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tech neck help

October 10, 2023 · In: Body Region Support, Neck/Jaw, Science-Backed Education

What You Should Know About Tech Neck: Relieve the Pain

With the use of smartphones and electronics on the rise, a normal day’s work and simple mindless scrolling can sometimes end in pain. Tech neck is on the rise as…

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knee pain hiking downhill

October 3, 2023 · In: Body Region Support, Knee, Science-Backed Education

Knee Pain Hiking Downhill: Prevention and Treatment

Are you one of the many individuals who has experienced knee pain hiking downhill? You start off on a great day of hiking, especially in the warmer weather of SoCal,…

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single leg stability

September 26, 2023 · In: Movement, Strength for Resilience

Why Single Leg Stability is Important for Daily Function

Do you have the ability to stand on one leg? Seems simple, right? However, this basic act forms the cornerstone of functional fitness. Single leg stability is an important aspect…

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shoulder rehab exercises

September 12, 2023 · In: Movement, Strength for Resilience

5 Important Shoulder Rehab Exercises for Optimal Function

While there is no one exercise that is best for the shoulder, there are a combination of shoulder rehab exercises that can work really well together. These 5 exercises target…

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glute activation

September 5, 2023 · In: Pain Science and Healing, Science-Backed Education

The Science Behind Why Glute Activation is Important

Glute activation has been a buzz word in the fitness community for a while now. What is being referred to as glute activation? Why is it important? And is it…

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deep breathing

August 29, 2023 · In: Pain Science and Healing, Science-Backed Education

Why Deep Breathing is Important for the Pelvic Floor

We’ve heard it before: deep breathing can help reduce stress, promote relaxation, and boost mood. But did you know its is also deeply intertwined with the pelvic floor? Deep breathing…

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balance exercises

August 22, 2023 · In: Movement, Strength for Resilience

5 Reasons Why Balance Exercises are Important for Runners

Balance exercises should be incorporated into every runner’s training regimen. Why? Because if you were to take a snapshot of yourself running, you would notice that it essentially is a…

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groin stiffness and pain

August 15, 2023 · In: Body Region Support, Hip, Science-Backed Education

7 Possible Causes of Groin Stiffness and Pain

Groin stiffness sounds pretty straightforward…tightness in the inner thigh. Sometimes it can be painful. What happens if it feels like its pinching too? Ever think, “Well I didn’t exactly do…

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sciatica symptoms

August 8, 2023 · In: Pain Science and Healing, Science-Backed Education

Sciatica Symptoms? Try This and Feel Better

If you are experiencing sciatica symptoms, this may involve changes in sensation including pins and needles, numbness, and tingling. To learn more about different causes of sciatica, head to this…

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low back pain when squatting

July 25, 2023 · In: Pain Science and Healing, Science-Backed Education

Consistent Low Back Pain: How It’s Treated to Give You Peace of Mind

When you’re dealing with consistent low back pain, lasting for three moths or more, it can be challenging without knowing a single, identifiable cause. The most common causes of chronic…

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Meet Tera

Meet Tera
hi, i'm tera!

I'm a licensed Doctor of Physical Therapy and the founder of PT Complete. I built the Regulate and Rebuild Method because most people trying to get back into their body after chronic pain are told to either push through it or rest completely, and neither one actually works. I write from the clinic and from my own body, since I'm working through my own chronic pain story right now, too. When I'm not working, you'll probably find me managing the regular chaos of life or curled up with coffee and a dessert I can't seem to quit.

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Featured Posts

how to start exercising again after a chronic pain flare

How to Start Exercising Again After a Pain Flare or Long Layoff (Without Setting Yourself Back)

woman experiencing pain that moves around the body, chronic pain explained

Pain That Moves Around Your Body: What Your Nervous System Is Trying to Tell You

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What Real Rest Actually Looks Like for Chronic Pain (And Why Sleeping More Isn’t the Whole Answer)

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@teravaughn22

terasandona

Chronic pain coaching for high-achieving women
Licensed DPT • Regulate first, rebuild second, then layer
👇🏻 Free nervous system workbook

You don’t actually want to be pain free. You want You don’t actually want to be pain free.

You want to walk further without thinking about it. Get down on the ground with your kid and back up again. Sit through a full dinner without shifting in your seat. Sleep through the night. Say yes to the spontaneous thing.

Maybe the goal was never zero pain. Maybe it was a body you don’t have to negotiate with.

That’s the shift I want you to make, from tracking pain scores to tracking your actual life, whether you can do the things you want to do, not just how much it hurts while you do them.

The order still matters to get there. Regulate first, rebuild the strength, then the habits hold.

Send this to the friend who needs to hear it’s not just about the pain.
Honeymoon photo dump incoming!! 🏝️☀️🌊👙⛱️🍾💍❤️ Honeymoon photo dump incoming!! 🏝️☀️🌊👙⛱️🍾💍❤️
I stood in front of my fridge for an hour. Couldn’ I stood in front of my fridge for an hour. Couldn’t decide, not even sure I was hungry. Just stuck. And one decision felt like the hardest thing I’d been asked to do all day, even though I’d made decisions all day long without a second thought.

I kept wondering what was wrong with me. Turns out, nothing was.

Fight, flight, and freeze are all protective responses your nervous system reaches for under threat. Fight and flight speed you up. They give you the energy to push back or get away. Freeze does the opposite. It shuts things down because there’s nothing left to fight with or run from.

That fridge moment wasn’t a discipline problem. It was my nervous system running out before dinner could be decided and made.

Freeze doesn’t get talked about as much as fight or flight, but it’s just as real and it shows up in the most ordinary places…a kitchen, a closed laptop, a decision that shouldn’t be hard and somehow is.

If you’ve had a night like this, you already know exactly what I’m talking about.

If this sounds familiar, tell me in the comments, or text someone who’d know exactly what I mean.
I reached for the weights I used to lift before my I reached for the weights I used to lift before my brain caught up.

It took half a second in my garage. The half second was the moment I realized I couldn’t even lift the dumbbell. I registered the gap between the body I used to train and the body I have now.

I dialed back down. Instead of the 30s, I picked up the 10s, and I did the work that fits what my system can absorb right now.

Nobody warns you that the rebuilding work has these moments built into it. The half-seconds when your old identity reaches for a load your current capacity can’t carry, and you mistake the disappointment for evidence that you are failing.

Your current body is not a smaller version of the one you used to have. It is a different body, doing real work, on a different scale.

You can train this one.

Tag the woman who’s still reaching for the weight she used to lift. Remind her she’s not alone.
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