Testimonials

Physical Therapy After Hip Replacement

I had hip replacement at the end of the year, and after a month with Nancy Toole, PT my hip was stronger than it has been in years. Every session with Nancy challenged me to work harder and smarter as she targeted all the core muscles surrounding my repaired hip.

Her positive, pleasant demeanor contributed to y looking forward to our sessions. When I left the sessions, I was given a new, specifically targeted set of exercises that helped me continue to improve both my strength and my flexibility.

Hip Pain

I had my hip replaced at the end of the year, and after a month with Nancy my hip was stronger than it has been in years. Every session with Nancy challenged me to work harder and smarter as she targeted all the core muscles surrounding my repaired hip.

Her positive, pleasant demeanor contributed to y looking forward to our sessions. When I left the sessions, I was given a new, specifically targeted set of exercises that helped me continue to improve both my strength and my flexibility.

Neck Pain, Back Pain, and Hip Pain. . .

“After over 25 years of chronic neck, back and hip pain, I had not considered the possibility that there was a therapeutic course left that could address any of these issues. My quality of life had been significantly altered as my symptoms worsened through the years. I had been to both traditional and non- traditional practitioners in many cities that could only provide a temporary fix – and not to all aspects simultaneously.

Through Postural Restoration I have truly received a “lifeline”. As a result of the very personalized program designed to address my specific and changing needs, I have achieved a level of physical comfort and stability that I couldn’t have imagined was possible. Through this therapy I have been taught an awareness of what has created the problems, why a particular approach should be taken and how to be an active participant in resolving my pain. Through Advance Physical Therapy and Holistic Health, I have been provided with pain resolution, maintenance of issues and a program for strengthening and gaining back the active lifestyle I had.

I am so thankful that I am now able to resume activities which I would not have considered undertaking just a short time ago. I cannot speak highly enough about the results I have achieved, and am very grateful for, through Postural Restoration.”

Beth really excels in appreciating the “whole person” (in Personal Training)

Working on personal training practices with Beth Elder has been pure pleasure—even though COVID has interrupted the way we normally do personal training sessions. No more direct observation and interaction, alas. Now, it’s all via Zoom. I was dubious at first, but now, despite the occasional technical glitch, it seems to be working out.

Beth put together a personal training program for me that emphasizes upper body strengthening, balance, and some attention to the hips. I am doing more focused hip exercises with her colleague Joe, a physical therapist at Advance Therapy. They collaborate on best exercises and review my progress. I’ve been in recovery from a broken hip, and this combination seems to be very effective at getting me back to a more resilient physical condition.

Besides organizing a good personal training program for me, Beth has been wonderfully supportive and positive, keeping my spirits up when I doubt my progress. She has helped me increase strength, but is careful about not moving too fast, being mindful of any undue pressure on my hip. I am totally confident about her training; my sense is that her professional training and experience are bolstered by an intuitive understanding of the body and how it improves

Beth is also just an all-around lovely person to work with. She is very organized about appointments and easily accessible by phone or email if I have any questions or concerns. Over the years, I have worked with many excellent trainers, but Beth really excels in appreciating the “whole person,” and in providing just the right balance of guidance and support.

Could not walk without severe pain…

I could not walk without severe pain radiating from my hip into severe knee pain when I started at Advance Physical Therapy. I was accurately diagnosed and started on a progressive treatment plan which resolved my pain. More important, my therapist (Jean Masse) took the time to help me develop and ongoing plan to maintain my newly found pain-free lifestyle. In the past, other physical therapists have helped me resolve my pain, but they did not assist me in developing a strategy to stay pain free. Advance Physical Therapy was an amazing experience for me.

I learned I was not walking properly

I went to and orthopedic doctor who diagnosed my pain as a torn hamstring. At Advance PT I learned I was not walking properly and was very asymmetrical. Molly taught me how to walk correctly and she gave me exercises to do which improved my strength and stability. Molly introduced me to balloon breathing which made a significant difference in how much pain I was feeling. Molly focuses on details and through her analysis of what I was feeling and what I could do, she believed I had torn my obturator tendon. We focused on that area and I quickly felt better. Molly is incredible. She is extremely knowledgeable and truly cares about how I was feeling. She increased my strength in my left hip and recommended shoes which also helped me walk properly. Molly is patient and takes the time to explain and illustrate the exercises. I fully trusted her and knew she wanted me to feel better. Molly has an incredible understanding of how the body works. Molly's personality makes you feel comfortable and at ease. I highly recommend Molly because of her attention to detail, her expansive knowledge, and her wonderful and caring personality.

Scoliosis. . .

” I must admit, that I was more than a little skeptical of postural restoration when I first heard about it. I had heard claims of non-surgical ways of arresting the progress of scoliosis, but frankly didn’t believe these claims. My orthopedist had only told me about very invasive surgical correction for my progressing scoliosis. He believed the condition of my spine was responsible for the shoulder, hip, and back pain that had visited me intermittently for many years.

One day, a friend, whose advice I respect greatly, referred me to Advance Physical Therapy. Because I didn’t want to take time from work and assume the risks associated with surgery, I decided to give it a try. Also, I work hard at my daily fitness program, and was afraid surgery would temporarily, if not permanently, affect my ability to reap the rewards of such a program.

My physical therapist graduated me through many very unusual exercises, which I did twice a day for a year. At first I was still skeptical, as these were very different from exercises I had been given by other physical therapists. However, my pain began to subside quickly, so I continued with the program. Now, not only am I pain free, but x-rays performed by my orthopedist show no progression over the past year.

I highly recommend postural restoration, especially to any one who is considering surgery to correct posture-related discomfort.”

61 Year Old Female with Scoliosis

I have been working with Susan Henning since the autumn of 2010. I am a 61 year old female whose scoliosis was diagnosed at the age of ten during a pediatric check up. I was most fortunate to avoid back surgery since my spinal growth stopped at about twelve years old. I was left with an “S” curve, left lumbar and right thoracic in good balance. Throughout my life, I have been inconsistently active, especially with regard to exercise because of my repetitive crash and burn pattern. Just as I would achieve some level of tone, strength, and cardiovascular conditioning, my back or a leg, or hip would start hurting, become inflamed and I would stop all activity in order to heal. My healing processes required months, despite whatever relief modalities I used. These included anti-inflammatory, over the counter and some prescription medications, icing, bandaging, bracing, physical therapy, deep tissue massage, energy work. Ultimately I spent more time not doing anything than doing.

My first contact with a Postural Restoration (PR) therapist was different. The therapist actually knew how to diagnose what type of scoliosis I had through a simple movement pattern. All previous therapist nodded their heads, they knew scoliosis, they understood it was quite asymmetrical and then proceeded to have me do activities that were symmetrical. If each side of the body of a person with scoliosis is different, then the symmetrical exercise will overload one side due to the opposite side’s inability to perform comparably. All the years of running, using treadmills or elliptical machines, or free weights or home gyms required bilateral activities that inevitably overloaded my “good” side and then the pain would start.

My PR therapists have understood what parts of my body need to be built up. The process has been quite slow. I came into this new approach over four years ago with a curve that was progressing to 60 degrees. I had experienced a pinched nerve, was feeling tingling in my rib hump, left side and have been struggling with right leg pain due to a tilted pelvis. The pinched nerve has not recurred, the rib tingling is completely gone and gradually I am building to muscle tone to correct the pelvic tilt. Most importantly, I am able to walk again! I was always a walker, able to go for and hour or more on weekends. I stopped walking about five years ago and have been attempting to return to a consistent practice. I am seeing real hope for the first time in many, many years.

Susan Henning is the finest therapist I have had in my life. Not only does she listen, she is passionate about my improvement. What I see in PR is the capacity to troubleshoot effectively. If I am having pain when I come in to a session, Susan carefully assesses my neutrality and can always figure how I am out of alignment and then get me back into alignment. When I leave that session, I know exactly what exercise I need to do to either maintain alignment or restore it.

Through Postural Restoration I have received an education about my body, its compensations, weaknesses and am learning little by little how to reconnect and rebuild neurologically and muscularly. I am learning how to hold myself differently, whether standing, sitting or sleeping. For the first time, many of my back and belly muscles are starting to move with breathing and regaining some tone. I have to be diligent. If I let too many days go by without my core group of exercise, then old pain and scoliotic postures resurface once more. I would not and could not be where I am today without the PR therapist I have. At this point in time, I see myself continuing to increase my strength and capability because of the work Susan and I are doing together.

Hypermobility and Pain

A patient describes her problems related to hypermobility: "Until the latter part of 2009, I was a healthy, active 54 year old. I exercised daily and never had a serious issue of any kind. For no apparent reason, I began to have foot pain which led to hip pain and back pain and a decrease in function that was alarming to me. I started taking pain medication daily, saw a series of doctors and physical therapists who gave me exercises that I was unable to do, and only served to create more pain. After struggling for 2 years with no improvement, trying many things to treat my pain, and growing ever more desperate, I was referred to Advance Physical Therapy.

When I met Susan Henning, she assessed my situation and we began a journey that truly has changed my life. I learned I was hypermobile (hypermobility), had pelvic instability, and posturally had pretty much fallen apart. Through Postural Restoration, I learned exercises that would immediately help my pain and enable me to move better. Sometimes I did my exercises wrong and that would exacerbate my pain, but Susan always worked with me to explain what I should do or find an appropriate exercise to address the issue that I could do. There were days I arrived in pain and she would do whatever she could to help me. She kindly referred to me as sensitive, which is an understatement.

Slowly I improved, got stronger and eventually discontinued all pain medication. Although I still have small setbacks from time to time because I do too much, where I started and where I am now is like night and day. Postural Restoration is truly unique and has worked for me when everything else failed. I've learned so much and have many tools to help me going forward.

I cannot say enough, or recommend more highly, Advance Physical Therapy. Deana, in the office, is an absolute pleasure, she is always helpful with scheduling and anything else that may arise.

I will be forever grateful to Susan Henning. She is kind, patient, and incredibly knowledgeable. She helped me when it seemed no one else could and anyone would be lucky to have her as their physical therapist."