As the title says, I have a mild case of unknown. I haven't seen a doctor yet—I just notice I slouch constantly—but after doing some digging online, I realized I might actually be dealing with this condition. Basically, when I try to stand up straight, there’s this huge protrusion behind my shoulders and a weird dip on the other side of my abdomen; it makes me look totally asymmetrical and just... off. And get this—when I lean against a hard chair or a wall, I can feel that my shoulders don't even touch the surface. It’s just the middle part, specifically where my spine is—it's hard to explain. When I force myself to straighten up, I *can* make my shoulders hit the wall, but—this is going to sound so weird—I have an insane amount of extra skin on my back. Like, seriously, there's this little hollow right where the spine runs, and it really worries me. Plus, if I lean too hard against a wall, I feel this pain in my back—I don't know if my ribs are pressing against my lungs or what, I honestly have no clue. And when I do stand up straight, my ribcage looks massive. My body just feels built strangely, you know? 🙄 I've seen some gym equipment online that might help ease it, but because of all this, my posture is a mess and my head is always jutting forward. Sorry for the amateur medical talk—I'm only 14.
One more thing—I'm a side sleeper, and I recently realized that while most people tuck their arms under their pillow, I always hold mine in front of me. This means the area between my shoulders and my back is always pressed against the mattress, which keeps my back in this super curved position. I've slept like this for years, so I'm pretty sure that—combined with my terrible posture—is why this unknown started happening.
What should I do to help with the pain and the way my torso looks? (Like, when I put my arms at my sides, there's this gap on the side, making it look like my stomach and ribs are huge while my back just disappears, and that extra bit of flesh when I stand up really bugs me 😠). Should I change how I sleep, or maybe get one of those posture braces? I'm honestly lost. Sorry again for dumping all this on you, and thanks in advance for reading my rambling.😢