Can You Relate?...

We are living in an unprecedented time, and due to social distancing measures, and shelter-at-home acts that have been put in place, we must all do our duty to protect ourselves, our family members, and also our front-line health care workers and hospital systems.

But what about people who are suffering with back pain? Unfortunately, back pain doesn’t just go away due to the coronavirus, if anything it is likely to get worse, as people are now:

And as a result of all of these changes to our daily routines and habits, it’s common to now see an increase of people who are now suffering with:

And worst of all, if you are currently suffering with back pain, due to our current restrictions, you may not even be able to see your doctor, or a health care provider for help.

“I tried YouTube exercises, I bought a massage gun I saw from social media, I’ve tried ice and heat, but I’m not sure if what I am doing is helping, or making things worse. My friends said I should try yoga, I tried that, it didn’t work…I tried ice and heat which felt nice, but didn’t work…I even tried lying in bed for 3 days, and even though the pain went away for a little bit, the second I tried to do house chores, or walk my dog the pain came back even worse ”

Yes, there are so many different “self-treat” options out there on YouTube, google, and even social media. Some of these programs, or devices might be able to help, but there’s also a good chance doing the wrong exercise, or picking the wrong treatments could make your pain worse.

This is because back pain is a complex problem that is unlikely to go away with a single stretch, or buying an expensive tool.  Especially if you’ve had pain, or have been suffering for longer than a couple of weeks, or months.

Sadly, I hear from many people like Claire who suffer from back pain for way longer than they should…

…and end up wasting hundreds, or even thousands of dollars, and spend endless amounts of time and energy, on medical devices, medications, pills, and procedures, that do not work, and are no closer to a quality of life worth living.

Most people follow the advice of friends, family members, co-workers or even doctors that might tell you to:

While this advice typically comes from a genuine place, and people do want to help…
Rarely do these types of treatments work, and in some cases, doing the wrong stretches, the wrong exercises, or doing the wrong treatments could make your pain worse.
and this is why…

The most important thing you need to understand about back pain, ESPECIALLY if you are trying to find solutions at home, is that everything in our body is inter-connected…

Meaning that in order to treat back pain safely, AND effectively, you cannot just focus on treating the “symptom of back pain”…

You must address the ENIRE body, and find the underlying source.

There are other parts of your body (such as your hips, your upper back, your posture, and even your core) that could be stiff, tight, or weak. These underlying problems, even though you may not feel pain in these regions, will make your lower back “compensate” and cause it to do much more work than it is designed to do.

This will cause increased stress, strain and inflammation in your lower back which will cause pain, tightness, and immobility.

My patient Claire called me about one week after the local shut-down. She is a very health conscious person, she made sure she did her research and tried everything she could to try to fix her back pain, but nothing was working.

She was doing back stretches, yoga poses, and applying a massage gun to her back and her hips where she was experiencing pain, but the entire time she was making her problem worse.

I talked to Claire about our Virtual Spine Rehabilitation Program, and she was initially skeptical at first…

“What makes you different than anything else that I’ve already tried?”

It was a great question, and it took a little bit of time, but after a full hour of investigation into her history, and a full assessment of her body’s movement, we were able to identify three key underlying sources of pain that she was not currently treating.

The problems we found were:

From there, we were able to quickly come up with a very simple exercise plan to help her address THESE specific problems.

And after a few short sessions, her pain reduced significantly, her mobility increased, and she could feel her posture improving. The constant “pulling”, “fatigue”, and “burning” was gone…

And now just after 2 short weeks, she is now able to exercise safely within her own home, go on walks around the block without ANY back-pain symptoms

“Before I was scared…I thought I was going to have to just accept this pain. I didn’t think there was anything I could do. But now I after a few sessions, I feel much better, I have much LESS pain, and more importantly I can actually walk around, and get out of bed without feeling like an “old person”

Claire, like many others around the Bay Area took advantage of our “Virtual Spine Rehabilitation” Program.

Balance and Body Restoration’s Virtual Spine Rehabilitation Program is a one-on-one program where you will work with a non-invasive spine specialist to help you with your back pain.

Here’s how it works.

Our Virtual spine Rehabilitation Program consists of 5 very simple steps.

These steps ensure that we take the necessary precautions to make sure you are appropriate for our program, and that we can safely and comprehensively treat all of your aches, pains, and ailments…and that we can do so from the comfort of your own home.

The first thing, before we do any form of treatment is to get to know you first. We want to make sure that we are a good fit for each other, and that you feel comfortable with us before moving forward.

We will start by having a very simple phone call, so we can talk about all of your current problems, fears, and frustrations, but also talk about your goals, and what you want to get out of our program.

We understand fully that back pain can be complex and not every single person can be helped…

So, if you are someone who is:

Then we will not be a good fit for you.

But if you ARE someone who is:

Then I am absolutely certain we will be able to help, and that we will be a GREAT fit for each other.

What you need to understand about back pain is that everything in our body is “interconnected”. Which means even if you have back pain, it’s possible you could have problems in your hips, your upper back that is causing your lower back to “compensate”.

We also understand that everyone is different. We all have different injury histories, body types, and different activity goals and desires.

Within our movement assessment, we will take you through a simple series of movements to identify which movements hurt, which areas of your body are “stiff”, and which areas of your body are weak.

From there, we can then prescribe a comprehensive program to address your specific problems.

I’m sure you’ve heard the advice that for back pain you should try to move, keep active.

And while it is true, that exercise and movement is the BEST thing you can do for a stiff, ailing back, if you do the wrong exercises, or just try to “push through” the pain, you will end up making things worse.

You see, when your body is hurting, the pain signals you are receiving is similar to the check engine sign lighting up in your car. Driving your car more won’t just make the problem go away, you must take care of the problem, and fix the source of the pain first.

In step 3, your specialist will guide you through self-pain-relieving techniques which might include:

The goal of these exercises is to relieve your pain so that you can start moving with greater ease. You will work together with our spine specialist who will walk you through everything you need to know to perform the techniques safely, and with minimal equipment.

After we have identified the source of your pain, and helped you learn self-pain-relieving techniques, you should start feeling better. But do not make the mistake of thinking that once your pain is less that you are fully fixed!

To make sure you continue to progress towards your goals, the next step is to improve your general mobility.

In order to make sure your pain doesn’t just come back, and ultimately help you achieve the results you are looking for, the next step is to teach you a series of mobility exercises. These exercises are designed to help you become loose, flexible, and mobile before you start venturing into all of the activities you want to do.

In this phase of the program, your specialist will design a unique stretching and mobility program that is tailor-made to you and your body. We will meet you where you are at in terms of your comfort level and expertise with exercise to be sure we are creating a safe, but also effective environment to help you see progress.

The last step is to help you create a simple, easy, but effective strengthening program to give you the best possible chance at not just getting rid of your pain, but helping you get back to all of the activities you want.

Building strength is ESSENTIAL to heal your back pain because it will:

It’s no secret that one of the keys to a healthy spine is a strong core, but most YouTube exercise videos out there are likely too difficult, or do not consider that you are recovering from a back injury, which makes them unsafe.

But working one-on-one with a therapist, we will guide you step by step in how to not just strengthen your body, but to make sure that it is done safely, but also so that it is done effectively so you can get results you are looking for.

Will I get value from the first session?

We offer a 100% Free, first initial video consultation for those who qualify for our program. We do not want to take anyone on that we don’t truly believe we can help, and get you the results you are looking for.

We want to be sure you are comfortable with the software, meet face to face, and answer all of the questions and concerns you may be having with your back.

We will then conduct a very simple, preliminary “movement screen” to get an idea of what is happening to you, and then suggest what our plan of care will consist of.

“I’m not good with technology, it seems overwhelming and confusing”

I understand for some people, especially those who aren’t “tech savvy” might be concerned with the complexity of using technology.

But I promise you only need 3 things.

That’s it!

It cannot be any simpler, and we will walk you through step-by-step through your initial consult, just to make sure everything works and you are able to access our care easily.

Physical therapy done online? Is it really effective?

As someone who has been a very hands-on, “manual therapist” for my entire career, you will find no bigger skeptic than me. I used to believe that everyone needs hands-on treatment for the best possible care.

But I realized there are so many people that need this type of personalized help, who may not be able to leave their home, have kids, or are too busy to be able to come into the clinic during the day.

In the virtual setting, there are several increased advantages that are more beneficial to you, in terms of getting the results that you want.

“I found the virtual visits to be empowering, and I was actually surprised at how helpful it was, and how much I learned! But more importantly my back feels better than it has in years, and I’m only a few weeks into the program!”

How much does the program cost?

Each case is highly individualized, we have a variety of prices and packages that is dependent on your condition, and also the goals you are looking to achieve.

We also have a firm, Satisfcation and Happiness Guarantee, and that during the initial stage of treatment (the first 2-3 sessions), if you are not happy with our service, then you will receive a full refund of your payments.

Sincerely,

Kevin Mao

Doctor of Physical Therapy.

Kevin, like most physical therapists, got hurt at an early age as an athlete in high school. Having gone through multiple shoulder dislocations and surgery, he had his fill of PT at a young age. Even though getting injured and having to have surgery was painful, he was curious about the fact that he actually “enjoyed going to PT”, because he was able to learn about his body in ways he was never taught! This curiosity drove him to study Kinesiology at Penn State University in 2008, and he finally graduated with his Doctorate of Physical Therapy from Boston University in 2011.