Hi. I’m Teri and I’m not your typical physical therapist. Besides making people feel better using modalities, exercise and manual therapy, I am rehab-based certified Pilates instructor (I use Pilates to improve your posture, get you out of pain and strengthen your core), perform Naam yoga therapy (utlizes time-tested ancient healing traditions), address your lifestyle, emotions and nutrition…and use a specialized spiritual healing technique called Harmonyum that can change your life.
I LOVE what I do, and probably care more about getting you better than you care about yourself. If you don’t feel better after the first visit, then I toss and turn to figure out what’s going on and what I may have missed. I guess that’s why I get the “problem” patients—the ones the doctors don’t know what to do with and the people who’ve tried every treatment under the sun.
So what’s my secret for getting you fantastic results?
The reason why I get results is because I take the time to listen and figure out what’s going on with you. I consider the entire system, what you’ve tried, what you haven’t tried (I’ve got lots of tools in my back pocket) and evaluate & treat you holistically. This allows me to provide you with the best and most effective treatment solution. Okay, I’ll admit my physical therapy mentor taught me the importance of clinical reasoning, and to really figure out and prove what the problem is (Thanks, Larry!).
The bottom line:
I treat you like an individual.
I don’t treat you by your diagnosis. Okay; I take into account what your diagnosis is, but don’t expect me to give you a bunch of exercises and send you off. No way. That’s old school physical therapy.
I believe that your body has the answer to your problem. If we just take a moment to listen, it will direct us to exactly what it needs.
You and I will work as a team.
You and I are a team to get you better. If I tell you to do something, I expect you will follow through. There’s a reason why you’re here, and you better believe that I’m going to get you results. But like I said, you have to cooperate. That means doing whatever you need to do to get yourself better and it generally involves some detective work and effort on your part.
I teach you how to slow down and listen to your body
Pain occurs for a reason, and it’s a warning sign. Usually, it’s because people ignore the small stuff. You know, things like stiffness in your neck. That little discomfort that goes away quickly, but happens a little more often.
It’s only when that little discomfort turns into sharp, shooting pain, and you can’t turn your head or lift your arm that you probably go to the doctor and get things taken care of with healthy remedies like tons of anti-inflammatories, cortisone shots and muscle relaxants (yeah, I’m being sarcastic).
I’m here to tell you that it’s a warning sign. It’s likely that your pain will go away within a month. The problem is, if you merely take a few Advil, you’re not taking care of the problem. In 80% of the cases, your pain will come back, usually with a vengeance and will take much longer to get rid of.
I will empower you to be able to take care of yourself
There’s one exception: Unless you know WHY you’re having pain and what the warning signs are, you can prevent and eliminate it.
I’ve seen it time and again.
Which leads me to WHY I’m doing this, and why it’s my passion. You see, I’ve treated thousands of patients with amazing results. What bugs me is that most of these problems could have been prevented or at least minimized if somebody took the time to educate our public about PREVENTION of neck and lower back pain.
Back pain doesn’t have to be costly.
Did you know that the costs of treatment for spine pain is in the billions of dollars? (and, of course, that number is going to continue to rise if there’s no prevention and education done) And did you know that I’d bet you’re going to experience neck and/or lower back pain sometime during your lifetime, and there’s an EASY FIX? Yep; I said it, and the chiropractors and spine surgeons are going to hate me, but it’s true.
Be the solution in the world. Be proactive.
If you’re ready to take charge of your life, then please email me and we’ll get to work.
Here’s to empowering the people and decreasing the incidence of neck and lower back pain!
Teri Nakamura, Master of Physical Therapy, Certified Athletic Trainer, Certified Pilates Instructor, Certified Naam Yoga Instructor