Diane became an avid hiker and nature enthusiast in her early forties, and now lived for weekends spent on mountain trails and forest paths. One sunny Saturday stroll, she felt a gradually increasing sharp pain in her low back after missing a step on her descent down the last hill of the day. Diane figured she had pulled a muscle.
On Monday, Diane’s friend Sarah, who had chronic low back pain for years, and who had recently improved after just a few weeks of PT with us, recommended that Diane give us a shot. “They will know what to do,” Sarah assured her. “The experience is different from any others I’ve been to, and they treat you like a person.”
Diane took Sarah’s advice and scheduled an appointment. When she arrived on Wednesday, Diane was visibly nervous, and I wanted to be able to put her at ease while not downplaying any of her concerns. Through active listening, I asked detailed questions about how she felt about her pain and reviewed the mechanism of injury in detail. After a series of movement tests, carefully checking for pain, we ruled out any damage to nerve tissue. My initial impression was that Diane’s pain was due to a muscular strain from her misstep, but to be certain, advised her to avoid certain extreme positions for the next couple days, taking any added stress off her spine.
That same session, I utilized gentle soft tissue mobilization and trigger point techniques to target and reduce muscle spasm and stiffness. Then, we performed a couple light, isometric core activities to restore neuromuscular control, all without any pain on Diane’s end. We had a great session and after about an hour, we recapped what positions to avoid, how to sleep, and she made an appointment for Friday. Diane left the clinic walking a little better and feeling confident that she was on the right track.
Diane walked into the PT office on Friday- something was visibly wrong on her face. She explained sullenly that although she felt a little better after her last visit, this morning was filled with pain when she woke up and twisted the wrong way. We repeated some gentle movement tests and upon noticing pain with certain spinal movements, I advised her to see a friend of ours, who is a Spine Specialist that works close to her home in Elmhurst, explaining that an x-ray would be a good idea before we continue PT. Sure enough, the doctor ordered imaging tests and discovered a small, stress fracture on her L4 vertebrate.
Diane wasn’t thrilled, but she was aware of the possible outcomes and so she felt at ease with Dr. B, knowing that she made the right decision. Our most important goal as Doctor of PT should always be to ensure that our patients are equipped to make the best decisions for their current condition, educating and providing them with tools they can use to do so. I have seen thousands of people for physical therapy with low back pain who never needed to see a spine specialist, but being self-assured in referring a patient out to one of our amazing colleagues, along with having an extensive network to choose the right one, is the key to making sure that in the future, people with chronic low back pain and acute flare-ups are confident in us as Doctors of Physical Therapy and our ability to deliver them the care they need.
With the stress fracture diagnosed, Dr. B ordered Diane to rest for 2 weeks and avoid the same motions we were avoiding the whole time with PT. “They really do know what they are doing at ProMet!” her MD exclaimed. Diane nodded and thought humbly to herself, “They sure do.”
After two weeks of rest, Diane returned to PT and we picked up where we last left off. She was excited to turn the corner began and share her feelings with me, “I just don’t know what I would’ve done or where I’d be today if I hadn’t taken Sarah’s advice and came to see you first. Thank you for your guidance and for helping me see the light!” I replied, “Remember Diane, you had to do all the work. Besides, with all the compliments, I don’t want my head getting any bigger than it already is!” We laughed together.
Diane’s experience underscores an important lesson: when low back pain strikes, seeing a physical therapist is a safe and effective choice and that you can do the same! Our experience and expertise in ruling out serious conditions ensures that you get the care you need without unnecessary delays, tests, procedures, or even worse, medical surgeries. Are you ready to take back control of your decisions when it comes to your low back pain? The next time back pain interrupts your life, remember that we are leading the way in our field, and will always hold ourselves accountable for getting to the source of your low back pain, leaving no stone uncovered, and inspiring you to reach your full potential.
