First time being on this sub.. It's not very well thought out as I am posting this on the spot, but it would mean a lot if people read this.

[Surgery 100% free, Canadian Resident - Allowed to have surgery because I have severely low self esteem and have some bouts of depression, I love Canada]

I have Scoliosis and Kyphiosis and a slight Pectus Carinatum. I'm a 22 year old guy 6'1", relatively healthy besides the obvious (my back). I suffer from severe self image issues regarding this.

I will be open and say I am a gay man [don't post hate, i'll remove it], and having an 'undesirable body image' in the gay world feels 15x more noticable, as most gay men are super shallow (but not all).

Most people say they don't notice until I mention it, which I fully understand that people are not looking for my flaws when they meet me, but I cannot take my shirt off in front of anyone, the only exception is my mother. I can't even feel comfortable in my own living room shirtless (I live with 2 of my best friends)

I have surgery for my back in March and I am quite nervous about it. It's my first surgery and I don't know what to expect. I have to many questions I don't even know where to begin.

I don't talk to my friends much about my surgery partly because it scares me, giving me bad thoughts & I don't want to push my issues onto them.. as they're getting married next year, so they don't need to worry about me. This is probably the most I've spoken/typed about my problems in over 6 months, minus a few brief conversations.

They'll be putting 2 rods along my spine to straighten it, hopefully the only time they will have to.

I do not know anyone else afflicted with the same issues as me, which in turn makes me feel even worse about myself.

As happy as I am about the surgery, the thought of how much I am going to have to endure really frightens me, as I don't do well with pain.

Sorry for rambling, tried to get my brain sortedout as much as possible.

Few Questions:

1. How long were you in the hospital?
2. What was it like?
3. Did you have body issues?
4. How did family and friends react?
5. How long did you feel pain for/when did it start to go away?

Thanks for reading xx I appreciate it.