Teeth, Vision, Posture, Neck, Body Tension and Pain
Teeth?, Vision? affecting Posture, Neck, Body Tension and Pain? How are these all related? Visual and dental situations can inherently affect our neck and body tension. Our brain seeks stability for demanding movements, ranging anywhere from gardening to folding laundry to competitive sports. However, over time we adapt to “not normal” situations like staring at […]
Why Do Children Walk on Their Toes?
Do you or someone you know have a child who tends to walk on his or her toes for no apparent reason? Do you find yourself noticing your child walking on his or her toes even if you ask them to put their heels down? Do you notice the child standing on his or […]
Early Detection of Scoliosis Leads to Early Effective Treatment
Pediatric physical therapist, Lisa Mangino was invited to speak at UNC about the importance of early screening for scoliosis. Residents and Fellows in UNC’s Family Medicine Group heard from Lisa, one of Lisa’s conscientious teenage patients, and Dr. Vinay Narotam a UNC Orthopaedic Surgeon with expertise in scoliosis. This trio addressed a group of residents […]
Video Library: Squat
Squats are one of the first movements that come to mind when we think of exercising or lifting weights. It’s an extremely useful exercise to gain and maintain strength in your legs. A strong squat will help a lot with getting in and out of a chair. Stairs and curbs become far easier to manage. […]
Video Library: Split Squat
Split Squats are basically lunges performed in place. The ‘split’ refers to a split stance, which means one foot in front of the other. Single leg strength is an incredibly useful quality to train and improve. Balance, walking, hiking, running, climbing stairs, and nearly every sport have a heavy single leg emphasis. If I could […]
Video Library: Ring Row
I am big fan of the Ring Row for fitness. It can be done with a TRX, gymnastics rings, pull-up bar, or a fixed barbell. This bodyweight resistance exercise is easily modified for different levels of fitness and physical ability. I describe and demonstrate the Ring Row for fitness here. If you’ve reviewed our previous […]
Video Library: Single Leg Hip Hinge
The Single Leg Hip Hinge is my favorite for building hip muscles (hamstrings and butt) while minimizing wear and tear on the knees and spine. The Single Leg Hip Hinge is a great combination of strength, balance, and keeps us protecting our spines. Single Leg Hip Hinges can be modified in a variety of ways […]
Video Library: The Push-Up
The push-up is one of the basics of any strength program. It’s a versatile exercise. It can be scaled up or down for most any fitness level. The easiest way to do a push-up is against a wall. The hardest way to do a pushup is in a handstand. Somewhere in between those two points, […]
What does it mean to be “hypermobile”?
If you are hypermobile, you may be “double-jointed” or very flexible. Are you someone able to perform splits easily, put your feet behind your head, or flatten your hands to the floor without bending your knees? If you are an older adult, maybe you were able to perform these movements easily when you were a […]
Telehealth by Physical Therapists?
The worldwide shift in our lives from COVID 19 has quickly made “Telehealth” a household word. You may wonder, how can a physical therapist treat a patient without using their hands? In fact, there are many ways your PT can effectively assess and treat your physical ailments via Telehealth. For physical therapy, we call it […]
What’s bite got to do with it?
At Advance Physical Therapy, you might hear your physical therapist ask you questions about your dental history. “Do you clench or grind your teeth?” or “Do your back molars touch when you bite down?”. At first, these questions might not seem to relate to your musculoskeletal symptoms of neck, back, or hip pain. However, the […]
Scoliosis and the Importance of Early Intervention
If you are reading this, there’s a good chance you or your child has scoliosis. I’m going to guess you have a pretty good sense of what scoliosis is. The most frustrating part for you might be trying to figure out what to do about it. Your MD may have said, “Come back in 4-6 […]
SCIENTIFIC EXERCISES APPROACH TO SCOLIOSIS (SEAS)
Postural Restoration Institute® (PRI) Method, Schroth Scoliosis Rehab, Inc. and now A Third Method to Conservatively Treat Scoliosis at Advance Physical Therapy Lisa Mangino, pediatric physical therapist from Advance Physical Therapy, traveled to Avanti Therapy in Boulder, Colorado in September to learn about the Scientific Exercises Approach to Scoliosis (SEAS) method. The speakers, Michele Romano […]
Chronic Pain in Physical Therapy Students
Our own, Jean Massé, PT, DPT, PRC, OCS, ATC is an adjunct professor at The University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. She teaches physical therapy students about chronic pain, scoliosis and diagnosis. Over the years of her teaching at UNC Chapel Hill, she has had many students approach her with their own chronic pain […]
All Scoliosis Braces Are Not The Same. You Be The Judge…
Comparison of the Boston and the Rigo-Cheneau Rigid Scoliosis Braces My colleagues (Susan Henning PT, PRC, Advanced Schroth Certified, Jean Masse PT, PRC Advanced Schroth Certified) and I (Lisa Mangino PT, PRC, Advanced Schroth Certified) at Advance Physical Therapy are seeing the positive effects that a good scoliosis brace can have on the growing spine […]
Postural Restoration for Children
At the last Capitol District Physical Therapy Association meeting, my colleague, Lisa Mangino, PT, DPT, PCS, C/NDT, PRC, offered a terrific presentation on how she uses principles of Postural Restoration with children. Lisa reminded participants that the human body is inherently asymmetrical and is biased toward patterns of extension. Sensory awareness of posture, the ground, […]
Tips to Change Habits for Tension Relief
Focal vision refers to being focused on something small at any distance, from your phone to a golf ball far away on the green. Technology is partly contributing to our society becoming more focally near-sighted. The more you focus on a bright device 6-12 inches from your nose, the stronger those brain pathways become. Other contributors include being too busy, always striving to be faster, better, to do more, and not taking time to rest… your muscles AND your eyes.
Tips to Change Habits for Tension Relief
Don’t Be Controlled By Your Focal Vision “Powered Peripheral Vision”, Tips to Change Habits for Tension Relief Adapted from Dr. Heidi Wise, PRI Vision, LLC Focal vision refers to being focused on something small at any distance, from your phone to a golf ball far away on the green. Technology is partly contributing to our […]
Pediatric Physical Therapist, Lisa Mangino, PT, DPT, PCS, C/NDT, PRC Featured at National Forum
Our very own pediatric physical therapist, Lisa Mangino, PT, DPT, PCS, C/NDT, PRC presented her unique approach to treating children at the annual Postural Restoration Institute® (PRI) meeting of PRI certified physical therapists and athletic trainers on April 18th 2015. She discussed how children tend to alter their posture and movement patterns with unbalanced muscle […]
Postural Restoration Institute™ Techniques in Children with Musculoskeletal Pain
Pictured left to right, with , Lisa Mangino, PT, DPT, PCS, C/NDT, PRC is Postural Restoration faculty Mike Cantrell, MPT, PRC, Ron Hruska, MPA, PT, founder of Postural Restoration Institute, and James Anderson, MPT, PRC. In December 2014, our pediatric physical therapist, Lisa Mangino, completed the requirements for obtaining the designation of Postural Restoration Institute™ […]
Awake Tummy Time: A Crucial Part of Infant Movement Development
It’s always a good time to be reminded about the importance of babies experiencing enough “tummy time” through their early developmental months. As happens with many interventions, the Back-to-Sleep campaign1 to prevent sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) has produced some unintentional consequences. The campaign was successful in decreasing the occurrence of SIDS; however, parents […]
Concerns about the way your child or a child you know is moving??
ADVANCE PHYSICAL THERAPY’S Pediatric Physical Therapist Specialist is offering FREE PEDIATRIC MOVEMENT SCREENINGS Wednesdays in July and August from 12-2 pm. Bring your child and/or talk to our specialist. Call ahead at (919) 932-7266 to reserve a time.
To Crawl or Not to Crawl?
Recently, a few parents have asked me if it’s okay for their child to skip the crawling phase of gross motor development. A quick look at the internet reveals an active debate with some people saying that crawling is quite important, while others don’t think it is critical for gross movement development. Here’s what I […]
What are your shoes telling you?
These are the shoes of an active, healthy 13 year old boy. He came to see me at Advance Physical Therapy due to left hip and back pain. His shoes told me that his posture was not centered because of unbalanced muscle use. He told me that his posture was unbalanced because he […]