Actress Shailene Woodley won’t let scoliosis get the best of her

Shailene Woodley has starred in blockbuster movies and popular TV shows. She recently made headlines when she announced her engagement to famous quarterback, Aaron Rodgers. She has not let her scoliosis diagnosis keep her from success and happiness.

Woodley has been very open about the struggles she faced as a teenager. She was diagnosed with a 38-degree curve in her spine at the age of 15. She had to wear a plastic brace for two years to help stop the progression of her scoliosis.

“It was like wearing a tacky, disgusting, plastic corset for 18 hours a day. In the beginning, it was hard to eat or breathe and I had to give up cross-country running. But I needed to have it to realign my spine,” Woodley told US Weekly in 2012.

In 2014, Woodley spoke again about her scoliosis with Movies Online while promoting a film.

“I still have scoliosis, but it was never a question of whether I could be active or not. Never. Actually, I have pretty severe scoliosis but it’s not something that will ever affect [my life]. You can still get pregnant; you can still live your life the way anyone else can live their life. You can bungee jump. You can skydive. It does not hold you back from anything. Every now and then you get a little bit of pain, but everyone has their stuff to deal with. Everyone has their own pains and obstacles to battle with. But it’s never been physically limiting at all.”

Shailene Woodley is best known for starring in the “Divergent” trilogy of movies. She also starred in “The Fault in Our Stars” and “The Descendants” alongside George Clooney.

Treatments for scoliosis can include stretches and exercises, pain medications, wearing braces and spine surgery. If you would like to speak with a spine specialist about your options for treating scoliosis, you can request an appointment below or call our office at 985-400-5778.