SAN ANTONIO \u2013 When Aniya Soni was diagnosed with scoliosis at 14, she said she didn\u2019t know anyone else going through the same thing. Now 16, she is working to make sure other girls in San Antonio don\u2019t feel that same isolation.<\/p>\n
Soni was diagnosed two years ago with scoliosis, a curvature of the spine. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt can either happen like a C or an S shape. It can really affect your lung functions, how your body is shaped, and it can really start affecting if you don\u2019t get it treated when you\u2019re older,\u201d Soni said. <\/p>\n
Though she didn\u2019t have pain at the time, she and her family had noticed changes in her posture.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy family had always noticed I was more of a hunchback and my shoulders and hips were tilted, but we never really thought much of it,\u201d Soni said.<\/p>\n
Just a few months after her diagnosis, Soni had surgery in New York. During her recovery, she found the Curvy Girls Scoliosis Foundation<\/a>, a peer support network for girls ages 8 to 18 with scoliosis.<\/p>\n The foundation is celebrating its 20th anniversary and has 70 chapters internationally. Soni said joining the group helped her find connection, understanding and confidence.<\/p>\n \u201cI just walk into school and I don\u2019t know anyone with scoliosis, but the minute I step into that group chat or that community space, it\u2019s just like, \u2018Oh, did you guys go to your doctor\u2019s today? What did they say? What are your curves like? Are you guys progressing?\u2019\u201d Soni said. \u201cI feel like it\u2019s really a sense of home.\u201d<\/p>\n