When you’ve been diligent about coming to weekly physical therapy appointments, working through uncomfortable stretches and at-home exercises, and avoiding the activities you’re used to doing, it can be demoralizing to feel your progress reversed and your pain return. We understand your frustration and can assure you that you’re not alone; plenty of physical therapy patients have been here before, and fortunately you’re not out of options.

Everyone’s healing journey is different and although we can’t offer specific advice online, we want to provide ideas on how to process this step backward with clarity and hope.

Assess your pain timeline

Sometimes it helps to simply look at a calendar and put together a timeline of your treatment to gain perspective on what your progress has been until now. How long were you in pain prior to seeking treatment? Did you visit a physical therapist first, or a primary care provider? How long did you and your physical therapist work to address your concern? When was the last time you were in this much discomfort?

Marking specific dates on the calendar may help provide perspective on the measurable progress you were able to make, as well as how quickly your pain returned. It might pinpoint a specific date or appointment at which things took a turn for the worse.

It’s important to know that much of the physical therapy timeline is predictable, but not everyone experiences totally smooth progress from start to finish. Normal hiccups in the treatment timeline include:

• Temporarily worse or different pain than you’re used to
• General fatigue or tiredness
• Swelling or bruising at or near the treatment area
• Soreness

Any of these symptoms may arise during your time with physical therapy, and it’s important to not only stay positive when they impact your health, but also communicate any changes with your physical therapist. For example, if you’re too sore to perform certain exercises, there may be alternatives that don’t use the same muscles as intensely.

Care for your whole health

One of the fundamental principles of physical therapy is to work with and enhance your body’s natural ability to heal. Because this process is holistic, meaning it includes many different aspects of your health, taking care of your overall health while doing physical therapy is really important.

Some areas we strongly recommend focusing on as you heal include:

• Getting restful sleep every night
• Eating nutritiously
• Avoiding smoking and excess alcohol
• Being mildly active, depending on your overall health
• Addressing other underlying health issues such as diabetes or neurological disorders

Consider alternative/supplementary treatments

The practice of physical therapy is always evolving with new treatments, technologies, and care strategies that our team stays up to date with. We understand not everyone is comfortable trying “new” techniques, but there are several alternative and complementary treatments we may be able to offer that can help you change your care routine and may provide the specific relief you need.

Ask your physical therapist if any of these or other alternatives may be appropriate for your specific condition:

• Dry needling
• Cupping
• IASTM/manual therapy techniques
• Electrical stimulation

Advocate for your health

You deserve to not only be heard but taken care of. If you’ve tried a full course of treatment with little to no benefit, no one will be upset if you seek a second opinion or a different caregiver, even if you continue coming to your current clinic.

Every PT has different experiences and some may have a better insight to your condition that may have better results than the treatment you tried before. You can be honest about what didn’t work in the past, or how you felt about prior treatment plans.

A life with less pain is possible – keep going!

If you’re frustrated and discouraged with the lack of quick or substantial results, don’t suffer in silence. Our team is here to help you feel better and to be honest with you when physical therapy may not be the right solution. Whether you’ve been a patient with us before or are looking for a second opinion, we’re here to take your call and hear your concerns during an appointment.