Patients

We are excited to announce a Free “PRI Breathing Mechanics in COVID Times” Webinar Series beginning next week. We have been receiving phone calls and emails with questions on how the science and techniques of PRI can be applied to COVID-19 patients. What do we recommend, and why? Well, if you have been wondering the same, we will discuss all of this and more over the next several weeks on this webinar series.

As Ron discussed earlier this week in our Zoom Director’s Meeting, he feels like he has come full circle, that is 360 degrees from where he started almost 40 years ago; and where the profession of physical therapy started. Many of the first non-military patients that were treated in 1918, when the Women’s Physical Therapeutic Association was started, were children who were having difficulty breathing because of the Polio epidemic that ramped up in the United States in 1910. Chest physical therapy was well recognized by 1948 and physical therapists and physiotherapists around the world were taking responsible measures and opportunities to ‘restore lung function’ after acquiring an illness or after surgery.

In more recent years, several studies have questioned the use of intermittent positive pressure breathing (IPPB) machines and have caused many respiratory therapy departments to look to chest physical therapy as a replacement for IPPB. Respiration, ventilation and breathing are all influenced by our postural positions and patterns we are in at the time we are exchanging gas. Therefore, breathing mechanics are postural mechanics. The Postural Restoration Institute’s (PRI) concepts and scientific applications, are today used by many health care providers who collaborate with other disciplines that are mindful of the importance of keeping oral airway and lung airways open. This interdisciplinary practice reflects our early colleague’s effort in taking responsibility for the restoration of lung function through human mechanical intervention, prior to or following events that challenged lung airway position and drainage.  

Postural positioning is necessary for postural drainage, and the importance of coupling proper breathing mechanics with positioning enhances lung perfusion, expansion, and compliance to help fight off respiratory illnesses such as COVID-19 and to help acquire lung and chest wall function that speed up recovery following COVID or other viral acquisitions. This is why we are so excited to share PRI concepts, considerations and advice on how to keep your chest and lungs mechanically efficient and physiologically effective.

Just yesterday, a good friend and colleague, Cheryl Chase, PT, PRC emailed us and shared an old book that she pulled out of her desk titled “Postural Drainage and Respiratory Control, 3rd Ed”, which was published in 1971. Her colleague is going to provide an in-service on postural drainage, something that all physical therapy education programs cover, yet many PT’s have never clinically used. In the direct words of Cheryl, “I am so saddened by our current pandemic crisis, but also delighted that this current situation creates opportunities for new dialogues. It seems strangely serendipitous to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the Institute.” This message truly hit home. This is not how we imagined we would be celebrating our 20th anniversary. Yet, in some ways, it is blessing because with all of the messages and questions we have been receiving, we know that we can contribute to this opportunity for new dialogues amongst the general public and across multiple disciplines.

So, we invite you, and your friends and family to join us for this free webinar series, happening every Tuesday at 6pm CT (starting May 5th). Invite someone who has always wanted to know more about PRI, or maybe those who have questioned the “why” behind your use of Postural Restoration®. During this pandemic, we have witnessed humanity helping each other more than ever, and we are hopeful that the dialogues we can spread through this webinar will help thousands across the world.

*If you miss any of the weekly live webinars, they will also be posted to our website, so you can go back and view them later.

PRI Breathing Mechanics in COVID Times
Tuesdays at 6pm CT
CLICK HERE to register to join the webinar

*Pre-registration with your name and email will be required each week

Posted May 1, 2020 at 3:22PM

“A Guide To Awareness & Modification Of Habitual Patterns Of Postural Behavior”
We are excited to start of the 2020 calendar year by making progress on one of our newest resources. This patient guide, throughout its 16 pages, will highlight activities in our daily lives which can be modified to restore more appropriate postural behavior. As anyone who has taken a PRI course knows, these positions often turn into patterned dysfunction and compensation. This guide aims to bring awareness to our unilateral lives, and restore alternation while performing our most common daily activities.

Most of these activities can be categorically derived into common PRI positioning. This guide will dive deeper into those positions and the associated behaviors performed within them. For example, walking, talking, sleeping, eating, as well as many other “living” considerations and of course at its core BREATHING! Not only are we excited to be compiling these activities into one patient guide, but we will also be adding several new considerations and recommended activities to the PRI Living section of our website to further build on the concepts within this guide.


This patient guide will be avalible for purchase in various quantities and packaging options later this year! We are hoping that it will help you as a practitioner clearly communicate some of the basic positional considerations of our science with your patients and clients, and it will also include an available marketing opportunity unique to your business on the back cover! Stay up to date with this and other projects, updates and course in reviews on our blog, via our social media accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and our quarterly newsletters throughout the year ahead.

Posted January 9, 2020 at 5:53PM

We are excited to introduce SYMBA! (Synchronized Movement of Bilateral Asymmetry) As many of you may be familiar with the Pelvis Models that are frequently utilized within the PRI community, you may also begin to see the use of our newest collaboration with the team at SAWBONES. This articulated Ribcage is fully functional in providing visual feedback to your patients or clients and allows many PRI concepts to be demonstrated. We have been working over the past several months to develop this model which allows movement in all three planes!

The photos Included below show some of the many prototypes that were created between our staff here at the Institute and the team of engineers at SAWBONES in Vashon, WA.

This image shows the initial prototype (Left) which quickly progressed to the smaller size.

Sizing and designing of this model required creating a new mold to achieve the desired dimensions which was made from a newly created resin that allows the model to bend and rotate. Initially the spinal column was in a solid state and a new mold and material was again designed to allow flexion and extension of the spine to occur. The team at SAWBONES is top notch and although many of these requirements were difficult to achieve they never gave up and continued designing until these outcomes were met.

SYMBA, is available now!

For more Information CLICK HERE.

To see all available Tri-Planar Models CLICK HERE

Posted August 13, 2018 at 8:41PM

We recently received a copy of PRT Jessica Kisiel’s newly released book Winning The Injury Game – Alignment Strategies for Healing and Performance, and wanted to share the news with PRI Nation. Below are a few words from Jessica about her story and inspiration for writing the book.

“I was diagnosed with severe hip osteoarthritis (OA) at the peak of my professional mountain biking career. The devastating pain in my hip and back made it impossible for me to cycle comfortably. Upon receiving an orthopedic surgeon’s advice to prolong a hip replacement as long as possible, I set out to find an alternative path to healing. Winning the Injury Game tells the story of my journey from pain and desperation back to hope and competitive athletics. This book shares the lessons I learned as a patient and coach, providing a mix of personal and client experiences with professional knowledge. I am happy to say that I have not had that hip replacement, and I still enjoy playing a variety of sports. The aim of Winning the Injury Game is to help you to do the same. You can overcome your injury—and you can confidently return to pain-free activity for the long-term!”

Do you have patients or clients who want to learn more about their pain and the process of recovery from someone who has experienced what they are going through, and has an understanding of the importance of alignment, balance, wellness, and performance? If so, you should check out this personal and inspiring book, which includes many references to Postural Restoration®.

Jessica is offering a 10% discount to PRI providers, which can be purchased on her website The Pain Free Athlete, using the code PRI10 . PRI does not sell or benefit from the sale of this book.

Posted January 23, 2018 at 10:52PM

I was encouraged to share my experiences as a Right Torsion patient who was repositioned by Ron Hruska at the Cervical Revolution seminar in NYC this past September.

I've been studying and using PRI on myself (and some clients) for the past three years. I had been able to get my pelvis neutral, but I was never able to get my upper body completely neutral, despite working on it consistently.

I initially approached Ron at the Impingement and Instability course in April 2015, in regards to the tinnitus I've had since the age of 14. He took a look at my teeth and noticed my right sided cross-bite. He told me I'd probably need dental/orthodontic work but that I should come to the Cervical Revolution course in September.

*I'd like to make it clear that Ron didn't say my tinnitus was caused by the cross-bite. My understanding was that it was possible that jaw/ear canal misalignment could contribute to tinnitus, but he wasn't guaranteeing it.

On the first day of the CR course, Ron told me that I'd be his model for a Right Torsion patient for the class to see, but that he'd use me on Sunday. I was very excited by this news. However, he did put me through some PRI tests on Saturday in front of the class, and I was clearly a PEC, and I couldn't rotate my head left, nor sidebend left. He then gave me a mouthguard to wear and told me to walk around the room. Upon my first few steps my right leg buckled and I got quite disoriented. My PRI tests didn't clear up completely, but I was disoriented for about an hour afterwards.

On Sunday Ron called me up again, had the entire class inspect my cross-bite, and then repositioned me using Standing Alternating Reciprocal Cranial Expansion while wearing the mouthguard.

All my PRI tests cleared up immediately. It was quite an experience.

Here are my other observations over the past month:

1. I am able to find my left ischial seat without having to consciously do so.
2. I was able to feel me right medial arch and big right toe while walking without having to consciously do so.
3. My chin straightened out (it had been pointing right). I now have left molar to molar contact. Previously I'd have to move my jaw to the left to get contact on the left.
4. I'm pretty sure my voice sounds different although no one else seems to have noticed. I was unaware of the effect that repositioning could have on voice when I noticed the difference, so I don't think I was engaging in any type of confirmation bias. I had one client tell me I looked different, though she couldn't figure out why.
5. My eyesight improved. I only wear reading glasses (1.5, I think). While still adjusting to being repositioned, I glanced at the manual and my notes and noticed that the print in both appeared larger, and I could actually read both without my glasses. Neither were perfectly clear, but I could read them (my notes on the green paper was actually more clear). I can now read the newspaper without my glasses as long as there is sufficient light. Natural sunlight is the best. Fluorescent light is the worst and I have to squint. I'm still wearing the reading glasses and have been encouraged to do so by an optometrist who is part of the PRI Google group. However, it's nice to know that I can actually read something if I don't have my glasses with me.
6. I tend to feel my left glute medius more easily in PRI exercises. I used to really struggle to feel it.

Unfortunately, my upper body does not always stay repositioned. My footwear that I use for one of my jobs is less than optimal, and I can feel it in my left mid-back when I'm going PEC again. On the other hand, I almost never feel myself going PEC when I am wearing my Asics Foundations. But it is easy enough to reposition with the mouthguard and the aforementioned technique when I get home.

So, those are my experiences. Hope you find them useful or interesting.

Neal Hallinan
CSCS

Posted November 5, 2015 at 9:41PM
Categories: Courses Patients

Over the past couple weeks, a few PT's from across the country have emailed me this story from the New York Times Health and Science Blog.The title of the story "Think Like a Doctor: The Gymnast’s Big Belly Solved" has caught the attention of several viewers. The final diagnosis involves a faulty diaphragm and pelvic floor. If you find this case interesting, you might be interested in attending our Pelvis Restoration course!

Also, a reminder.....if you find an interesting article or news story and would like to share it with other PRI colleagues, you can now submit an entry with the link to the article on the Community page of our new website!

Posted September 19, 2013 at 2:34PM
Categories: Articles Patients

A course attendee who has been practicing PRI for years sent us this email from a patient he recently saw…

“I just wanted to again express my sincere thanks for your help with my back issues!  I continue to make progress each week but most notably with a couple items.  Driving for an extended period of time has killed my back for the past several years.  My last trip which was 6 hours one way was the most comfortable in many years.  Also, my right calf (since I ruptured my right achilles about 15 years ago) has looked like it belonged to a child despite much physical therapy and work on my own to bring it back over the course of time.  I finally gave up on it a few years ago.  It has fired more and developed more muscle tone in the last 5 weeks than at any point since I blew it out.  This may not sound like a lot but to me it has been life transforming.  I will forever be indebted to you both.”

Posted November 2, 2011 at 7:06PM
Categories: Patients

Ron taught Cervical-Cranio-Mandibular Restoration in Loveland, Colorado this past weekend.  The great people at Rebound Sports and Physical Therapy gave him this x-ray image.  What a great picture of left anterior innominate rotation with compensatory left femoral acetabular external rotation! 

Posted October 3, 2011 at 9:02PM
Categories: Patients

We received this from a therapist practicing PRI in Colorado:

“Hi all, I wanted to send along some information that I was amazed by.  I have integrated the PRI concepts into my practice over the past year and have been thrilled with the results that I have seen.

I recently treated a 13 year old female that came to me with right sided low back pain and a 17 degree scoliotic curve.  After working with her over the course of 5-6 sessions, she returned to her M.D. for a follow up and x-rays, only to discover that her scoliotic curve decreased to 14 degrees.  She has overall decreased pain and improved alignment.

Thank you for giving us the tools to help people like this!  It makes my job so much more rewarding to be able to effectively treat patients.”

Posted August 19, 2011 at 1:10PM
Categories: Patients

Check out this video of Ron Hruska working with a 23 y/o female who is neutral, but still has low back pain secondary to the inability to find AF IR in stance with her abdominals engaged.  To learn PRI non-manual integration techniques, such as the one prescribed to this patient, join us at PRI for our annual 4-day Advanced Integration course!

Note: She will be performing the above technique on both sides for her home program.

Posted August 4, 2011 at 1:28PM
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