Megan's Story: Idiopathic Scoliosis

Prior to surgery, at the age of 13, Megan was number one in her division in Missouri in Full Contact Olympic Sport Taekwondo. She also had scoliosis.

In December of 1988, Megan had scoliosis surgery. Only the thoracic (mid back) curve was operated on to allow her spine the flexibility needed to return to competitive Taekwondo.

Megan's Road to Recovery

• 1 month after surgery: No sporting activity
• 2 to 12 months after surgery: Attended all training sessions and progressively started stretching and doing cardio, footwork and eventually kicking drills.
• 1 to 1 1/2 years: Kicking Drills, 100% plyometric exercises, cardio and light contact sparring - stretching to maintain flexibility.
• 1 1/2 to 2 years: Medium to full contact sparring.

Just two years after her surgery, Megan wins the World Martial Arts Black Belt of the Year Award! And she didn’t stop there. Between 2001 and 2005, she participated in Regional, State, National & International competitions winning 27 Gold and four Silver medals, was a Quarterfinalist in US Open (International - 2002), was invited and joined Elite Taekwondo Team Houston, the Best team in the country including the US Olympic Coaching Staff and three time Olympic Gold Medalist Steven Lopez. In 2004-2005, Megan was training with Elite Taekwondo 6 hours a day, every day, full contact while attending Rice University. She became the #1 Junior and #2 Senior in the country.

Today, Megan continues to enjoy an active lifestyle...

...And 13 years after her surgery, Megan is still extremely flexible.

Megan's Story: A Gold Medal Comeback!