From Spine Surgery Patient to Founding Vertera: Why No Patient Should Face This Journey Alone

I’ve been on both sides of the spine surgery experience. For 30 years, I’ve worked as a strength coach and spinal kineticist, helping thousands of patients with back pain and spinal rehabilitation. I’ve trained thousands of clinicians worldwide, teach at University College London, and have built a career dedicated to helping people recover from spine problems.

But I’ve also been the patient. My experience with spine surgery has taught me something no textbook ever could: the profound isolation, fear, and uncertainty that comes with navigating spine surgery as a patient.

This is the story of how those experiences led me to create Vertera, and why I believe no spine surgery patient should ever have to face their journey alone.

The Professional Journey: Building Expertise

My professional journey in spine health began three decades ago as a strength and conditioning coach. What started as helping athletes recover from injuries evolved into a deep specialization in spinal rehabilitation. Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of:

Helping thousands of spinal patients through their recovery journeys
Training thousands of clinicians and trainers worldwide on spinal rehabilitation and exercise technique
Teaching on the Pain Management MSc program at University College London
Working with every type of spine patient, from low back and neck pain to pre and post surgery rehabilitation

I thought I understood spine surgery. I thought I knew what patients went through. I was wrong.

The Patient Reality: Multiple Surgeries, Many Lessons

My first spine surgery came as a shock. Despite all my professional knowledge, nothing prepared me for the emotional rollercoaster that followed. The uncertainty about outcomes. The fear of the unknown. The isolation of lying in a hospital bed, wondering if I’d ever feel normal again.

But it didn’t stop there. Through my surgical experiences, I had learned something profound: being a spine surgery patient is fundamentally different from treating spine surgery patients.

What I Discovered as a Patient

The Information Gap: Even with my background, I found myself struggling to find clear, honest information about what to really expect. Medical websites were clinical. Forums were often filled with horror stories. Where was the balanced, expert guidance written for real people going through real experiences?

The Isolation: Between surgeries, during recovery, in those 3 AM moments when pain kept me awake—I felt utterly alone. My family tried to understand, but how could they? My colleagues were sympathetic, but they hadn’t lived it.

The Decision Fatigue: Surgery or conservative treatment? This surgeon or that one? This approach or that approach? Each decision felt overwhelming when you’re the one whose body and future hang in the balance.

The Identity Crisis: Who am I if I can’t do the things I used to do? Will I ever be the same? These questions haunted me through each recovery.

The Moment Everything Changed

It was during my recovery that the idea first took shape. I wanted to share my story with other patients and I was desperately searching for someone—anyone—who truly understood what I was going through.

I realized something that would change everything: I had spent 25 years helping people as a professional, but I had never truly understood their experience until I became one of them.

I made myself a promise. If I could combine my professional expertise with my lived patient experience, maybe I could create something that would help other people feel less alone in their journey.

Why Vertera Had to Exist

Spine surgery patients face frustration, pain, confusion and uncertainty. The journey is overwhelming—from deciding whether surgery is right for you, to navigating recovery, to finding the right support.

No one should have to face this alone.

I truly understand these challenges. I know them personally, as I have been a spine surgery patient myself, and I know them professionally, because I rehab and help spine surgery patients get better.

But here’s what I discovered: there was no place that brought these two perspectives together. No platform that combined expert guidance with genuine understanding. No community where patients could connect with others who had walked the same path.

That’s why Vertera had to exist.

What Vertera Represents

Vertera isn’t just another health platform. It’s the community I wish I’d had during my surgeries. It’s the guidance I searched for at 2 AM. It’s the understanding I craved when everyone around me meant well but couldn’t truly relate.

Three Pillars of Support

Community: Connecting spine surgery patients with like-minded people who understand their journey. Because sometimes, the most powerful medicine is knowing you’re not alone.

Guidance: Evidence-based educational resources to help patients navigate their spine health journey with confidence. Real information for real people facing real decisions.

Understanding: Creating a space where patients feel heard and understood by those who truly know the spine surgery experience—both as patients and professionals.

The Mission That Drives Everything

My mission is simple. I want to understand, guide and empower as many spine surgery patients as I possibly can.

It’s this mission that led me to create Vertera, a platform that brings spine surgery patients together in a community where you can identify with other patients that have had very similar experiences, where you have the ability to ask questions, to be guided through your surgery journey, and to be heard and to be understood.

Vertera’s purpose: ensuring no spine surgery patient navigates their journey alone, and every patient achieves their best possible outcome.

Looking Forward: Building Something Special

We’re still in the early stages of building Vertera, but the vision is clear. We’re creating:

Educational resources that combine clinical expertise with patient wisdom
Community spaces where patients can connect, share, and support each other
Expert guidance that’s accessible, understandable, and genuinely helpful
Tools and resources that empower patients to be advocates for their own care

To Every Spine Surgery Patient Reading This

If you’re facing spine surgery, in the middle of recovery, or dealing with ongoing spine health challenges, I want you to know:

You are not alone.

Your fears are valid. Your questions matter. Your journey is important.

Whether you’re considering your first surgery or facing revision procedures, whether you’re dealing with complications or sailing through recovery—there’s a place for you in what we’re building.

Join Our Growing Community

Vertera is launching soon, and we’re building our founding member community now. These are the patients and supporters who will help shape what Vertera becomes—people who understand that the spine surgery journey is about more than just medical procedures.

It’s about hope. It’s about community. It’s about ensuring no one faces this journey alone.

Ready to be part of something special? Join our founding member waitlist and be among the first to access our platform when it launches.

Together, we’re changing what it means to be a spine surgery patient.

Medical Disclaimer

This article shares personal experiences and is for educational purposes only. It is not intended as medical advice. Every spine surgery situation is unique, and treatment decisions should always be made in consultation with qualified healthcare professionals. If you’re facing spine surgery or ongoing spine health challenges, please consult with your medical team for guidance specific to your situation.

Joel Proskewitz is a spinal kineticist, founder of Vertera, and Associate Professor at UCL teaching on the Pain Management MSc program. Having undergone spine surgery himself while maintaining a 30-year career helping others with spinal rehabilitation, he brings both professional expertise and lived patient experience to everything he does. His mission is ensuring no spine surgery patient navigates their journey alone.