Tall story

Only months after the dramatic operation, Rosina, 42, from Southampton says her life has been totally changed - and she is now looking forward to her wedding day.

"I used to be five feet one and half inches and since the surgery I'm now five feet five inches - it's unbelievable," she said.

Rosina, who runs her own hair and beauty salon, Equate, has struggled with her deformity since she was a teenager diagnosed with scoliosis, severe curvature of the spine.

At 14, she had surgery to insert metal rods to straighten her back - and, while this was the best procedure at the time, it did limit her flexibility.

Not one to let her medical condition stand in her way, Rosina was determined to follow her dream of becoming a hairdresser, even though one college she applied to study at said she was too disabled.

"They wouldn't accept me but I wanted to prove them wrong and I got an apprenticeship. I started hairdressing at 16 and by 25 I had my own business.

"Ironically, even though my job involved a lot of standing, I was more comfortable on my feet than I was sitting down," she said.

But, as the years passed, Rosina wondered if there was anything else that could be done to straighten her appearance and rid her of the pain.

"I was really quite twisted - my neck and pelvis have never been in alignment.

"I was in quite a bit of pain and didn't like to take too many painkillers. I would go to see a chiropractor but there was little they could do," she said.

So she was referred to spinal surgeon Evan Davies at Southampton General Hospital and he was delighted to tell her he could use new surgical techniques to correct the curvature and give her more flexibility.

"Scoliosis not only creates a curvature to the left or right - it also means the spine is rotated," said Mr Davies.

"The treatment in the past was the best at the time but we have come a long way since.

"Now we have fantastic rods and screws that we can put into the spine," he said.

In March this year, Rosina prepared to go under the knife in the first of two major operations.

Rosina said: " Evan Davies said he could make me look and feel better - and I had great faith in him to do a great job.

"There was a fear that if it went wrong, I could be left paralysed but I knew if I did nothing I would get progressively worse - I just kept thinking what I would be like in ten years' time if I didn't have the operation," she said.

The first operation lasted about 12 hours in total and involved removing the old rods and part of her spine.

Mr Davies has a novel way of explaining exactly what he did - using food analogies to put the complex surgery into laymen's terms.

"If you think of her spine as being curved like a banana, basically what we did was remove a section that was shaped like a Dairylea triangle," he said.

After the first operation, Rosina was placed in traction and Mr Davies admitted this was a tough time for her.

"It was a very difficult period for Rosina - we needed her to be in traction to get her spine realigned but it can't have been easy," he said.

Her family - and especially her fiance, Tony - were a major support to her.

"I was flat on my back with a halo screwed to my head - you can still see the marks. I couldn't eat, I couldn't do anything but lay there.

"I lay there thinking it was going to be worth it in the end. My friends, family and Tony were fantastic - they kept me going," she said.

Eventually, Rosina was ready to have the second operation which would see new rods and instrumentation fitted.

"It was all so different to when I had the first operation as a teenager. Then I was put in plaster for ten months but this time they had me sitting and standing up the day after the second op.

"After a few days I was walking on my own," she said.

Mr Davies admitted he was moved when he saw Rosina walking for the first time after the operation.

"It does give you a huge buzz and it was emotional when she got up and started walking.

"And I know it was pretty emotional for her when she looked at the before and after x-rays," he said.

In the coming weeks, Rosina is looking forward to returning to work and being able to do even more.

"I can't believe how flexible I am now. My body shape has totally changed and I have had to go out and buy new clothes.

"I can wear things I never dreamt of putting on before and it feels amazing," she said.

Sadly, while Rosina was in hospital her father died and her only regret is that he did not live to see her walking tall.

"I went through an awful lot of pain during the operations and after - and then my dad died.

"I only wish he had been able to see me like this," she said.

Fiance Tony has been a tower of strength throughout and has helped Rosina on her road to recovery.

And in a year or two she is looking forward to getting married.

"He has been through so much with me and he came to visit me every day in hospital - he thinks I look amazing now," she said.

"I wanted to walk down the aisle straight and upright and now I can."

Special thanks and gratitude is reserved for the man who made it all possible - Evan Davies.

"What he's done for me is amazing - he's just fantastic," said Rosina.

"I can't thank him enough - he has changed my life."