soma system® for Our Patients Katherine Hartsell, PTA We introduced soma system® to our patients at Boston Sports Medicine (click here for the introductory blog about soma system® self bodywork if you missed it). We have integrated this intervention into our treatments for patients that need and want to take their self-care “beyond foam rolling.”…
by Katherine Hartsell, PTA If you have been a patient at Boston Sports Medicine, you have likely noticed that we regularly utilize our full-length mirrors for various assessments and during therapeutic exercise. On a fairly frequent basis, patients will interact with the visual support reluctantly, or sometimes avoid it all together. Having trained rigorously in…
by Katherine Hartsell, PTA Service Your Stride: The Runner’s Edition The Starting Line As human beings, we each have our own idiosyncratic movement profiles shaped by years of activities and habits that our tissues have adapted around. You can note these personal flares through the observation of various runners. But look past these personalized expressions,…
by Katherine Hartsell, PTA Boston Sports Medicine plays an active role in the dynamic and ever-evolving field of physical therapy. As committed healthcare providers we constantly pursue learning opportunities, and we seek discoveries that help advance our practice. Alongside our personal development, we also hunt for valuable resources to extend to patients so that the…
Soma System for Balance Katherine Hartsell, PTA Like many healthcare providers, I am well aware that limited time with my patients cannot create lasting improvement without awareness, alignment and self-care strategies integrated beyond our brief partnership. As important as manual treatment is, my manual skills are only applicable in the clinic. All patients need education…
Third in a planned series on ballet By Katherine Hartsell, PTA As a physical therapist assistant and yoga teacher, I am both invested in and inspired by the continuing education opportunities that come my way. This past weekend I began a Dance Medicine Practicum, joining a diverse, intimate group of movement specialists dedicated to the…
Second in a planned series on ballet. by Katherine Hartsell, PTA If you are sitting to read this article, please momentarily stand up. Glance down at the habitual stance you have assumed and note if your body relates to the Degas Little Dancer sculpture in the photograph above. If you are a dancer, you are…
Restorative Yoga Therapeutics deliberately contrasts the active state of Western culture. This quiet, still, and safe practice is designed to relieve the mind and body from physical, mental and emotional stress. Acknowledging the governing role the nervous system plays in health and well-being, this specific style of yoga is custom-crafted, for each practitioner, to promote…
First in a planned series about ballet by Katherine Hartsell, PTA Ballet is a form of dance that aims to appear graceful and natural, but masked beneath the beauty of this art form is physically demanding work that requires precision, strength, integrated flexibility and control. Central to it all is a concept called turnout. This…
by Katherine Hartsell, PTA The patients that come to physical therapy all bring unique experiences of pain with them. Many people step through the door hoping to eradicate pain, naturally assuming that the presence of pain is bad and that the absence of pain is good. However, like most things in body, pain is not…