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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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Woman with chronic pain considering whether to exercise

June 9, 2026 · In: Pain Science and Healing, Science-Backed Education

How Exercise Helps Chronic Pain Without Making It Worse

Exercise helps chronic pain by activating the body’s built-in pain-quieting pathways, gradually rebuilding the tissue’s capacity to handle load and giving the nervous system new information about what feels safe….

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hip pain when walking

March 3, 2026 · In: Body Region Support, Hip, Science-Backed Education

Hip Pain When Walking: Understanding Diagnoses, Mechanics, and Tolerance

Hip pain when walking is a common complaint, especially for people who stay active or spend long hours on their feet. For some, hip pain starts during workouts, lifting, or…

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patellofemoral pain syndrome

February 3, 2026 · In: Body Region Support, Knee, Science-Backed Education

Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome Explained: Why Knee Pain Lingers Without Injury

Patellofemoral pain syndrome is one of the most common causes of knee pain, yet it is also one of the most misunderstood. Many people experience persistent anterior knee pain that…

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tissue healing timeline

June 24, 2025 · In: Pain Science and Healing, Science-Backed Education

A Guide to the Tissue Healing Timeline

When you experience an injury, the journey from initial pain to full recovery can seem daunting. What we don’t see or recognize is the process of tissue healing. This is…

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tommy john surgery

May 27, 2025 · In: Injuries and Surgeries, Science-Backed Education

What is the Recovery Time After Tommy John Surgery?

There is no doubt that Tommy John surgery is on the rise, especially within the baseball community. In 2024, nearly 36% of all active MLB pitchers have undergone Tommy John…

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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

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 ❤️
I knew going in I wouldn’t make all eighteen holes I knew going in I wouldn’t make all eighteen holes. I could barely handle light weights at the gym. So the day before, I spent about an hour stretching and doing soft tissue work to go in as loose as possible. And I decided ahead of time that I’d stop when my body told me to.

Around hole six, I started taking shots only with a clean lie and skipping the rest. A few holes later, I’d set up over the ball and feel my whole stance bracing, so I’d stand there and breathe for a good ten seconds until some of that tension let go. Somewhere between hole ten and twelve, I called it.

That week of recovery wasn’t a failure. It was the cost of doing something my body hadn’t done in nine months. Stopping when I did is a big part of why it stayed sore instead of turning into a full pain flare.

If you’ve ever said yes to something you love knowing your body would make you pay for it later, you know that math.

Next time, pick your stopping signal before you start, so you’re not trying to decide in the middle of it.

Send this to the friend who’d get it without you explaining.

#golfwithbackpain #womenwhogolf #chronicbackpain #pacingyourself #chronicpainawareness
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