. It doesn't matter who comes in my office, there's never a perfect time to start. The key is getting started and then making realistic and reasonable decisions.So, for example, it's summertime. Well, we're coming out of summertime and into the fall. So sports, busy season, into like football and all of the things and traveling teams. Um, so there's lots of things going on. And so one of the things that often comes up is it's like, oh, this sport's coming up. We're gonna be traveling a lot. We've got all these trips planned. You know, should I start? And so when we're talking about some of these recommendations, the thing that I ask families and that we kind of come back to is, would we do anything different? So if we're making a decision about care and we're looking into the future, whether it's: do we need to do a test? Do we need to do a brace? Do we need to do a rehab? Doesn't matter what it is, would we do anything different? Because if the answer is no, then maybe we don't do that thing. If the answer is yes, then it would be appropriate to do th

    24 min

  6. 08/05/2025

    Season 1: Episode 9 - Are You Someone We Can Help?

    In this episode, Dr. Mandy addresses the different types of patients she sees in her clinic. If you have scoliosis as a secondary diagnosis, have osteoporosis, are a woman in menopause, or even have spine issues from a traumatic injuries - then you need this episode. Listen in to find out helpful tips and be sure to check out the links below for more information!   *****Resource Links You Need: Contact Dr. Mandy's office to learn how to work with her by calling (701) 223-8413 or email her at info@drmandychiro.com.  Free Online Screening Tool: https://app.scoliscreen.com/ Find out more about ScoliBalance® at https://scolicare.com/patients-scolibalance. Find out more about ScoliBrace® at https://scolibrace.com.    *****Transcript*****  Hi, I'm Dr. Mandy Dietz and you're listening to The Behind the Brace podcast. Each week I'll be sharing conversations and resources to help families and providers navigate the world of scoliosis. This is your place to find hope for a better solution so that you can live your best life.Welcome back. This episode is called "Are You Someone We Can Help?" This week, I wanna talk a little bit about who we see in our office and what that looks like, and if it's something that could potentially help you. The majority of the patients that we see in our office are pediatric patients -so adolescents that have scoliosis, maybe have been diagnosed with scoliosis, or maybe they are worried that they might have scoliosis and haven't gotten a diagnosis yet.The research shows us that up to 5% of the population of adolescents are affected by scoliosis and of that population, 10% of those patients actually have a really significantly delayed diagnosis. Which can be really important and can affect the treatment options, in a very, very big way because if we miss a diagnosis of a progressive scoliosis, sometimes that might change our options from being able to manage that with a rehabilitation program and potentially a brace to that Scoliosis now becoming surgical.And instead of talking about how do we stabilize this and get correction of this scoliosis, we're now talking about how do we delay surgery or how do we prepare for a surgery and then a post-surgical recovery. So those are really important things to note. Of course, you know, the adolescent population is what we mostly think of when people think about scoliosis, they're, they're thinking about, you know, like in our generation, if we had the scoliosis checks in our schools. Which they don't typically do anymore. But, you know, as adults we're thinking about that. Like, oh yeah, we got checked for scoliosis when we were kids, and if something showed up, then they gave us a note, we went home to our parents and then we went to the doctor.So I think that's what comes to mind when we're talking about scoliosis. And I will say that that's a, a very large part of my practice is working with kids. You know, mostly, I would say between the ages of like 10 to 16 and through there, we definitely have kids that we're seeing under the ages of 10.Uh, the big thing to note with those age groups is if there's a history of scoliosis in your family or if you have any sort of indicators with your child that there might be a possibility of a curve. Especially if they're under the age of 10, make sure that they're getting checked appropriately, early and often because you wanna catch that ahead of time instead of finding it down the road maybe when they're 12, 13, or 14.Because typically at that time, it's now a little bit less manageable, especially if it's progressed. So in addition to that population, we also see a lot of patients that have scoliosis as a secondary diagnosis. And so what that means is that someone has a primary diagnosis of something else, like for example, cerebral palsy or some other neurological diagnosis that affects muscle tone, or flexibility and increase in flexibility in their body, their joints and spine. In addition to that, it could potentially be secondary diagnosis to degeneration if we're talking about adults. So if we think about adults in their like fifties, sixties, or seventies. If we have a lot of degeneration, if we have a lot of spinal problems then sometimes what can happen is, is you can actually get a scoliosis or a kyphosis from something like that. So an example might be if we have an accident or something like that and the spine starts to degenerate.It doesn't always just stay in the spot that it's supposed to. It can become unstable and then we get a scoliosis and those things tend to be really painful. And so a lot of patients come in, in that population in pain. And so the initial diagnosis would be whatever the injury would be, but then the scoliosis comes next or the kyphosis comes next.In addition to that, one of the things that I really wanted to bring up today that might, might not be on everybody's, um, you know, at the front of their mind is sometimes we have kids and adults, I should say, with different types of leg length inequalities. So essentially you might know somebody that maybe in like third grade they fell off of a slide and broke their leg.Or if you have like an athlete and they have a fracture in their leg somewhere and it hits the growth plate, it can affect how the bone grows. Or you might have a leg length inequality from something else, like a medical condition, uh, or something of that nature where one of the legs actually grows longer than the other.It's not extremely common, but it is something that happens and that can cause a scoliosis. So if you think about like a building, right? If we have like a 10 story building. If at the very bottom, if we have a six inch difference, by the time you get to the top, that whole building is going to be leaning over.It's the same thing with the structure of our spine and our body. So if something happens to one of our legs where it doesn't grow the same as the other, or if we have some type of condition that affects the growth of one of your legs that can actually create that tip on the base of your pelvis and then a scoliosis forms.So I work with quite a few patients that are younger, that have had that happen. So most of the time it's something that happens like early on, like maybe grade school, or something from birth that causes the bones to grow not quite how they should. So that's something that we definitely want to address early.So most parents, if they're told this, they're not necessarily told that that problem can create a scoliosis. It's something that just shows up down the road. So if you're a parent or if you know somebody that has had something like that happen, or there's a problem in like the leg length equality of, of somebody, you know, if give them a heads up because most of the time doctors don't talk about that and then they get like a year or maybe two years down the road and they just happen to find, they're like, oh, you have a scoliosis.Well, we know that that's an indicator that can show us that a scoliosis is much more likely if you have an unstable base. The same thing can be for something going on with the, the pelvis or in your hips. So it would be things like hip dysplasia or if you have any sort of traumatic injury to your pelvis.So whether that's an accident or you know, something from birth or something that comes from a different type of condition. Anything with the legs, anything with the pelvis. It's actually responsible for almost half of the scoliosis cases that show up in that low to low back into the middle back because it shifts your pelvis and then your body tips to try to compensate from that.And over time it develops into a scoliosis. So if you have any sort of indication that that's something that's coming about, make sure that you have a proper assessment to make sure that your spine is developing, growing appropriately. And that's, you know, obviously for children when they're growing, but we can have those same types of injuries as adults if you have an accident and have a, a fracture in your leg or if you have a surgery or even sometimes I have seen adults, if they have a hip replacement or a knee replacement, sometimes that can affect the structure of your legs and your pelvis, and then over time, a scoliosis can develop even as an adult.So those are things that aren't talked about a whole lot, but are really important because I keep seeing it over and over in my clinic and people just aren't made aware of it.In addition... so a lot of times when I'm talking to people, they think that we work mostly with really significant or severe cases, so surgical cases or cases that need braces, and we actually see a really large, uh, group of adults.Well, not just adults, adults and children that have more mild cases. So if you aren't needing a brace, if it's not a surgical recommendation, oftentimes you're just told like, okay, you know, you're lucky counting your blessings, you're on your way. We don't need to do any of these interventions. Over time, even those mild cases can develop into a more significant, I don't wanna say problem, but a more significant, has more of a significant effect on your life. So maybe you're not having pain or a lot of symptoms and maybe it's not preventing you from doing the things that you want, but over time you might notice it more or you might notice how your clothes fit a little bit differently.A lot of women that come in will talk to me about how they look in a bathing suit because their rib cage might be shifted. They might feel like their posture's a little distorted or one shoulder's higher than the others. So more of an aesthetic effect. And those are a lot of things that we can pretty easily do an assessment and give some treatment recommendations and work through that. And they use that in conjunction to the things that they're already doing.So, most of these people are already doing, you know, whether it's chiropractic care or maybe they'

    22 min

  7. 07/22/2025

    Season 1: Episode 8 - Things To Know About Going To School With A Brace

    This week we are talking about Braces and school. So as we get ready to go back to school in the next couple of weeks here, one thing that we talk a lot about in our office is we have new classes, we have new teachers. We sometimes have new schools if we're going from middle school to high school or elementary school to middle school.And so what does that look like and how do we need to approach that so that we are successful. Listen in to find out helpful tips and be sure to check out the links below for more information!   *****Resource Links You Need: Contact Dr. Mandy's office to learn how to work with her by calling (701) 223-8413 or email her at info@drmandychiro.com.  Free Online Screening Tool: https://app.scoliscreen.com/ Find out more about ScoliBalance® at https://scolicare.com/patients-scolibalance. Find out more about ScoliBrace® at https://scolibrace.com.    *****Transcript*****  Hi, I'm Dr. Mandy Dietz and you're listening to the Behind the Brace podcast. Each week I'll be sharing conversations and resources to help families and providers navigate the world of scoliosis. This is your place to find hope for a better solution so that you can live your best life.Welcome back. This week we are talking about Braces and school. So as we get ready to go back to school in the next couple of weeks here, one thing that we talk a lot about in our office is we have new classes, we have new teachers. We sometimes have new schools if we're going from middle school to high school or elementary school to middle school.And so what does that look like and how do we need to approach that so that we are successful? So one thing that I have noticed is of course the first week of school there's a little bit of leeway because we're trying to figure out class schedules. We're trying to figure out how our week goes, and especially for those kids that are in middle school or high school, we've got a whole new set of classes.Where's my locker? Or can I even fit my brace in my locker? Do I have a locker? Some of those schools do not even have lockers. So what do we do with our brace and how do we manage that? So the first week, we kinda give some leeway. Kids get to go to class, figure out their schedules, and then we come in and we talk about the struggles they might be having.Now, when I say struggles, it's mostly about trying to find a way to make the brace wear work with their classes and where they have to go in the school. Now, obviously if they're in elementary school, they are in the same class, they have the same teacher. It's actually pretty, it's actually easier because they're just there and they take it off if they go to gym class and they might take it off if they have a field trip or recess or, you know, something of that nature.Um, and then put it right back on. So, for an elementary, aged child, the best thing that you can do is make sure that you're talking to the school counselor and their teacher before they go to school, so that way they can have that discussion and kind of figure out how do we need to make this work throughout our day?And then that way they're not surprised. That's one of the biggest things I would recommend to you. If your child has one specific teacher all day long, make sure they know that ahead of time. Now, I will say a lot of families end up having, what's called it's 5 0 4 plan. And so basically it's just accommodations, meaning that the school knows that they have a scoliosis brace and they're wearing it to school, and they have specific accommodations for that so that they can be successful in wearing their brace.So that goes through all grades, whether you're elementary, middle school, or high school. So that's definitely an option. I've had some parents say that they're like, nah, we don't need one. You know, our school's small enough, the teachers are really good about it. Like, we don't need to do a 5 0 4 plan. And so I think that's where really you kind of get to choose if you are having trouble, in a specific class, teacher, school. That's where I would say it's time to reach out to the counselor. Talk about doing a 5 0 4 plan. That way it's written down, it's in writing. The school knows what you're, you know, working towards and everybody's on the same page so that you have accommodations to make sure that this brace wearing is successful.Because the last thing we wanna do is put in a ton of hard work at home. You know, wearing it overnight while you sleep. And then missing out on the entire day of school because there's not great communication with the school or the teachers or the staff. So that's an option to you. You don't have to use it.Just be aware that if you need it, that's something that your provider and the school can work together with you on. And my experience has been is that schools are really willing to work with you, but they can't help you if they don't know about it. So if you're struggling, you just need to be able to connect with the right people.So I would start with the counselor. If they aren't available or if they can't help you, if you're not getting anywhere there, you know, then go up into, whether that's the principal or somebody else in that area that can get you the information or at least connect you with the right person to get, the right people together to have the conversation and get it put into place.Now, when we're talking about middle school and we're talking about high school. These kids are a little bit more independent. They're going to different classes. They generally have gym, they've got lunch, they've got lockers. They're doing all of the things. I have found that they're a little bit more reluctant to talk to their teachers about it. Especially if you have a kid who doesn't really want anybody to know that they have scoliosis. And so we want them to be successful in wearing their brace if they need to be wearing it to school. Sometimes what that looks like is having a conversation again with either the counselor or maybe their home-based teacher.I guess depending on the size of your school, if you have a really like small community school, then obviously it will be easier for you because you'll already know all of these people. In bigger schools, that's where we have to really make sure that we're getting the communication to the right people because we don't always know all of the teachers. We don't always know who's going to be and which classes at what time. And we wanna reach out to the team so that they know what's going on.In high school, a similar thing as middle school, there's definitely the ability to have different accommodation plans and the one thing about the accommodation plan is a lot of the high schoolers will ask me, will everybody know if I have an accommodation plan?Will they know if I have a 5 0 4 plan? Because they don't want, a lot of times that attention. And so I really reassure them, it's something that the school has in writing so that everybody can come back to it. Everybody knows what the expectations are and so that way everybody has the same standards.So for example, if you're wearing your brace and you're sitting in class in a desk and your arms are starting to bother you, or a part of the brace is starting to push on, say like, your hip and you need to stand up and take a break. What I've heard from students is they're like, well, nobody, nobody else is standing up. I'm not gonna stand up in class. Like, my teacher won't let me stand up. And when I ask them, I say, well, does your teacher know that you have a brace? And they're like, well, no, my teacher doesn't know that. And so that's where that communication is important, because when they're coming back into my office and we're talking about the fact that, Hey, we we're not getting enough time in your brace, and then they're saying that they have to take it off during certain classes.They really wouldn't have to take it off for that class if the teacher or the staff in that class knew what was going on, they would be allowed to very quietly stand up, maybe go down the hall, get a drink of water, get some movement, come back in and sit down. Not being disruptive, but they wouldn't even necessarily have to be like a big conversation about it. They would just know that and know that if they stand up and do that, that it's because they need a break from their brace for a couple of minutes. So that's where I'm really encouraging families to reach out to the school ahead of time and to reach out to the teachers ahead of time, because I've seen situations where brace wear is fantastic in every other scenario, but then we look at our wear time monitors and they're supposed to be in it full time and they're only hitting maybe 13, 14 hours in the day. And when we talk through it, the times that we're missing are in certain classes because of either the. Seating options or, because they're afraid that they won't be able to, uh, move in a certain way or they'll say, oh, I have to pick something up.I don't want them to know that I have this situation going on. And, it's really unfortunate because it affects the success of the care that we're providing and it creates stress for the student. So even though they think they're avoiding a stressful situation by not talking about it, it's actually creating more stress because now every single day it's coming up over and over again.Where if we have that one conversation at the beginning, it might be stressful in that moment, but then it's planned out for them so they don't have to have that recurring stress every day about this battle in their head about, do I wear the brace? Do I not wear the brace? What if we do this today? Or what if I do this today?And so that's, that's huge, especially for our older students and especially if they're driving. I found that if students are driving themselves to school, they're putting on their brace, they're going to class, they're really self-su

    13 min

  8. 07/08/2025

    Season 1: Episode 7 - Remember To Have Mental & Emotional Support, Too.

    We are finishing up some of our episodes after Scoliosis Awareness Month and right before we go back to school this fall. And one of the things that we really wanna talk about is the emotional component of a scoliosis diagnosis. Listen in to learn more and be sure to check out the links below for more information!   *****Resource Links You Need: Contact Dr. Mandy's office to learn how to work with her by calling (701) 223-8413 or email her at info@drmandychiro.com.  Free Online Screening Tool: https://app.scoliscreen.com/ Find out more about ScoliBalance® at https://scolicare.com/patients-scolibalance. Find out more about ScoliBrace® at https://scolibrace.com.    *****Transcript***** We are finishing up some of our episodes after Scoliosis Awareness Month and right before we go back to school this fall. And one of the things that we really wanna talk about is the emotional component of a scoliosis diagnosis. And it's easy to be focused on the physical part, the diagnosis part, looking at the x-rays, looking at the spine, talking about whether you need a brace or not need a brace or surgery might be a conversation that comes up. There's typically a lot of conversations in those initial weeks following a diagnosis, and if you are having that diagnosis and that conversation with your teenager or with your child, to be aware that there's also a very big emotional piece to that, that they're not going to be able to probably tell you about or even recognize that they need support in that space. And I see that a lot with the patients that we work with and I really, really am passionate about the fact that we need to talk about it a little bit more.Because as adults, we get caught up in the diagnosis and the what do we do next phase of that diagnosis.And that's the focus, right? Because a scoliosis diagnosis can be a little overwhelming. There's a lot of information, especially if you weren't expecting it or if you are not familiar with scoliosis, if this is something new to the conversations that you've had , it's just easy to focus on that piece of it because we have to figure out a plan.I also want everyone to know that in the midst of that, we also have to have a plan for the emotional and mental health of the patient, whether that's, maybe that's yourself or maybe that's a child that you are working with as well.So, what does that look like? How do we get emotional and mental support surrounding the diagnosis?Obviously everybody's needs are different and people handle things differently. I can say across the board, kids don't have the tools or the skills to be able to process those emotions and to be able to work that out with themselves. So finding the right support is going to be extremely helpful, not just for you and your family, but also for the providers that are working with you as well.And what I mean by that is in a lot of scenarios, if a child isn't handling the news well, if they're not feeling like they can talk about it or maybe they don't know how to talk about it, there's a lot of big feelings that come with that, especially if we're talking about surgery or a brace. Oftentimes they don't even know or understand, or they can't put a word to what they're feeling or how to even explain it to somebody.And so, if they're caught up in that and we're coming to appointments and we're trying to get them into a brace full-time and possibly doing, , rehab appointments where they're coming in more frequently. If they're not able to process those emotions, we can't be as productive in those appointments and we can't be as productive in wearing the brace because every time they're trying to put the brace on, or every time they're trying to do the things that they need to do at home, those emotions come up and can be the focus and they can really inhibit their success as far as going through treatment.So when we're talking about that piece of it, it's about, you know, identifying if and when your child needs support, and then where do we find that support? So that can look different for a lot of different people.What we recommend is you start somewhere where they might be comfortable, and that's for yourself as well. So if you're an adult listening to this and you feel like that emotional or that mental support hasn't been there in your life across the board from either from the, when the diagnosis initially happened or after a surgery or any of those scenarios, you start with some place that is reasonable.So for a teenager it might be maybe a school counselor, or maybe it's somebody at their church, whether it's a pastor or maybe it's, , a friend at their church or someplace that they can have those conversations and feel comfortable talking about those. Now those are obviously, you know, pretty easy supports where it's very general.Sometimes we run into instances in which we need more support. And then there's counselors that are available that are really skilled in working with teenagers, adults, across all sorts of different scenarios and helping them be able to process and work through some of those emotions. And really what I found is when kids can work through that and they can actually, be able to communicate about what they're feeling and maybe put some words to what they're feeling with some help from a counselor, then when they come in to do the appointments that they need to do, whether that's for a brace or that's for rehab, or anything else that we're doing, they're really able to focus and be more productive because they don't have all the background noise going on.And so oftentimes it can be unavoidable, right?If we get new news or if it's something new that we're working on. But I have seen people over 12 months, 18 months, 24 months, really not have the support that they need and not be able to move forward in their care because that emotional piece just wasn't connected and they didn't have the support that they needed.So I really encourage families talk about it openly. Have that conversation. Ask them how they're doing and you'll know too, like, you know, how your kid normally acts if either seeming like they're withdrawn or they're quiet and maybe they're not interacting as much. Or, talking to the providers that are working with them as well, if they're noticing that they're withdrawn or maybe not engaging in conversation or not able to participate in parts of their care. Those are all really big red flags that they just need some extra support, and it can be a lot of different options. Now, obviously it's easiest if you have a counselor that you can find and you can get them in, and they have that like outside person that they can have conversations with and that they can utilize throughout their care. That's a fantastic resource. If you don't have that availability, there are other places, whether that's at school, a school counselor , a church, um, something like that. Just some place that they can get that support.And the other piece to that isn't necessarily as prevalent where we're from because we live in a really rural area. But there are some online support groups. I always caution people, there's two sides to support groups, right? The online forums that you can find, whether it's on Facebook or Instagram, social media, different things like that is obviously when you join a group, you don't exactly know the background of that group or who's running the group, and so you wanna make sure that you find those resources and that they actually fit your needs. If you jump into a scoliosis support group online and every post is about super scary, horrific outcomes of people's stories, that's not going to be a benefit to you necessarily as far as giving you the resources that you need, it might actually just increase your anxiety and make you worry more.So I really am an advocate for good resources and support groups. Be careful as you're digging through social media options and things like that, that you're finding things that are encouraging and good for you. And obviously there are some scary parts to a scoliosis diagnosis, especially if it's significant.So we don't wanna be naive and we don't want to only focus on things that have fantastic outcomes, right? We wanna know. The other side of the coin as well. And sometimes that does include some negative things or maybe outcomes that aren't the best. But it shouldn't be the focus because we wanna find ways to get some solid ground on the new information that you have so that you can move forward in positive ways and to focus on the things that you can control. And then really just gather information as you go through that from trusted providers. So there's a couple of online groups that we have available and I'll link those underneath, um, the episode so that you can find those.And if you would like to join those, you can go into them. See if it's something that works for you.The other thing that you can do too is, sometimes depending on where you're located, there might be local events where, whether it's more for like teenagers or sometimes even parents of teenagers that have scoliosis. There can be some meetups in some groups where you can meet other families that are dealing with some of the same things. So you can look for those resources as well. Sometimes in especially bigger cities, you might find some groups that have those accessible to you where you can actually go do something fun, like maybe go bowling, um, and then catch up and get to know people that are walking that same path as you.And so as far as making those connections to the resources that you need, there's lots of options, locally we've got some really great counselors that have been, instrumental in the care of some of our patients to be able to really help them get to a place where they've been able to process through some of the big emotions so they could make better decisions about their care, and it's just been fantastic to see.So if you

    12 min
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About

2025 Update: New Episodes Available Now! Hosted by Dr. Mandy Dietz, the Behind The Brace Podcast is a place for conversations and resources to help families and providers navigate the world of scoliosis. This is your place to find hope for a better solution so that you can live your best life.

Information

  • Creator
    Dr. Mandy Dietz
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2025
  • Episodes
    56
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    Copyright ©2021-2025 Dr. Mandy Dietz. All Rights Reserved. This content is for personal education only and is not meant to be medical advice. Always consult a doctor or medical professional when questions arise.
  • Show Website
    Behind The Brace Podcast