weak core muscles - help with gentle strengthening?

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I've got scoliosis - wore a back brace 23 hours a day for my teen years - when I came out of it I was very weak in my core muscles. I was never told to get physical therapy or anything. I tried doing weight training a year ago but got told my squat form was really bad - eventually got someone to video me and I could see straight away I was just collapsing at the waist and leaning too far forward. I stopped doing weights as I was scared I would hurt myself. I haven't been able to strengthen my core as things like sit ups, crunches and planks really hurt my lower back on one side. If I'm not careful I can get such bad DOMS in one side of my back that I can't even stretch it far enough to step into a car and have to just lie in bed for days.

I can't afford physical therapy, a trainer or medical help but I'm sooo sick of being weak. Obviously a part of my core muscle problems is an imbalance caused by the shape of my spine (spine is right over on the left side on my lower back - some muscles are stretched, some compressed). Does anyone happen to know a progression to strengthen core muscles - something easy and gentle that you can work on until you can progress to more aggressive and affective things?

Yoga, tai chi, or pilates. With a good teacher (don't try to figure it out on your own due to the risk of injury).

Laying on your back in bed and lifting both legs works your stomach. I would think that would take a lot of pressure off the back.

Maybe unorthodox, but do deadlifts maybe? I don't know if that'd hurt less than crunches and whatnot, probably would. I know now I can do way more situps than before I started deadlifts and clean and jerks. What deadlifts do is they isometrically contract the abdominal muscles, to keep everything from not collapsing, and yeah... Lamar Gant is a famous powerlifter, he was 130 pounds or so, but he had a 600+ pound deadlift, but one thing about him was, he actually had scoliosis. Be careful with the deadlifts, as you can still hurt your back, but I'd say overall they're a lot less risky than squats. Worst case scenario in a deadlift usually, the bar just stays on the ground... Cleans and snatches, the Olympic lifts, are good for core strengthening, too, but I don't know if those are a bit much also.

Deadlifts are the best core exercise there is.

Planks, wall sits, this kind of tiger stance that I can't remember the name of. I've got lots of suggestions.

maybe swimming would be good? i guess it may be hard to focus on your core but if gentle is what you want then swimming could work?

Swimming is a great suggestion!

I would really advise against lifting weights without a trainer to show you safe technique, given the nature of what you're battling back from.

1000Knives and Kurgan - I like your answers best as I love deadlifts. I was trying to do the Starting Strength program and deadlifts was the only thing that was really progressing and I felt it was helping to decrease my general back pain. However I thought squats should be the foundation of your workout and without them I don't know that I'd properly support my body in deadlifts as I progressed?

This week I've been trying to work towards chin ups - my muscles in upper back and shoulders became so stiff that for years I couldn't just do a dead hang from a bar as it was so painful even for a second and thought I'd tear muscles. This week I've been progressively stretching out and hanging part of my body weight from the bar - yesterday I was able to hang my whole body weight a couple of times for about 3 seconds each time. I also did a couple of partial reverse chins. I'm really excited with this progress - felt like I'd never be able to even dead-hang again. So, if I could work up to doing actual chin ups - I know its supposed to activate your core muscles... any thoughts on if that'd be enough to start to strengthen my core for squats?