Who We Help
Post-Surgical Recovery
No referral needed
You don’t need a doctor’s referral to start physical therapy in North Dakota.
The surgery is one half of it
Surgery changes the structure. Rehabilitation changes what you can do with it, and that part is not automatic.
Where your surgeon has set a protocol, Alison works to it. Where there is judgement to exercise, that judgement comes from watching how you are actually moving rather than from the number of weeks since the date.
Patient education is a major part of the rehabilitation process. Alison helps you understand your surgery, what improvements to expect, common symptoms that may occur, and what to do if your progress slows or something does not feel right. Your questions do not have to wait until your next surgeon visit — Alison is there to guide you through each step of your recovery and help you get the results you want.
Alison achieved the status of Orthopedic Clinical Specialist (OCS) in 2017, recognized by the American Physical Therapy Board of Specialties.
Bring your surgical notes or protocol to the first visit if you have them.
Symptoms
Common after an operation
Draft descriptions of everyday experience, not diagnostic criteria. Requires clinical review.
Stiffness that is worse than you expected
Uncertainty about what you are allowed to do yet
A joint that will not go as far as it should by now
Confidence that has not returned with the strength
Swelling that comes back after a busy day
A protocol you were handed but not talked through
What the first visit looks like
Alison listens first
What started it, what makes it worse, and what you have stopped doing because of it.
A movement assessment
Not only where it hurts. How you load it and what is compensating.
A plan you leave with
Hands-on treatment and specific exercises, not a follow-up appointment and nothing else.
Related to this
Surgery done. Now the work.
Call or text 701-318-4731, Monday to Friday, 7am to 6pm.