Midmorning With Aundrea - October 26, 2020 (Part 1) [ENCORE PRESENTATION]

(Part 1 of 4) New advances in scoliosis therapy can down by half the time it usually takes to recover from the illness.

And therapy dogs are being used in some hospitals to help healthcare workers have moments of calm in the midst of chaos.

"c" student a new minimall invasive surgery is helping patients with scoliosis get back on their feet in half the time as traditional treatment.

Nancy chen followed on one teen's journey and shows us how it's helped her return to her love of dance.

Anyka recio is attempting a flip for the first time since her back surgery just three and half months earlier.

Nats pop screaming landing we first met anyka before her surgery in march.

The 14-year-old gymnast is now returning to tumbling and dance four years after being diagnosed with scoliosis& a debilitating curvature of the spine.

The condition left anyka in a brace and constant pain.

I thought my life was over when they told me that i had scoliosis and that i may need surgery because of how fast it was progressing.

Lonner: how's your back feel?

Ankya: a lot better than before surgery anyka and her family chose a new surgery done through small incisions called tethering we place screws into the vertebra or the building blocks of the spine and then we connect them with a flexible rope, essentially a cord, which we then tension and get correction of the curve, while again maintaing flexibility and growth of the spine.

Dr. baron lonner at mount sinai hospital in new york says patients are able to get back to their physical activities in half the time, compared to the more invasive spinal fusion.

I think the promise of this operation of tethering is that not only will it maintain flexibility now but it may result in less problems that we see sometimes after a fusion.

Nats ankya is still recovering, and while it's sometimes been a painful process, she says moments like this give her confidence.

As soon as i landed it, i thought, oh my god, i could do this again like i am myself again.

.like, i like i've been pushed to my limits and i was still able to do what i really wanted to do.

Jumping for joy now that she keep doing what she loves.

Nancy chen, cbs news, new york.

Dr. lonner emphasizes not all scoliosis patients are candidates for this procedure.

The pandemic has given many americans a new perspective on life.

For some people, that's led to discovering family they never knew.

Chris martinez reports.

Philip harasek - seen here with his wife and child - always knew he was adopted... but never looked for his birth family until his son came home with a school project.

"it was a map and i was color your origins or where your family's from and i had to tell him, 'you know, i'm really not sure' so that kind of sparked my interest and then when the covid hit we had so much time to do this stuff."

The 35-year-old took an ancestry d-n-a test and quickly discovered a connection.

"the first thing saw was a mother and an aunt and my aunt reached out to me immediately."

"cheering this summer, he was able to hug his aunt, who only lives a couple hours away.

He hasn't met his mother yet but they've spoken a few times by phone.

"that wa awesome, it was great."

Philip isn't the only one looking for family during the pandemic... ancestry dot com saw a 37 percent increase in new subscribers from march to july.

"01:45 they want t fill that void."

Jay rosenzweig is the founder of birth parent finder dot com... and says the pandemic is causing people to think about their mortality... and giving many adoptees a sense of urgency.

In the past few months, he's seen a big boost in clients wanting to find their birth families.

03:04 "our number have almost doubled, not quite but they've almost doubled."

Phil also met some cousins and discovered a brother... who he plans to visit eventually.

"that was a craz feeling, that was nuts, it's like 35 years of being clueless and all the sudden within 10 seconds here's everything."

After never knowing his heritage phil discovered he's puerto rican.

He's hoping to take a trip there one day with his new found family.

Chris martinez, cbs news, los angeles.

It's not easy being on the frontline for health care.

Covid 19 has taken a mental and emotional toll on workers across the us.

In fact, a recent global survey found fifty-nine percent of healthcare workers said their mental health had worsened due to the pandemic nichelle medina has a look at one program boosting the spirits of doctors and nurses.

At u-c irvine medical center in southern california, therapy dogs "dexter" a "monet" have important mission& nats "oh, you lik the tummy rubs" to bring smiles and comfort to healthcare workers.

"this is a ne pandemic and new front that we're all facing" brian cruz is an i-c- u nurse, caring for critically ill covid patients.

He says the pressure of the crisis has been tremendous.

But on this day, thanks to these cuddly canines that stress slips away.

"seeing him happy the energy transfers over to me and i feel calm" the dogs are part of the hospitals volunteer pet therapy program, visiting employees once a month.

Brad giafaglione oversees the program and says it's more crucial than ever.

"we really neede a way to decompress and destress our staff" //" thought to ourselves, if it works for well with patients why wouldn't it work well for our staff."

"healthcar workers are vulnerable to burnout from their high stress jobs.

Recent international studies show during the pandemic, some workers are reporting high rates of depression.

Anxiety, insomnia and ptsd."

"i have felt period of depression and sadness and what helps me is dogs" for cruz, these furry faces and belly rubs are the perfect prescription.

"this is natura happiness and joy from a creature to a creature and that will help me give that joy and happiness to my patients when i return to work."

A little caring and return to work."

A little caring and support from man's best friend to those who care for us.

Nichelle medina, cbs news, orange, california.

When we come back, amtrack takes off with an eye