"Last August (2014), I was playing golf and came down with severe pain. At the time I thought it was a pulled muscle and the pain would go away once the muscle relaxed.   The pain continued to get worse so I put up my clubs, quit going to the gym, and sat at home with heating pads and ice.  My wife told me about her physical therapy sessions with Amy Fletcher and saw firsthand the results I was having.  I met with Amy and right away she told me I had suffered a low back trauma, and she could tell my spine was out of line.  I signed up for sessions and Amy found my range of motion, and designed a regimen of stretching exercises.  I followed Amy’s advice and could feel my back pain starting to ease gradually.  At each subsequent session Amy added additional stretching and core strengthening exercises.  My spine gradually worked its way back in place and my range of motion grew much better.  I continued to improve and last week I played my first 18 holes of golf with no pain.  The next day I rode my bike for 10 miles and again with no pain.  Thank you Amy.  You are great at what you do."

-Larry Torres, Age 63, avid golfer, biker and gym member

***

"June of 2014 I woke up with severe back pain and could barely move. I went to my primary doctor who gave me pain pills and ordered an x-ray.  The x-ray was not clear and an MRI was ordered.  About two weeks later I could barely move so I went to the emergency room where they gave me morphine injections and sent me home with prescriptions for very potent pain pills.  After about two months I finally got a referral to see a spine surgeon who told me I had a slipped disk at S1/L5.  He said I could have surgery but recommended to try physical therapy first.  The doctor told me about 80% of people with this type of injury improved with PT.  I wanted to avoid surgery as a last resort so I signed up for PT.  I was very fortunate to get Amy as my therapist.  From my first session she made me feel very comfortable, explained my injury and she put together a plan tailored for me.  I followed Amy’s advice and worked on the exercises she gave me.  It was a slow progression, but I saw improvement after just two sessions.  I continued with Amy until I was almost at the point of no pain.  I just played my first round of golf since June last year, and I'm back to the gym working out at the same rigorous pace I was before my injury.  Thank you Amy.  You know what you are doing and the results are evident."

-Dianna Torres, Age 50

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"Amy saved my life!  About 4 years ago, I suffered a back injury while moving something heavy into an awkward position.  After a couple of days my back pain had become progressively worse and I could barely get out of bed. The pain had become so intense I could not walk or stand upright.  The pain started in my lower back and worked itself down through the right leg.  My primary doctor suspected a pinched sciatica nerve and  recommended I make an appointment with Amy Fletcher’s physical therapy practice. 

Amy diagnosed the problem as a ruptured disc between the L4-L5  vertebrae which was later confirmed by an MRI. She told me that she was going to employ the McKenzie Method of treatment to deal with the problem.  The course of treatment worked. I had made an appointment with a spine surgeon thinking I might need back surgery, which I didn’t really want to do except as a last resort. By the time that appointment came up I was already pain free and the surgeon agreed that surgery was not indicated.  I am now playing golf regularly again. I continue to do the daily stretches and exercises Amy taught me and feel great."   

Grant Slade, Age 74 and another golf fanatic

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"When I was 15 I suffered a broken hip while playing soccer.  After the bone healed I went to Amy to rehabilitate the hip and strengthen the muscles in that area.  She introduced me to stretches and exercises which got me back into playing condition.  I was able to make all-metro and all-state first teams this last soccer season.  Amy helped me do that.

I was also born missing my right arm below the elbow.  Over the years this led to an imbalance in the development of the right and left sides of my upper torso.  When I was 16 I got a prothesis so that I could do exercises to even out the development of my upper body.  Amy helped me devise the exercises I needed to do.  She also helped us with the insurance company which needed a statement from a medical professional that the prothesis was necessary."

Nicholas Slade, Age 18, athlete

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"I met Amy Fletcher years ago and she has helped me heal and taught me how to also help heal myself. I have very bad arthritis in my spine and now everywhere else and if had not been for her I probably would not be walking and swimming as I still do.

She is funny and gentle and very knowledgeable about the human body for which she has the utmost respect.  Each time I came in we would go over what I had tried to do at home, work on some more things, and she would then draw her little stick figure drawings of the new exercises I was to do.  Over the years I have kept them and refer back to them when some old ache wants to return.  They remain a great reminder of how to do an exercise.

She is a born healer and I am honored to be her patient."

Ann Nihlen