Reviews

My advice is to just go. Experience for yourself the healing that is offered.

My journey of understanding my pain and discomfort began 2 years ago with traditional treatment of plantar fasciitis. Along with working with a podiatrist, receiving orthotics, obtaining x-rays and thermal visuals on my foot, I also worked with a physical therapist and began wearing a night boot to stretch the plantar.

Within 2 months, my leg began going numb . I stopped wearing the boot, and received numbing injections into the nerve bundle by the plantar. Numbing became more pronounced and I sought out an acupuncturist. For the next 8 months, he worked on my plantar fasciitis providing relief, but the numbing with intermittent pain in one or both of my legs, continued.

Across a 14 month period, I sought care from three different physical therapists, a neurosurgeon and a neuropathist. I was not offered any direction on how to improve my situation.

With increasing numbness and pain, I found myself lying down for 40 minutes twice a day to try to reset my pain threshold so I could complete my day. I could not stand on my leg for more than 5 minutes without it going numb, I walked with walking sticks, and my activities were becoming frustratingly limited. After waiting over 6 months for an appointment with a neurologist, he did not provide any other treatment options. He reviewed all my tests, suggested pain management which would block the pain but not address the core problem, suggested topical creams for the same purpose, and offered access to sleep medications and muscle relaxants. I was very concerned that nerves may be dying and wanted support in seeking treatment to address what the tests showed. My pain/numbness ran presented as 3-8/10 on a daily basis.

I began work with Val at Rebalance Physical Therapy, two and half months ago. Within the first six to eight sessions, consisting of myokinesthetic treatments and active stretching of specific muscles, I was able to notice a difference in pain level, numbness and my functional level. My disability at that time, so encompassed my life that I had a hard time believing that a change would be possible. I had always explained to practitioners that my pain began from the foot and the numbing came up the leg. This began to shift and I could feel the tightened muscles aligned along my leg that Val identified as emulating from the S1 nerve.

I have shared with Val that regardless of the treatment she provided, she also provided the emotional support of a counselor, listening to my experience and listening to my body through the tools of her visual exams and touch. I currently have numbness from 0-1/10, I recover much faster if I am going numb just by altering my activity and I am regaining my confidence that this is within my power to succeed. I can now walk through the grocery store, walk along the beach, venture out in a kayak and bend and kneel in my garden.

I was recommended to try Val from a Pilates instructor who had been trying to help me navigate my experience. After reaching out to so many medical practitioners, who conduct tests but not address the body itself, I feel incredibly fortunate to have stumbled on Val.

I now have a toolkit to help recover when my leg does begin to numb with massage and activities that address the muscle groups involved.