This Is Not a Typical Physical Therapy Visit

What actually happens when you come work with me

Most people think physical therapy looks like this:

You walk in.
You get handed a sheet of exercises.
Someone watches you do a few reps.
You get ice or heat.
You leave.

Sometimes it works.
Sometimes it doesn’t.
Often, people are left confused, anxious, or dependent on appointments rather than confident in their own body.

That is not how I practice.

What follows is a real-world look into a single session with a post-operative patient—what we talked about, what we did, and why none of it was random.

First: We Talk Like Humans

Before we ever talk about sets, reps, or protocols, we talk.

Not small talk for the sake of killing time—but real conversation that gives me context about who you are, how you think, and how you respond to uncertainty.

In this session, the patient shared something extremely common after surgery:

“I notice every weird sensation. Every click. Every feeling. I worry I did something wrong.”

That matters.

Because recovery is not just a mechanical process—it’s a nervous system process. If your brain is on high alert, your body will be too.

So we normalize that experience early.

I explain things like:

• Why post-surgical joints make noise

• Why clicking without pain is usually fluid movement, not damage

• Why your body will warn youlongbefore you actually hurt yourself

When people understand what they’re feeling, fear decreases.
When fear decreases, movement improves.

Education Is Part of the Treatment

At one point, the patient mentioned feeling a small “click” in his knee while massaging or moving it.

Instead of brushing it off or overreacting, we paused and explained what was happening.

I used a simple analogy:

• Your joint is like a sealed capsule

• Inside that capsule is fluid

• When pressure changes, the fluid shifts

• Sometimes that shift makes a sound

No danger.
No panic.
No damage.

That explanation alone often reduces symptoms—not because the tissue changed, but because thethreat leveldropped.

This is a huge difference between transactional PT and coaching-based care.

Recovery Is a Long-Game Conversation

This patient wasn’t focused on “getting back” as fast as possible.

He said something that immediately told me we were aligned:

“I’m trying to set my body up for 50 years of activity.”

That changes everything.

When someone is thinking long-term:

• We don’t rush milestones

• We don’t chase arbitrary timelines

• We build capacity intentionally

It also means we respect the healing process instead of trying to out-work it.

The Exercises Were Simple—But Precise

Nothing in this session would look flashy on social media.

We worked through:

• Quad activation

• Straight leg raises

• Side-lying hip work

• Controlled glute activation

• Gentle IT band management

• Progressive weight-bearingwithoutforcing it

But every exercise had a reason.

When a movement felt “off,” we adjusted:

• Smaller range

• Slight position change

• Different cue

• Less load

The goal was never “push through.”
The goal wasteach the nervous system that this is safe.

Why I Care So Much About the Glutes (And the IT Band)

At one point, I pulled out an anatomy app—not to impress, but to explain.

We looked at:

• The glute max (big power muscle)

• The smaller stabilizers (like glute med/min)

• How those muscles connect directly into the IT band

• Why weakness in one area often shows up as pain somewhere else

Here’s the philosophy I live by as a clinician:

Most pain is a balance problem—not a damage problem.

My job is usually very simple:

• Loosen what’s overly tense

• Strengthen what’s under-supported

• Restore balance

When balance improves, pain often resolves on its own.

Self-Care Is Not About “Fixing” Tissue

We used a roller and talked about soft tissue work.

Not as a way to “break up” anything.
Not as a way to force change.

But as communication.

Rolling, gentle pressure, and movement tell your nervous system:

• This area is safe

• You can relax here

• You don’t need to guard

That’s why I encourage frequent, gentle movement throughout the day:

• Shifting weight while sitting

• Letting the leg hang naturally

• Light range of motion

• Small doses, often

Not rigid programs.
Not perfect posture.
Just consistent input.

Progression Is Earned, Not Forced

Toward the end of the session, we talked about weight-bearing.

Not standing yet.
Not loading aggressively.

Just gentle shifts:

• 25–50% body weight

• Short moments

• Frequent check-ins with sensation, not fear

I explained:

• You cannot damage healing tissue with seated weight shifts

• Isometric contractions don’t stress the joint the way movement does

• The nervous system needs exposure—not avoidance

By the next session, we’d reassess and likely progress.

No rushing.
No guessing.
No ego.

The content of this blog was written by Chat GPT - I didn't edit a word, and I want to be really transparent with you all about that. Here's what I did, and find it really neat that it can do this, and in a matter of seconds, whereas it would have taken me 60+ minutes to write something that would be marginally better than this.

With permission, I zoom recorded (audio only) a session with a patient who had a knee surgery 3.5 weeks ago. I then took the transcript from that recorded video, as well as Zoom's AI summary of our 'meeting' and fed that to ChatGPT. I prompted it: "take this summary and transcript of a patient visit and turn it into a very, very long form blog post. the intended audience is people who have never worked with me before , give them insight that it's not your typical PT visit when you come see me."

Here's what it spit out.

This Is What Makes My Practice Different

If you’re looking for:

• A passive experience

• Someone to “fix” you

• A checklist with no explanation

I’m not the right fit.

If you want:

• Education that makes you less afraid of your body

• A plan built aroundyourgoals

• Coaching that considers your nervous system, not just your muscles

• Long-term thinking instead of short-term relief

That’s what happens here.

Physical therapy, when done well, is not about dependency.
It’s about giving you enough understanding and confidence that you eventually don’t need me anymore.

And honestly?

That’s the point.