The 'Handmaid's Tale' actress recalls feeling 'really, really scared' before going under the knife to fix her severe spinal issues following scoliosis diagnosis.
- Nov 30, 2022
AceShowbiz - Mckenna Grace was really afraid ahead of her spinal surgery. Four years after first being diagnosed with scoliosis, the 16-year-old actress recently went under the knife to correct a 47 degree curve to her spine and, while she was reluctant to have the operation, she thinks it is the "best thing" she could have done.
"I did not really know a lot about the surgery going into it except for what my doctors had been telling me. I was trying to find some stuff online, and I was really, really scared, and I didn't want to do the surgery. But honestly, it was the best thing that I've ever done," she said.
And it only now "The Handmaid's Tale" star's spine is "fixed" that she's realised how much the problem had "hindered" her. She told The Hollywood Reporter, "It's been about five weeks now. I actually went to the gym for the first time this morning. I'm starting to get back to my regular activities."
"I want to get in shape now that I've fixed my spine because I didn't realise just how much my spine was hindering me. I would work out six days a week and make zero progress. I would do everything as hard as I could for months, and I would be like, 'Why am I not seeing results?' "
"I think it was a lot of my mind frame but also post-spine surgery I feel like I look the best I ever have in my body even though I have not worked out in months. I guess that was just how much my spine was bothering me. I feel like a new person. It's crazy."
Mckenna had tried to keep her medical issues "private" because she didn't want to lose work as a result, but admitted the issue got so severe, she had to confide in the wardrobe department when getting her costumes fitted.
She said, "I tried to be private about it. On 'Ghostbusters', there wasn't a lot of hiding a big old clunky, massive back brace. But for the most part, I just kept it to myself. Even though it's not the type of thing that is a liability, I didn't want productions to overthink and think that I was a liability. I always wanted to play a superhero, and I didn't want people to know there was something wrong with my spine."
"But eventually, over the past year or so before my surgery, I did have to tell productions because my hip was so prominently higher than the other one. I'd keep it to myself until I was in a fitting, and I would have to tell wardrobe, 'Hey, my hip is higher than the other, and sometimes I have to adjust skirts or dresses or pants so they're wonky, so I don't look wonky.' "
