FAQ's

All staff are qualified Physical Therapists and Physical Therapy Assistants and are licensed with the State of California.

We are allowed to evaluate you without a Doctor’s referral. Should you require further treatment, your Doctor must agree to your course of treatment. If you are using Insurance, your insurance company requires an MD’s referral to pay your claim.

We treat a range of musculoskeletal and neurological conditions. For example: Muscle, joint and spinal problems, whiplash injuries, vertigo and headaches, sports injuries, arthritis and degenerative conditions, work related disorders, stroke, multiple sclerosis, traumatic brain injury, Parkinson’s disease, spinal cord injury, and facial palsy.

Yes, we are in network with most major Insurers, including Medicare. We accept most PPO, and POS plans. Please see the “Our insurers” section (below) for a current list.

This can only be answered after a detailed assessment by the physiotherapist. In the majority of cases we can help, however, if we do not think we can help, we will inform you and if necessary refer you to your GP or the most appropriate health care professional.

The clinic accepts payment by cash, check, or credit card. If you have health insurance we can in most cases invoice the company directly.

Yes, we have free off-street parking at the clinic and disability access. The parking lot for the Amado Center is accessible via Baristo Road, opposite the O’Donnell Golf Club.

The clinic is open Monday to Friday between 7 am and 5 pm. If you require early morning or appointments outside these times they can be arranged.

We specialize in long-standing (chronic) problems that remain resistant to treatment and use a team of highly qualified specialized staff who use a movement-based approach to understand why you continue to have problems. Our evaluations are designed to identify the source of your problem, and give you’re the key to preventing re-injury.

No.

If you fail to attend or cancel on the day of your appointment, Bodyworks reserves the right to charge $25 for the missed appointment.

This is commonly a result of a twist of the ankle in which the ligaments are stretched resulting in pain, swelling, and an inability to put weight through the leg. Repeated ankle sprains can lead to the ankle becoming ‘unstable’ as the ligaments are repeatedly damaged and the normal control of the joint is lost. Additionally, joints and nerves around the ankle and foot can be involved in combination with ligament

In the acute (early) stage consists of ice, strapping and re-education of movement to prevent further damage and restore normal function. Early restoration of function is paramount to accelerate recovery as movement stimulates tissue repair. Treatment for the ‘unstable’ aims at strengthening and reactivating the muscles around the ankle to compensate for the damage to the ligaments.

This is usually following a road traffic accident during which the neck moves forwards, and then backwards, suddenly. This can result in damage to the neck muscles, joints, and even the nerves. Most ‘whiplash injuries’ resolve in time and the best advice is the keep the neck moving and return to normal functioning as soon as possible.

Treatment involves neck, upper spine and shoulder exercises to maintain and increase range of movement. If stiffness persists, mobilization of the spine will help to reduce symptoms.

Most episodes of low back pain (with and without symptoms spreading into the buttock) are not serious and the symptoms will reduce over time. If you experience leg pain that moves into the calf and it is associated with numbness and/or weakness consult your GP as soon as possible.

The best advice is remain as active as possible, avoid long periods of rest, and keep moving. If the symptoms persist consult a Physical Therapist. Symptoms will re-occur with most forms of lower back pain and by consulting one of our Physical Therapists, they will fully assess your back and show you how to prevent future episodes. This will involve a combination of treatment and a home exercise program that will correct your spinal weakness.

This is caused by many reasons and most resolve with time. If symptoms persist, Physical Therapy can help.

“We do not wear out: we rust out.” The myth that joints wear out is wrong and if we use the joint sensibly it will last longer than you! Knee pain is a result of damage to the cartilage (thick discs between the two bones that reduce the stress between them).

A ligament is a band of tissue that connects two bones together to provide joint stability and helps to control movement. A ligament has some elastic qualities, but if stressed beyond those limits it will be damaged (e.g. rupture or complete tear). A partial tear of a ligament will repair with the formation of scar (connective) tissue and in the case of a rupture the ligament will not repair. However, muscles around a damaged joint may compensate for a ruptured ligament, but if this is not successful, surgery may be required.

Physiotherapy following a ligament injury aims to optimize recovery and gradually increase the stresses across the ligament. (Damaged tissue responds to controlled movement to stimulate the healing process.) If surgical repair is required, Physical Therapy helps to regain the patient’s control around the damaged joint by strengthening muscle across the joint and regaining co-ordination of the limb before returning to previous sport or function.

This is usually a result of altered tracking of the patella (knee cap) as it runs over the anterior surface of the knee. Going down stairs or sitting with the knee flexed for long periods (sometimes called ‘movie goers knee’) can often elicit symptoms. Physical Therapy for most anterior knee pain requires that the alignment of the patella is changed by strengthening the muscles that control the tracking. Additionally, it is sometimes necessary to treat the hip and foot, as abnormal movement within either of these joints can lead to altered patella tracking.

This is pain in the lateral (outer) aspect of the elbow. You don’t have to play tennis to have this problem and many structures both within (ligament, muscle and joint) and outside the elbow (neck, thorax and shoulder) can cause symptoms. Treatment is based on a full assessment of those factors that are contributing to the problem. Many ‘Tennis Elbow’ problems are caused by repetitive activities, for example, inputting data on a computer or gardening and pulling out too many weeds over a short period of time! Sports such as climbing or tennis can cause symptoms, especially if activity levels are increased rapidly without a graded exercise program.

Common treatments for tennis elbow are to mobilize the elbow joint, begin strengthening exercises of the muscles that lift your fingers/wrist up (extensor muscles), and reduce the stress across the elbow by reintroduction of the correct use of the whole upper limb in specific activities.

This is not an inflammation (‘tendinosis’ is a better term to describe this condition) of the long tendon that connects the calf to the posterior foot, but research suggests that the pain originates from degeneration of or micro trauma to the tendon over several years. Symptoms are experienced during exercise, but also after periods of rest (e.g. getting out of bed or after driving). Local treatment might be necessary, but part of a physiotherapy assessment should identify those factors that are causing the increased stress on the tendon. For example, running on the toes for prolonged periods, increasing training too rapidly, weakness in the calf muscle producing increased stress on the Achilles tendon, or poor hip control that prevents the upper part of the leg generating sufficient forces during walking or running (thus increasing the stress on the Achilles tendon as it tries to compensate for this weakness around the hip).

Treatment aims to reduce the stress on the Achilles tendon by correcting faulty gait or running actions and by strengthening weakened muscles (both in the lower leg and hip/pelvis). Interestingly, as the person’s tendon recovers it is not uncommon to find that their running improves as optimizing running will reduce injuries and increase efficiency in running.

There are many different problems within the shoulder that can cause pain. These are the most common:

• Instability:

The shoulder has a wide range of movement and requires the joint to have sufficient movement at allow normal shoulder function. The downside to this flexible joint is that following trauma or after repeated shoulder movements (e.g. prolonged swimming, throwing a javelin or just poor posture for many years), it is possible to lose the control of shoulder movement and a catching pain on certain activities may be elicited. The shoulder still has its normal range of movement, but the patient complains of a ‘catching’ pain and /or ‘clicking’ in the shoulder. This abnormal movement of the shoulder can produce structural damage to the joint and if conservative treatment fails, surgery may be indicated.

Treatment is aimed at restoring the correct shoulder control around the joint (and surrounding joints) and addressing weakness of specific muscles within the shoulder that provides dynamic stability to the joint. Re-educating correct upper limb function is also important to prevent future problems and help the person manage their problem more effectively. Success is judged by returning you to your normal functional state, be that climbing to international standard or just being able to reach for objects ion a top shelf.

• Impingement:

This is usually catching of a shoulder tendon or muscle (the Rotator Cuff) as it passes through a narrow opening within the shoulder joint. The problem may be the result of trauma or, more commonly, repeated stress on the shoulder following poor posture in which the shoulder moves forward (or protracted) when sitting at a computer or desk. Symptoms are experienced as the arm is moved away from the body (abduction) and often worse at 80 to 100 degrees of movement (an ‘arc’ of pain).

Treatment restores the normal control of the shoulder and prevents the tendon ‘impinging’ on specific structures within the shoulder. This may include mobilizing stiff joints, reducing scar tissue at the site of injury, strengthening weakened muscles and re-educating faulty movement patterns in symptomatic directions.

• Stiff shoulder:

Shoulders become stiff for many reasons and it is important to exclude the neck or thorax as a source of the problem. ‘Frozen shoulder’ is caused by tightening of the sac surrounding the shoulder (or capsule) and this condition is hard to manage and people can have symptoms for years. Fortunately, most stiff shoulder problems (including many diagnosed as ‘frozen shoulder’) are easily treated by mobilizing the shoulder and home stretching exercises. Incorrect shoulder movement during a specific activity, e.g. lifting at work or playing a specific racquet sport can cause structures in the shoulder to tighten and produce symptoms. Pain is usually encountered at the end of the available range, for example reaching to a high shelf or using a hairdryer.

We gladly accept Medicare and Medicare Railroad

• Blue Cross
• Blue Shield
• Exclusive Care
• United Healthcare
• Cigna
• Tricare/Triwest
• Veteran's Administration
• HealthNet
• NALC
• ODS
• Oxford Health
• PHCS
• State Farm Health

• IEHP

• Align Networks
• King County Claims
• Liberty Mutual
• Travelers Insurance