Los Angeles, California

The Pain Psychology Center is a facility specializing in the treatment of chronic pain.

Recent studies have shown that chronic back pain, neck pain, fibromyalgia symptoms, repetitive strain injury, headaches, and other forms of chronic pain are often not the result of structural causes, but of psychophysiologic processes that can be reversed.

Though the pain can be addressed psychologically, this does not imply that the pain is imaginary. In fact, brain imaging studies have demonstrated that the pain is quite real. Recent research has shown that pain is often the result of learned neural pathways in the brain. And just as pain can be learned, it can also be unlearned.

Dr. John Sarno of the New York University Medical Center has referred to this condition as Tension Myoneural Syndrome (or TMS). For more information on this condition, see “Miracles of Mindbody Medicine,” written by co-founder, Alan Gordon.

This treatment approach has been featured on ABC’s 20/20 and Larry King Live, and has a high success rate in significantly reducing or eliminating chronic pain. For further information on these studies, visit our evidence page.

We use a two-pronged approach when working to eliminate symptoms. First, we work to toward changing one's relationship with the pain. Reframing the meaning of the symptoms often serves to break the pain cycle. The following article discusses the role that reinforcement plays in perpetuating symptoms and the video below introduces the concept of conditioned responses.

San Diego, California

Institutes of Health: Reversing the Chronic Pain Epidemic. Delivering Proven Solutions for Chronic Pain, Disability and Prescription Drug Addiction.

Bend, Oregon

Our goal at Results Neck & Back Therapy is to provide excellent customer service and quality physical therapy services in an effort to help Central Oregonians regain and maintain their quality of life in order to be able to participate in all the activities our area has to offer.

Scottsdale, Arizona

If you are located in Scottsdale and are in need of a personal training, then Basic Training is the solution to finding a personal trainer in Scottsdale that can achieve your personal fitness goals. Basic Training is a fully equipped fitness gym that can accommodate any and all of your fitness needs. Located in the heart of Downtown Scottsdale, Basic Training is THE gym for private instruction, personal training, fitness guidance, weight-loss exercise, and overall general personal well-being.

At Basic Training everyone gets personal training. Each and every member who joins the MedX Strength Training Facility is educated and set up on a comprehensive personal weight resistance exercise routine. Bill personally works with every person who signs up at Basic Training to insure machine settings are correct and operation of the sophisticated complex machines are mastered.

The exerciser is “shadowed” with supervision until they are able to demonstrate a level of competency and confidence on the machines. This step-down training with Debbie Crawford works extremely well with geriatric populations who can benefit greatly from the MedX strength training. Debbie has been assisting on the floor for over ten years and is educated in MedX protocol.

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Musculoskeletal problems are the second most common reason for physician visits, and they represent one of the most common causes of disability. Specifically, as many as 80 percent of people will experience low back pain during their lifetime.

Our goal at UPMC Total Care — Musculoskeletal Health is to explore all treatment options to determine what works best for you. The Center is led by Gwen Sowa MD, PhD and Chris Standaert MD.

New York, California, Colorado, Virginia

In the early 90’s, after suffering several exercise related injuries and feeling generally worn out, Adam Zickerman was struck by the notion that brief, intense exercise performed just once a week could yield equal and, possibly superior results compared to his five-day-a-week exercise routines.

For five years, Adam immersed himself in the exercise sciences, and recruited his family and friends as guinea pigs while he developed his exercise protocol. In 1997, he opened his first InForm Fitness – a 300 square-foot space, in a dank basement, with five pieces of used equipment.

The big break came in November that same year when this ‘radical’ workout was featured on the front page (Science section) of the New York Times. This resplendent publicity led InForm to open its second location in midtown Manhattan during the summer of 1999.

InForm’s ecstatic, and quickly growing, client base fueled more national publicity and a book deal with HarperCollins. In 2003, Adam and friend Bill Schley, co-wrote, Power of 10: The Once a Week Fitness Revolution. The book became a NYT’s bestseller and Adam was thrust into the limelight appearing regularly on the local and national media scene extolling the virtues of the Power of 10 workout.

Currently, InForm Fitness’s headquarters is still housed at the same Midtown address, although it’s been expanded to 4,000 square feet and serves over 300 clients weekly. In recent years, InForm has opened additional locations in New York, California, and Virginia – and launched a mobile gym; a 27-foot bus with retrofitted equipment available to train people at their home or office. 

Portland, Oregon

Karin says:

“I first tried Rolfing when I graduated from college, hoping that it would help with the back pain I'd had since high school. It turned out that improving my posture through Rolfing was the key.

The 10-session series resolved the chronic back pain, and it also dramatically improved my athletic ability. When I began practicing yoga, the movements felt easy and strong because my joints were better positioned and my movement was more coordinated. I trained to run a 5K without much discomfort, learned to ski as an adult, and got my blackbelt in Aikido. I tried each of those activities prior to receiving Rolfing, and felt a huge change after my Rolfing series. Rolfing helped me access my natural ability to move. 

Now I've been a Rolfer for 15 years, and I love doing this work. Sometimes it is like following clues to unlock a puzzle, so we work together to solve the mystery.”

San Diego, California

Dr. Kamshad Raiszadeh, an orthopedic spine surgeon, established SpineZone in 2005 to develop the best aspects of non-operative treatment in an atmosphere of empowerment to maximize the body’s own healing capacity. With this program, many fewer patients have required surgery, and the ones who underwent surgery had much better long term results. Through the 4 clinics Dr. Raiszadeh built in San Diego he learned that with appropriate education, focused strengthening and postural treatment we can decrease the rate of injections and surgery while significantly improving the function and satisfaction of patients.

Not all Pilates classes - be they tower or mat - are good for your back. In fact, under-supervised Pilates often results in back pain. Look for a teacher with specialized therapeutic training. For an example of what you should be looking for, view Amanda Tennant’s video here, visit her Facebook page here, or schedule a session with her here.

Minnesota

Physicians Neck & Back Clinic is Brian Nelson, MD’s brainchild, with a base in Minneapolis and numerous satellite clinics. Dr. Nelson put down his scalpel when he realized he wasn’t getting good results from spine surgery and substituted a rigorous, multi-week, spine-focused exercise program.

To learn more about PNBC's Core Spinal Fitness Program  - this is a gym you can join to maintain the gains from their rehab program - click here.

Texas

PRIDE Dallas was one of the first functional restoration facilities in the United States. Run by Thomas Mayer, MD, and his wife, Holly, it combines an excellent physical rehabilitation program with superb psychological support, making it a top choice for people who really want to get back to work.

Each year, the American Pain Society gives a Clinical Center of Excellence in Pain Management Award to five or so pain management facilities around the country. Here you’ll find the index, all the way back to 2007. Not all of them offer multidisciplinary chronic pain programs—some are tiny, community-based programs—but it is a good place to start. Be sure to click on the detailed descriptions of each year’s winners.

Have a look at the website of Physicians for Responsible Opioid Prescribing. PROP’s mission is to: “reduce opioid-related morbidity and mortality by promoting cautious and responsible prescribing practices.”

Believe me, you’re going to get an eyeful.

Alaska

Our mission at Integrative Physical Therapy is to provide skilled therapeutic services in a comfortable and welcoming environment. We will aim to achieve the most rapid, cost effective, evidence based, and complete recovery possible. Additionally, we would like to provide patient and public education regarding healthcare terminology and treatments. Patients should understand the purposes of the tests, procedures, terminology, and exercises that may be presented, recommended, or offered to them by us or other healthcare providers.

New Zealand

Jonathan Kuttner specialises in the assessment and treatment of pain and dysfunction, arising from muscles, joints, nerves, and the assessment and treatment of Fibromyalgia.

You can also read more about Jonathan and his story here.

New Zealand

Functional Physio has been helping people back to full function for over 15 years.
They specialise in the diagnosis and treatment of Spinal, Sports, Occupational and Muscle Imbalance.

They focus directly on establishing the cause of the injury and appropriate measures to take in order to prevent the injury recurring.

Florida

ReQuest’s Mission: Reinvent physical therapy to not only treat the diagnosed orthopedic issue, but also provide a comprehensive plan for lifelong wellness.

Every business has a story about how it began, someone who had a vision based on a moment, an event, or an experience that would shape the foundation of the business. ReQuest is no different, inspired by a knee injury sustained in a sparring session that would change the practice of physical therapy in Gainesville.

In 1986, Gainesville Health & Fitness owner and ReQuest founder Joe Cirulli injured his knee during a sparring session that would lead to surgery and physical therapy. After weeks of lifting sandbags, he decided that he could do better on his own believing there was a more modern way to strengthen his muscles and a more inspiring environment in which to recover. His passion to make this kind of physical therapy a reality started ReQuest with just one therapist and a medical testing machine called the lumbar extension. The goal was to eliminate spine pain.

Missouri, Kansas

Elite provides personalized physical therapy that addresses the root cause of your pain so you can heal naturally and get back to an active lifestyle.

Biaggio Mazza, physical therapist and owner of Elite, wrote to say that he’d ordered 30 copies of Crooked, and planned to make the entire staff read it.

California

We at Clinical Pilates Pasadena regularly help people avoid surgery and get back to doing all the activities they love; working out, dancing, walking vacations, playing with their kids or grandkids. If you are suffering - we can help! 

Florida

There are a number of reasons people have back pain, but the majority of people that suffer from non-specific back pain have weak back stabilizing muscles. Fitness Therapy’s program includes proven therapies and strength training exercises to resolve the weaknesses and relieve back pain.