6551 S. Revere Parkway, Suite 215, Centennial, CO | (303) 960-2075

Have You Ever Experienced Low Back Pain?

Have you ever felt a little twinge in your back, maybe after sleeping on the ground during a camping trip, lifting one too many boxes while moving or after a Costco run, or after sitting on the sofa watching your favorite football team play? Maybe it just feels stiff or like it needs to pop. Maybe you’ve had the deep, achy pain into the back of your hip, into the buttock, or even down your leg.

Whatever the reason or the way that you might describe it, you’re not alone. Low back pain is all too common of a complaint for people, regardless of age, fitness level, health history, occupation, and gender.

You may hear people say that “I’m just getting old”. Not true! First of all, it’s not normal to have pain, despite your age. This applies for your back, but anywhere else in the body as well. Secondly, that rationale doesn’t work for the many young teens that I’ve worked with over the years, whose muscle strength and coordination haven’t caught up to their quickly growing bodies. The why of your pain may vary a bit with age, but there is often something that can be done to help.

Low back pain also seems to be on the rise, with more time sitting at work and home, longer commutes to work and school, and increased computer time. These things that are a normal part of life can contribute, but so does a sedentary lifestyle. We may be sedentary because that’s the lifestyle that we choose, or because it’s seemingly a secondary consequence to health issues, chronic disease or injury. Again, this is an area in which we still have an influence. Individuals benefit from customized exercise programs, created by a therapist familiar with their medical condition, work requirements, or anything else that affects one’s activity level.

Our work may require extra time in the car, or many hours at a desk. On the opposite end of the occupation spectrum, our work may require hours of heavy lifting and hard labor. If you’re stuck in front of your computer all day, there are things that you can do to help counteract that. If, on the other hand, your job is very labor intensive, there are ways to make it easier on your body, or at least to make it safer.

 

Low back pain can affect anyone, and one of the unique populations affected are mothers – whether it’s during pregnancy or for a time after the birth of the baby. During this time, the female body is producing many different hormones, including those that will help with the birthing process. These same hormones contribute to laxity of ligaments in the pelvis and other areas, which can then lead to increased pain. Pelvic floor muscles and abdominal muscles are also particularly affected for these women, and often require some extra attention to properly recover. In many cases, these women are best served by going to a physical therapist who specializes in pelvic floor and women’s health.

When it boils down to it, the treatment of low back pain is multi-faceted, and depends upon the person having problems with it. Treatment often includes various types of muscle strengthening, learning how to move more efficiently, and getting the muscles to work correctly together. It should also include work-, sport- or lifestyle-specific training. Most importantly, it’s crucial that your physical therapist works well with and for you while developing and delivering your unique program, as well as sharing education about your pain and what you can do about it.

working together

I have suffered from back pain myself, related to two specific injuries since becoming a physical therapist. Both injuries resulted in massive amounts of pain, muscle weakness, difficulty moving, and fear of how I was going to continue doing the work that I love.

My first injury affected me for quite some time and occurred early in my career. It often made me believe that I had to limit myself to be “safe”. I stopped going out with friends as much, and backed off of my dancing. It was difficult to find a comfortable position for anything, whether it was to sleep or even just driving to work. My leg would sometimes give out when trying to walk down the driveway to check the mail, and sitting in a restaurant for dinner could bring me to tears. I worked on myself a lot, believing that I, as a physical therapist, should be able to fix myself. I almost felt guilty seeking help from someone else, because what kind of therapist was I that I needed someone?

Eventually, I learned that it did need to be a team effort and that I couldn’t do it alone. My massage therapist was an important early team member in my recovery, later joined by my personal trainer. I also had to convince myself of some of the same things I was trying to impress on my patients – this did not need to be a life-altering and life-limiting event. I began to explore ways to make improvements, but also to make modifications. I had to learn ways to improve stress-management, because that plays a huge role in pain control. I’d gotten to a pretty good place after that first injury, but then it happened again. A different injury with different problems. I quickly built my team this time, again made up of my massage therapist and my personal trainer, as well as a chiropractor, and even another physical therapist. This time, my recovery was much quicker and easier, and I’m happy to say that I no longer have daily pain, like I did for quite some time.

lessons I've learned

In the process of recovering from my own back injuries, I’ve learned a lot about back pain.

  • I learned that I need a good team of people to work with, and that team varied with what was going on and how I was feeling. As a physical therapist treating people with back pain, I acknowledge when we need to get other team members on board and how to work best with them for the best outcomes for our patient.
  • I learned that there are many options and modifications that exist to make life a little easier during recovery, and share those lessons and my story with my patients.
  • I learned that life does indeed move on, and that I shouldn’t let it move on without me. I use my experiences to help my patients navigate their struggles, big or small.

Back pain is no joke, whether it’s a little annoying twinge or a major injury. Despite that, I feel fortunate that I have learned so many lessons with my own struggles with back pain that I can now share with my patients on a daily basis. I believe that I have become a better therapist because of it. If you’re struggling with back pain, and want to work with someone who has”been there and done that”, please contact Back in Step PT here to make your appointment today.

Calling All Dancers!

Are you a dancer? Do you want to know how to recover from an injury that you’ve been dealing with? Or do you want to learn ways to drastically reduce your chance of injury? What about learning how to become even better with your technique?

It doesn’t matter if you are a professional who has been dancing for years, a teacher who spends many hours on your feet, an amateur who just does it for fun, or a 5 year old who dreams of becoming a ballerina some day. It also doesn’t matter what dance style you are interested in – ballet, tap, jazz, hip hop, Irish step, West Coast Swing, ballroom, Latin, etc.

No matter what level you’re at and what discipline you’re pursuing, we can help you! I am not only a physical therapist, but also a trained dancer for most of my life. I started at the age of 3 with ballet and tap. I continued my training in these styles, with the addition jazz, until I was 18. I joined a special Performance group at my local studio when I was 9, and was then able to participate in two seasons of performances per year and audition for special roles. I took some time away from formal dance lessons while working on my undergraduate degree, but found that I was truly missing the dance life. I’m pretty sure that I drove my parents crazy with my leaping and spinning around the house, instead of taking classes. In physical therapy school, I ended up teaching lessons over the lunch hour on campus to anyone who wanted to learn. By the time that I finally began taking classes again, I was finishing my physical therapy degree. I added hip hop training, as well as some salsa. This is also when I fell in love with West Coast Swing. I continue to compete on the local and national circuits in West Coast Swing, including occasional travel to other cities for competitions.

Even as a physical therapy student, I had begun to learn how my background as a dancer could be helpful in my new profession. The most vivid memory of this took place during a clinical rotation in Washington, where I worked full-time for 8 weeks with a brilliant therapist. She had been a PT for at least 25 years, and was known to be an expert in the region. I was so fortunate to be able to train with her! We had a young dancer who had injured her hip, and had already started working with my instructor. By the time I’d arrived to the clinic, the dancer was back to “normal person” normal, but not “dancer normal”. My instructor felt like she’d hit a wall – she’d done everything she could think of, and had even made custom orthotic inserts for the girl’s pointe shoes! I timidly spoke up one day, asking if I could try something from my dance background. Within 2 weeks, I had our young dancer back to where she needed to be. I felt so proud when my instructor told me, “I probably would never have come up with the things you did. I’m glad you were here.”

That patient’s story, like so many others over the last several years, have inspired me to create a fusion of my two passions, and has led me to adding this special population to my clinic. In my many years of dance, no matter what style or venue, I have seen so many different injuries, whether it’s from one specific incident, or just from years of being tough on your body. I’ve also come to recognize certain injuries with different styles of dance, because of the demands placed on the body. My goal as a physical therapist is to now use my knowledge from both realms – dance and therapy – to get dancers back to their best, and to keep them at their best.

So if you are any sort of dancer and have any concerns, please call us at Back in Step Physical Therapy to get an appointment, and I’d love to work with you to meet your goals! Learn more about our dance specific services here.

Also check our our Dancer’s Kit!

Never been to physical therapy before?

That’s ok! Not everyone has experienced physical therapy before, and even for those who have, not every experience is the same. In this post, we’ll tell you what to expect, and answer some common questions from patients. We’ll also share some common misconceptions or myths about physical therapy.

New to Physical Therapy

How to Get Started

MYTH #1: You must see a doctor before you ever see a physical therapist.

FALSE. Colorado is a direct access state, meaning that you can be assessed and treated by a licensed physical therapist without a referral from a physician.

Research has shown that going directly to your physical therapist is a safe and effective method of getting treatment. Now, that being said, your insurance company may require a physician’s referral in order to provide reimbursement, especially if you have something like Medicare. Make sure that you know the requirements for you specific plan and insurance company, since this will help you start on the right track. At Back in Step Physical Therapy, we operate as a cash-pay business, with the exception of worker’s compensation. Because of this, you would only need a physician’s referral if you were going to try getting reimbursed by your insurance company. Please see more about this here.

How to Find a Physical Therapist

Some of the best ways to find out about a great physical therapist is by word of mouth. Of course, you can always ask your doctor for a recommendation, search online, or check out sources like the American Physical Therapy Association’s website for information as well.

Do I Need Imaging Before Starting Therapy?

MYTH #2: You need to get some imaging, like an xray, MRI, or CAT/CT scan before starting physical therapy.

FACT: X-rays and MRIs are tools to help give your physician or therapist an idea of what’s going on, but never actually tell them exactly what to do. Most often, whatever imaging we do receive does not change our treatment, because we have many ways to test for the same information, just from hands-on assessments.

Preparing for Your First Appointment

At Back in Step Physical Therapy, we provide you with important paperwork before your first appointment, to give you plenty of time to fill everything out. We then ask that you bring that paperwork with you for your physical therapist to review. Please make sure that you wear comfortable clothing that you can move in for each appointment. This makes it easier for your therapist to access treatment areas and complete tests, as well as make sure that you can comfortably do exercises without being restricted by your clothing.

What Happens During My First Appointment?

  • We will ask you questions about your current concerns to help us get to the root of your problem. It is helpful if you have already thought about how long you’ve had your symptoms, what activities seem problematic versus helpful to your symptoms, etc. The more information that you are able to provide will be good for your therapist to know.
  • Expect some hands-on testing by your therapist, to help determine how well you’re moving, what level of strength you have, and what might be some specific things contributing to your concerns.
  • You will be provided with treatment, such as soft tissue work, specific treatments to joints, muscles, etc. with the goal of helping you move better, or feel less pain, for example.
  • You will also be provided with a home exercise program, complete with handouts. We strive to individualize your plan, and then work with you to make it manageable to do on your own at home.

How Long Will I Be In Physical Therapy?

Your therapist will work with you to establish a plan for your time with physical therapy. We will create goals with you, based off of what you want to achieve. Your therapist will then help determine a realistic timeline to achieve your goals, and will work with you to make it fit your lifestyle.

What Else Should I Know?

It’s great if you have questions for your therapist. Why are you doing certain exercises? Why are they using a certain treatment or certain pieces of equipment? What can you do at home? Any and all questions are welcome, and will help you not only have a better understanding of your treatment, but also helps you to achieve the best outcomes in the best way for you!