Elena Yakovleva was eight when she was diagnosed with idiopathic thoracolumbar scoliosis which quickly progressed to its most severe stage.
She lived in the Russian industrial city of Chelyabinsk and in the 1990s when Russia was going through an enormous economic, social, and political transition, there was no progressive treatment for scoliosis available in Elena's hometown.
“My first surgery was in 1994," she says.
"It was a hospital of Chelyabinsk Pipe-Rolling Plant, there was no special department with orthopaedic beds, nurse call buttons or other necessary equipment. They brought me from the operating room, gave me a plastic bottle to use if I needed to pee and left me alone," recalls Ms Yakovleva.
Only recently, Elena got the courage to cut her hair short and stop hiding her spine Source: @inspirationable_me
'You should pull yourself together, Lena'
This wasn't the only surgery she had, as metal implants periodically broke down and required replacement. After each operation, she had to spend months lying in bed; even sitting up wasn't allowed.
"Today if you're bored, you can turn on Netflix or just scroll through your phone. In 1994, we only had a TV that did not have a remote control.
"It was also not easy to hold a book lying on your back without a pillow. For hours, I would just lay and dig through my thoughts and dreams repeating to myself over and over: 'You should pull yourself together, Lena. You should'".
She remembers dreaming a lot about a warm country where she wouldn't have to put on a heavy coat in winter, about beaches where she would wear a swimsuit with an open back and about working as a translator to be able to travel far away from her depressing reality.
"I was homeschooled and the teachers were supposed to come to my house, but not many of them did. And I began to fall behind in many subjects, but not in English. Because only the English teacher came to me regularly and motivated me."
"Why did this have to happen to me?" She asked this question many times but only today found some comforting explanation.
I think every person is given a cup of difficulties for life, but I drank the full cup straight away.
One day, kneeling in front of her notebook, she wrote an essay in English which began with the words 'I want to be a...' After a little thought, she completed the sentence: 'I want to be a translator'.
'The day I was reborn'
While 50-55 degrees spine curve is considered as a severe case of scoliosis, Ms Yakovleva had a 90-degree curve.
When all the methods of treatment were exhausted at her hometown, she was taken to Novosibirsk Research Institute of Traumatology and Orthopaedics where she was operated upon. Ms Yakovleva says she considers that day in February 2002 as the day of her rebirth.
"They used a new American-French method, the surgery lasted eight hours and was very successful. The rehabilitation after that was easier and faster. After a month, I returned to the university, though I studied that semester staying on my knees," Ms Yakovleva said.
She got a degree in interpreting and translating, going on to work in many international companies and travelled to many countries.
Elena Yakovleva with her husband and kids Source: Submitted by Elena Yakovleva
As soon as she had the opportunity, she applied for immigration to Australia. But instead of 18 months, the wait for her visa lasted nearly six years. By the time Ms Yakovleva's visa came through, she got married and though her husband had never considered moving to another country, he supported her to fulfil her dream.
“I am very grateful to him," she says. "Not only for this but also for the fact that he wasn't afraid to start a family with me. He just said 'This can happen to anyone at any moment in life. I see you going through it, and I like how you do it, without whining, assiduously, persistently achieving all your goals'."
'If I could do it, you definitely can'
When it came to starting a family, doctors in Russia told her she would need to stay in bed throughout the pregnancy and give birth only by caesarean section.
"They didn't even let me think about natural childbirth. But here I am, with two beautiful sons, both born at full terms, naturally and without epidural anaesthesia."
Ms Yakovleva currently teaches business, marketing and other disciplines at a Sydney college.
Though she isn't allowed to lift heavy weights, she is an active person and a regular gym-goer.
"I take part in all the challenges at my gym. It's interesting to discover what my body is capable of, and I want to demonstrate to other people with healthy spines that 'well guys, if I could do it, then you definitely can."
"If I could do it, then you definitely can!" Source: Submitted by Elena Yakovleva
