A nurse by day and bodybuilder by night who thought she had sciatica discovered the bones in her spine had been slipping forwards since birth and is now “fighting back” after life-changing surgery.
Eva Bingham, 23, first developed shooting pain down her right leg in March 2023, which she assumed was sciatica, but continued training and even competed in her first bodybuilding competition despite recurring flare-ups.
As the pain worsened, she struggled to walk, had to adapt her workouts and was eventually told at the end of 2023 she had a slipped vertebra before scans confirmed spondylolisthesis, where bones in the spine slip forwards and compress nerves.
Fearing she would be left in pain for life and potentially unable to walk properly, Eva explored her treatment options and was approved for private major spinal surgery in 2024.
Eva initially thought she had sciatica (Collect/PA Real Life)
She underwent a 10-hour operation at Nuffield Health Leeds Hospital in September 2025 to relieve pressure on her nerves and stabilise her spine with screws, rods and spacers.
After months of physiotherapy, Eva has returned to nursing, gone back to the gym and is now training for a bodybuilding comeback in 2028.
Eva, who lives in Leeds, told PA Real Life: “The thought of losing my career and bodybuilding made me so depressed.
“I thought I was going to be stuck like this forever.
“The pain was the worst I’ve ever experienced.”
Eva continued training despite her pain (Collect/PA Real Life)
Eva had always been passionate about fitness and began bodybuilding at the age of 19.
“It brings me so much joy and it’s a good distraction from anything else going on in my life,” she said.
In March 2023, still aged 19 and training to become a nurse, Eva woke up with a shooting pain running down her right leg.
Assuming it was sciatica – nerve pain caused by irritation or compression of the sciatic nerve – she took painkillers.
Although the pain eased slightly, she continued to experience flare-ups several times a week.
Eva competed in her first bodybuilding competition while in pain (Collect/PA Real Life)
Despite the discomfort, Eva competed in a bodybuilding competition in May 2023 after months of meticulous training and dieting.
But by the summer of 2023, the pain had become constant, leaving her unable to walk for more than a few minutes without “crying in agony”.
During her 12-hour nursing training shifts, she had to sit down whenever possible and adapt her bodybuilding routine, avoiding exercises that placed weight directly through her spine.
When her condition failed to improve, she visited her GP in October 2023 and was referred to a hip specialist in December.
Eva was eventually told she had spondylolisthesis, where bones in the spine slip forwards and compress nerves (Collect/PA Real Life)
She said the specialist suspected she had a slipped vertebra.
“They said I could have spinal surgery, but they don’t always operate on someone my age,” Eva explained.
“It was probably the worst point in my life. I felt very defeated.
“They said it would get worse over time and it could even leave me unable to walk properly again.
“I thought I might be left with this immense pain for the rest of my life.”
She said scans confirmed she had spondylolisthesis, a condition in which one of the bones in the spine, known as a vertebra, slips forwards.
Eva’s surgery involved stabilising her spine with screws, rods and spacers (Collect/PA Real Life)
The condition, according to the NHS, can cause lower back pain, pain radiating into the bottom or thighs, tight hamstrings, and numbness or tingling travelling down one leg.
Her doctor explained the condition may have been present since birth and gradually worsened over time, eventually compressing the nerves in her spine and causing severe pain and mobility problems.
At the beginning of 2024, with the pain becoming unbearable every day, Eva decided to explore private treatment.
She said a consultant agreed to operate because her condition was deteriorating rapidly.
Eva’s scar after surgery (Collect/PA Real Life)
At first, Eva said she felt “very overwhelmed”, particularly as she had never undergone surgery before, but she was relieved there was finally a potential solution.
In the meantime, she received steroid injections to ease the pain, but they failed to provide any long-term relief.
In July 2024, around the time of her graduation, her symptoms worsened again.
After finishing a night shift, Eva sat down for breakfast before work but said she “couldn’t move”, and her father had to lift her off the chair and put her on the sofa.
So, she decided to go ahead with surgery at Nuffield Health Leeds Hospital and underwent the operation in September 2025.
Eva feared she would be in pain for the rest of her life (Collect/PA Real Life)
“It was either my back got worse and I couldn’t do anything with my life, or there was a chance I could live the life I wanted,” she said.
“I was desperate to be a nurse and, to me, an office job would be hell.”
On the day of the operation, Eva said she felt “very nervous”.
“I’d always been the person on the other side as a student nurse,” she said.
Eva’s spinal scan (Collect/PA Real Life)
“So to suddenly be the person being operated on was terrifying.”
The 10-hour operation involved relieving pressure on the nerves by removing bone and disc tissue before correcting the spinal deformity using screws, rods and spacers.
After surgery, Eva spent the night in intensive care for observation before being discharged five days later.
She had to relearn how to balance on one leg and walk comfortably.
“I think I experienced a level of depression. I didn’t feel like myself and I pushed my partner away,” Eva explained.
Eva has returned to nursing (Collect/PA Real Life)
“It was a very challenging time in my life.”
Following months of intensive physiotherapy, she was able to return to the gym in December 2025.
Eva has since returned to work as a nurse on reduced hours and is now training to compete in bodybuilding again in 2028.
She said: “It would mean the world to me. I just can’t wait to get back to it and have my spray tan!”
To find out more about treatment for back pain with Nuffield Health, visit nuffieldhealth.com/symptoms/spinal-and-urogenital-pain.
