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chronic pain

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

August 18, 2026 · In: Pain Science and Healing, Science-Backed Education

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

When pain appears to move around your body, it’s rarely a new injury. A nervous system that’s been on alert in one area long enough can activate nearby regions and…

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woman taking a planned rest break while pacing an activity with chronic pain

July 21, 2026 · In: Habits for Healing, Holistic Self-Care and Sustainable Healing

Pacing for Chronic Pain: The Skill No One Teaches You (And How to Actually Start)

Pacing uses time and effort, not pain, as your guide for activity. Instead of pushing until symptoms force a stop, you break tasks into smaller windows with built-in rest, so…

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woman managing push crash cycle chronic pain fatigue

July 14, 2026 · In: Nervous System Regulation

The Push-Crash Cycle: Why High-Achieving Women Keep Falling Into It

The push-crash cycle happens when a nervous system already running close to its threshold gets pushed past capacity on a good day, then pays for it days later. It isn’t…

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woman practicing nervous system regulation for chronic pain

July 7, 2026 · In: Nervous System Regulation

Nervous System Regulation Isn’t Working? What to Do Next

She’s done the breathwork, downloaded the workbook, sat through the guided meditations, tried the cold plunge her sister swears by, and read every article on calming an overactive nervous system….

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Hardwood floor flat lay with weights, a jump rope, a yoga mat, and a water bottle, representing the tools used for rebuilding strength after a chronic pain flare

June 30, 2026 · In: Movement, Strength for Resilience

Strong Looks Different Now: Rebuilding Strength After a Chronic Pain Flare

I was standing in front of the dumbbells in my garage gym a few weeks ago and I caught myself reaching for the weight I used to lift without thinking….

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Woman in athletic wear sitting on a yoga mat, pausing rather than working out, representing rest as part of consistency

June 23, 2026 · In: Movement, Moving Without Flaring

Can’t Stay Consistent With Exercise? It’s Not a Discipline Problem

It can feel discouraging to keep starting over with exercise. You commit, you build momentum, you string together a few weeks of showing up, and then something gives. A bad…

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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

woman pausing in her car before a holiday family gathering while managing chronic pain

Holiday Family Stress and Your Nervous System: Why Gatherings Can Trigger Fight-or-Flight

woman deciding how to reply to a holiday invitation while managing chronic pain

How to Say No During the Holidays With Chronic Pain and Handle the Guilt

woman testing a gentle movement baseline during a slow walk

What is Gentle Movement? (And Why Most Advice Gets It Wrong)

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@teravaughn22

terasandona

Chronic pain coaching • Ditch the push-crash loop
Licensed DPT • Regulate first, rebuild second, then layer
👇🏻 Free nervous system workbook

I currently do not squat, lunge, or deadlift. I g I currently do not squat, lunge, or deadlift.

I get why everyone defaults to these movements. They’re efficient, they build strength, and if your body can tolerate them, there’s nothing wrong with having them in a program.

For a long time, I assumed that if I pushed through it, my body would eventually catch up. That’s not how it works when you’re dealing with chronic pain. Pushing through leads to a setback fast.

Your back is tied directly into what your hips and legs are doing. Careful form can only take it so far out of the equation, especially when weakness is involved.

A few months ago, I was doing bodyweight versions of these same exercises at home. Every time, it aggravated my back. So I stepped back to isolated machines instead.

Here’s what made it click. I couldn’t even tolerate a leg extension machine at 30lbs. I weigh about 120. There was no version of me safely squatting my own bodyweight and that’s still true right now.

Isolated machines do exactly what they’re built for. They isolate one muscle group and take my back out of the equation so I can still train and progressively add weight at a pace that’s safe for my body.

If a compound lift keeps interfering with your back, this is where I’d start looking instead.

Send this to the friend who keeps getting told squats are non-negotiable.
It was a Sunday and I woke up feeling good, better It was a Sunday and I woke up feeling good, better than I expected after lifting the day before. I went on a 40 minute walk, did laundry and vacuumed, and had a home leg workout planned for later.

Then around early afternoon, my energy tanked. I could still putter around the house, but the thought of starting that workout felt like more than I had left.

If you’ve had energy for everything except the one thing you planned, I know how much that one can sting.

Looking back, it was hot, I’d barely eaten, and I hadn’t slept well most of that week. Each of those can pull from the same energy you’d use to train, and that day, I had all three. What felt like a motivation problem was my body showing me what the day had already used up.

So I moved the workout to Monday instead of forcing it (and let myself have the day).

Send this to the friend who feels guilty every time a planned workout doesn’t happen.

#chronicpainlife #chronicfatiguesyndrome #lowenergy #paceyourself #functionalcapacity
Nothing about chopping vegetables is urgent and my Nothing about chopping vegetables is urgent and my jaw was still clenched like it was.

If you just checked and your teeth were touching, you’re not doing anything wrong. When you’ve been running on alert for a while, your nervous system can start treating ordinary moments like urgent ones, and your jaw braces right along with it while you scroll, answer emails, or cook dinner.

Over time that can stack into headaches, jaw pain, and neck tension.

You don’t have to fix it the moment you catch it. Right now the goal is to notice it in the everyday moments it tends to hide, so it stops being something your body does without you knowing.

Save this and check your jaw the next time you open your inbox.

#jawclenching #jawtension #nervoussystemhealth #stressandpain #chronicpainawareness
Happy 1st anniversary to my other half 💕 Getting Happy 1st anniversary to my other half 💕

Getting to relive the best day ever, reminiscing through these photos, and visiting our favorite place is more than I could ask for. Can’t wait for many more of these years to come ❤️
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