during your first visit & BEYOND

Welcome to Orlanu. Let me invite you into our cozy, private treatment room, where we will become acquainted.  People in pain need to talk, to be heard, and to be touched with caring and concern.  We will explore all aspects of your pain and how your body carries it in order to help me determine how to help you get your life back.

What you tell me becomes part of your evaluation.

We all know that pain increases at different times and in different situations. I will ask you specific questions. I will ask you to describe your pain in the context of your entire life. What are the physical challenges you experience when you are at home? At work? On vacation? When you are alone? With others?  The physical and internal triggers of your pain patterns will begin to emerge.  

With this awareness, you will begin to learn when your body is most susceptible to pain. 

Then we will begin with your first hands-on evaluation and treatment. My goals are to discern what treatment techniques your body needs and to learn how your body responds to these. As I touch your joints and muscles, I begin to sense what you need, what will bring you relief and comfort.  By the end of the session, I will understand what helps your body relax so that it will receive and welcome specific treatment methods. From these new insights, I will develop a Plan of Care for you.    

What do patients often say after our first session? 

“This is different from any doctor or therapy I have ever had.”

“Nobody ever asked me questions like these.”

“I am so relaxed!” 

“I have hope again.”

“I feel better!”         

This is what I want for you. 

Note:  Sometimes patients need complementary treatments to enhance your well-being.  If you do need additional help that our work depends on and that is out of my areas of expertise, I will refer you to another practitioner such as a nutritionist, psychotherapist, chiropractor, metabolic specialist, athletic trainer, or another physical therapist. I will work with that professional to reach our common goals.

LEARNING ABOUT YOUR BODY

As we continue to work together I will teach you to become aware of sensations in your body. For example, you will learn to notice that when your muscle tension rises, your pain worsens, and when that tension lessens, your pain calms down.

Next, you will learn to become aware of how your body breathes when it is hurting, and when the pain has eased, when you are moving, and when you are resting. You will recognize your body’s cues that occur before a flare-up so that you can interrupt that sequence. Your assignment will be to note and record what you sense in your body.

Third, by learning how to read your body, you will sense your body’s inherent rhythms. You will become aware of when it needs to rest, when it needs to eat, when it has more energy, when it needs to exercise and move. All these can impact your pain.

I will teach you to become a successful team player with your body. Through thoughtful breathing, awareness of triggers and cues and your responses to them, you will begin to feel better and minimize the opportunity for flare-ups.  

What is pain?

Pain is the body’s language telling you that something is wrong. Since birth, our bodies constantly compute the easiest and most efficient way to support us, no matter what we choose to do. Our bodies will do whatever it takes to follow our lead —and they will break down if they have to work too hard. Pain is the signal.

As a therapist, I must find out where and how the body overworks in order to find a healthier way for it to support you. With time, we learn how specific parts of your body literally report for duty when you employ them. 

People experience pain in many common ways, but as the initial pain persists,  sometimes unexplained secondary symptoms develop.  Traditional physical therapy often overlooks, misunderstands, or even dismisses these concerns. At Orlanu we understand that these symptoms often are related to the original pain, either as cause or effect, and these are important clues that provide more information for thorough diagnosis and treatment. 

How Orlanu Treatment Is Unique . . .

The anchor of my treatment method is the John F. Barnes Myofascial Release Approach, in conjunction with CranioSacral Therapy, Breath Work and Neurodevelopmental Treatment. My treatment approach has evolved into a synergy of these four techniques to address the chronic pain and associated, mysterious symptoms. 

These whole body, hands-on techniques will relax and release the painful restrictions. Neurodevelopmental Treatment principles, combined with a variety of strengthening and stabilizing exercises, will make up your home program.

 Session by Session . . .

During each session, our hands-on therapy and exercise strategies are always changing to find answers to these questions:

• How can you help yourself to relax? 
• How can you release the tight muscles that cause you pain? 
• How can you build strength?  
• How can you move safely without getting hurt?

Your home program will re-educate your body to move with ease. However, just because you learn the perfect exercise routine to strengthen your muscles, does not mean that your body will know how to coordinate and use the muscles differently in everyday life.  

While you are learning new ways to move, you can tire easily. That is when the body can slip back into its former and harmful habits of moving. What happens then? Pain may return, but now you have the understanding and the skills to address this at home, until your next therapy session. For many, this has been an important marker in their rehab.

As you practice replacing old, habitual ways of moving with healthier ways,  you will feel more energy confidence and sense of well-being. 

This is not a cookie-cutter rehab program for everyone who has your specific diagnosis. Rather it is my own combination of the most effective and most successful therapy methods to treat long-term pain.

Moving On . . .

When we both feel that you have achieved your goals, you may decide to return to Orlanu for periodic tune-ups. You may decide to join our Pilates Prep class or our ball exercise class, to maintain and increase your core strength, flexibility, and balance. Or you may just come by now and then to tell me how well you are doing. 

The Orlanu Commitment . . .

Whatever the stage or duration of your injury or pain, we will work with you to help you return to your life and your activities, in the most comprehensive and most compassionate way. 

Competence, Creativity, Compassion