Chronic Pain Management With Physical Therapy

Good Pain, Alligator Arms, and Forgiveness: My First Physical Therapy Follow-Up

My name is Becca and I work for SOL Physical Therapy, but I’m not a physical therapist.  I’m getting physical therapy to relieve a pain problem I’ve had since 2009, and I’m sharing my story with you to give you an inside look at what it’s like to get physical therapy at SOL.

After being a bad patient and not following my physical therapists’ recommendations, I had to face the music and go to my first follow-up last Friday.


When I arrived at SOL, I did a lot of deep breathing on my journey to the 2nd floor.

After signing in to my appointment, my PT brought me into the exam room, and she asked me how things were going.

All in a rush, I confessed to my bad behavior. While I was paying attention to my posture, I had spent 7 straight days at a keyboard, hadn’t moved around, and hadn’t done my HEP (she didn’t seem phased. Maybe she had read my blog post about being a bad patient…).

I admitted that my pain was worse than when we started, but that it was mostly in my neck and shoulder, and not in my forearm and wrist, like usual.

What my SOL PT said in response was really surprising.

With a smile on her face, she said, “That’s great news!”

And I’m like, “Wait, what?”

She explained that the direction of my pain was a good direction. She assured me that because the pain was moving away from the forearm, things were going in a good direction. We should only be worried if the pain moves in the other direction.

I knew that the healing process would not be straightforward, and I knew there might be some pain involved, but it was good to hear that this pain was the good kind.

After reassuring me things were okay, my PT jumped into reassessment. I hopped up on the table, and she checked my range of motion using some of the same techniques as my evaluation visit.  She did some manual physical therapy, assessing my range of motion and checking in with me as she worked. Between this visit and the last, I’m getting better at identifying where my pain is, and getting better at describing what’s happening in my body as well.

After 25 minutes or so,  my PT showed me new exercises that were much harder than what she assigned to me at my physical therapy evaluation.

As I struggled to get my back and arms flat against the wall to complete one of my exercises, she joked, “When I was learning to do this in PT school, I was like, how hard could it be to raise your arms 10 times with your back flat against a wall? Then I did it, and I was like, ‘Hard!’”

Despite keeping the tone of the session light, she didn’t let me do the exercise wrong. She corrected my form until my core was engaged, my back was flat, and my arms started and stopped in the right place.

After we were done with the exercise portion of the session, I was given a printout of my exercises to take home.  As I read through the exercise sheet to confirm I understood what I was supposed to do, I found myself appreciating how my PT made the names of the exercises much more accessible.

For example, “Alligator Arms” is way easier to remember than Thoracic Spine Rotation Mobilization.

Thoracic Spine Rotation Mobilization (say that 10 times fast!) is an exercise where I opened my arms wide while lying on my side, and then brought one arm around to meet the other. The movement is kind of like the snapping jaws of an alligator. Although I do love big words, the softening of the language really helped me to remember what I was supposed to do!

At the end of our session my PT forgave me for not doing my HEP, but I assured her that was re-energized for the cause.

I promised her I would be more committed, do my HEP, get up from my desk, and leave my days as a bad patient behind me!!

About the author

Sports + Orthopedic Leaders Physical Therapy & Performance Training serves the communities of Oakland, Alameda, Berkeley, Walnut Creek, Orinda, San Francisco and beyond. SOLPT’s award winning team of Physical Therapists, Performance Coaches and movement experts has helped thousands reach their rehabilitation and performance goals to move beyond pain. We're committed to helping anyone of any fitness level move effectively and more powerfully for a lifetime. We offer rehabilitation and performance services to all populations, with specialties in Sports Rehabilitation, Active Release Techniques, and Manual Therapy Techniques plus Personal and Small Group Training, Sport Clinics and Wellness Services.

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