I am 25 years old and love working out. I am so grateful for Precision Performance Physical Therapy not only helping me get through my injuries but also introducing me to information I would have never learned.

I grew up in a family where exercise was the answer to any and all problems (and let’s face it we all have our problems ☺). Over time I took on my mom’s addiction to running. In middle school I played field hockey and in high school I ran track. My junior year I decided to start training for my first half marathon. So, during the week I would wake up at 5am to run at least 5 miles, go to school, straight to practice where I would run about 5 miles, and then come home to do homework. On weekends I would run at least 10 miles in order to assure I would comfortably finish the half marathon. Over time I started having hip pain, so I began to see a chiropractor.

I vividly remember waking up one morning this past July and not being able to bend my leg. I called my chiropractor to make an urgent appointment. He was out of town so I started freaking out and decided to call my cousin since she completed an internship with Jon. He told her to bring me in. After doing some assessments and asking me questions, he looked at me and said that I had to stop running in order to stop causing more damage to my torn labrum, which is found in your hip. I immediately got upset, scared and defensive. It made no sense to me since I didn’t really have anything traumatic happen to me. I told Jon not running/coming to PT wasn’t an option but instead of getting upset with me he was super supportive and helped me navigate through the obstacles preventing me from getting the proper care (which honestly just turned out to be a bunch of excuses since I wasn’t prioritizing myself ☺).

For the first several weeks of physical therapy, I continued to run on my own. Jon sat down with me and explained (in my understanding/terminology) what damage I was causing my body. He helped me understand and accept that I should not focus on running and instead work on strengthening exercises. After this conversation I thought I was in the clear from having complications, but unfortunately I was wrong. During one of my appointments I started to get really dizzy. Once again, Jon took the time to talk with me about the root of the issue and I explained to him that growing up if I didn’t workout I wasn’t allowed to eat, which caused me to struggle with an eating disorder. He tried to explain to me how unhealthy/dangerous this was but his advice went in one ear and out the other. Originally I kept pushing him away, but he never gave up on me. Recently, I admitted I needed help and agreed to start working with a nutritional coach. I feel like this was one of the best decisions I have made.

I was hurting in many different areas in my life when I first stepped into Precision Performance Physical Therapy, but one thing that has not changed is how supportive the entire staff has been. He has told me over and over again to trust the process and not to change for other people. If there is one thing you get out of this blog, I hope it’s how much the whole staff truly cares for their patients. Jon has not only become my physical therapist, he has become a huge mentor in my life.