Clinicians

Earlier this month, at our annual Advanced Integration course, we presented the PRI Director’s Dedication Award to two very deserving individuals who have had such a positive impact on our Institute. The PRI Directors Dedication Award was established in 2012 to recognize individuals’ ongoing dedication to their advancement in PRI. Susan Henning and Joe Belding were the very first recipients of the PRI Director’s Dedication Award, back in 2012. And this year, we were so honored to present the PRI Directors Award to two of their colleagues, Lisa Mangino and Jean Massé. To date, we have presented this award to 20 individuals and an award recognition plaque, which is pictured above, is displayed at the Postural Restoration Institute® in Lincoln, Nebraska, recognizing each of the PRI Directors Dedication Award recipients.

Lisa Mangino and Jean Massé are physical therapists and colleagues, in Chapel Hill, NC. Lisa began her PRI journey 14 years ago, taking her first course (Myokinematic Restoration) in 2009 at the University of Duke, where she was employed. Not long after, in 2010, Jean Massé, who was influenced by co-workers and PRC therapists Susan Henning and Joe Belding at Advance Physical Therapy, completed her first PRI course. She went on to complete PRC credentialing in 2013.  

Jean is a nationally recognized Board-Certified Orthopedic Clinical Specialist (OCS) through the American Physical Therapy Association, since 1999. She continues to be a regular speaker at the UNC Chapel Hill Department of Physical Therapy on the subject of scoliosis and chronic pain. 

She and Lisa obtained the preliminary C1 and Advanced C2 Schroth scoliosis certification in 2013. They have been treating young and older people with scoliosis since.

Lisa completed PRC credentialing in 2014, the same year that she began working at Advance Physical Therapy in Chapel Hill, with Susan, Joe and Jean. And, they have all worked alongside each other for the past 10 years. 

Lisa’s passion is working with children, and as a pediatric therapist at Advance Physical Therapy, and the University of Duke Medical Center, she has touched the lives of so many children and families in her career. Her dedication to treating the child with neurological impairments led her to pursue certification in Neuro-Developmental Treatment (NDT), in 2009. Lisa obtained national recognition with her certification as a Board-Certified Pediatric Clinical Specialist (PCS) by the American Physical Therapy Association, in 2010. 

Over the years, Lisa and Jean have attended 10+ Advanced Integration courses. In 2017, they began teaching day 4 of the Advanced Integration course, on Curvature of the Spine, alongside colleague and mentor Susan Henning. And it was such an honor to have them here teaching day 4 of this course again this year!

In addition to their involvement with day 4 of the Advanced Integration course, they also co-authored Chapter 7 titled “Postural Restoration: A Tri-Planar Asymmetrical Framework for Understanding, Assessing, and Treating Scoliosis and Other Spinal Dysfunctions”, in the InTech open access book, “Innovations in Spinal Deformities and Postural Disorders”, back in 2017 with Susan Henning. And a couple years later, Lisa, Jean and Susan founded STRATER Scoliosis Institute, where they are dedicated to the education of physical therapy professionals for safe and effective treatment of scoliosis. Over the past 5 years, they have worked closely with PRI to receive permission to teach PRI copyrighted material in the STRATER level 1 and 2 courses. Katie Piraino, who is a PRC therapist, attended the STRATER level 2 course last month and emailed me shortly after. Her exact words were, “I just took the Strater Scoliosis 2 course. Only 15 participants, there should be 100’s they are so good!”

In addition to this dedication and involvement with education related to PRI and scoliosis, Lisa has spent hundreds, if not thousands of hours on course development over the past several years, including the former PRI Integration for Pediatrics affiliate course, and today’s Human Evolution course, which was taught for the first time in September 2022….and although it’s a relatively new course, it is already catching fire with PRINation.

In 2020, Lisa was also invited as an adjunct faculty member at High Point University, to teach a semester long selective course for Physical Therapy students titled, “Postural Restoration® - An Overview of Asymmetrical Human Movement”.

Congratulations to Lisa and Jean on such a deserving award! 

Posted December 27, 2023 at 4:22PM
Categories: Clinicians

I had the great pleasure of teaching Myokinematic Restoration in Lincoln, NE on August 11th and 12th. It was two days of soaking in an attitude of gratitude to be able to discuss something I am passionate about to a worldwide audience. United States, Australia, China, and Canada were represented with clinicians spread out all over the county from Florida to Washington and everywhere in between.

I also had the great privilege of attending the musical Hamilton in Lincoln with my PRI Family on Friday night. Hamilton's message of hope, perseverance, and coming together resonated well with the Myokinematic themes of persevering through our right biasness and getting appropriate muscles to come together to balance our imbalances.

We had a fantastic in person audience who didn't want to loose their "Shot" at learning and appreciating patterns and positions. Nicolas took a break from his final semester of PT school in Florida to remind us the learning is "Non-Stop" and gave us a great student perspective on the material. When he becomes a Physical Therapist in December he will remember to never be "Satisfied" unless he is integrating test and retest principles of A-B-A evidence based practice.

Michael attended his 14th PRI class and gave us a fantastic historical perspective as he has known Ron Hurska since 1994, knowing that "You'll Be Back" for more as we are traveling on our PRI journeys. Matt, a former employee of the institute and Ron's "Right Hand Man", spent time with us before he begins his role as a P.A. next week in Omaha.


 
We had an absolute gift in Allison who was our primary avatar for demonstration. She helped us learn that if you don't feel the "Burn" of a left IC Adductor and left anterior glute med you may be "Helpless" managing left stance phase of gait with a pathological left hip capsule. She was able to "Blow Us All Away" by getting a 4/5 Hruska Adduction Lift score at the end of Day 2 by being such a great PRI demonstrator for the camera.

Gavin brought high level thought process and questions and taught the class to "Say No to This" overactive right adductor we often deal with. Cas's left hip wanted to be in "The Room Where it Happens" of left AF IR to assist in reducing torque at the knee, while Joshua was excited for "What Comes Next?" as it relates to AF position and shoulder function and control for his baseball players at Baylor.

Chase and Kyle were kind enough to sit up front and "Wait For It" until Sunday afternoon for treatment techniques based off the Hruska Adduction Lift Test so that their neurological patterning and need for left stance and right swing could "Stay Alive".

Wyatt thought "That Would Be Enough" after the facilitation techniques, but was kind enough to "Take a Break" at the end of Day 2 in order to demonstrate a proper Plantar Flexor inhibition in the All 4 Belly Lift Walk.

In the end, I think all of us realized that the "World Was Wide Enough" for more knowledge and integration of PRI concepts, appreciating asymmetries, patterns, and positions. "Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Tells Your Story" may depend on our ability to efficiently assist our patients and clients in managing out right and left sides of our body.

Big thanks to everyone attending the live stream and contributing to the discussion with their questions and attentiveness. Special shout out and thanks to RJ for running such a smooth two days juggling the technology, answering and facilitating questions, and being such a positive influence for the Institute.

Posted August 23, 2023 at 2:37PM
Categories: Courses Clinicians Science

Last weekend, August 5-6, at Hidef Physical Therapy in Bellevue, WA, I had the pleasure of teaching Postural Respiration to a wide range of professionals that included a chiropractic student, physical therapists, LMT's, strength and conditioning professionals and an osteopathic physician that wanted to learn more about respiration, neurology and biomechanics.


Every PRI course that is presented is always different in terms of questions asked and what is discovered during demonstration and lab.  For example, often after re-positioning a pelvis on Day 1 with non-manual techniques, the student  will become immediately neutral to the "oohs and awes" of the course attendees.  The PRI magic seems almost easy and effortless with a technique that targets inhibition of the L AIC.
Since this course is an integrated approach to the treatment of patterned thoraco-abdominal pathomechanics, it is also likely that the PRI magic is not apparent on day 1 as the student being demonstrated on may not get neutral with any non-manual technique on Day 1 or even into the morning of Day 2.

 
This is where the process of following the guidelines on page 50 in the course manual come to life.  What if your best efforts with non-manual techniques don't seem to be making a difference clinically?  The roadmap then takes the whole group of students through a journey of applying manual techniques to create first a ZOA, then right apical chest wall expansion.  If after doing the right apical expansion or superior T-4 manual technique does not result if all of your tests turning negative, or you have limited cervical axial rotation to the left and especially a positive left apical expansion test, then you have a definitive Superior T-4 pathomechanical respiratory process.


In every course there is someone that is Superior T-4.  In this course the students that were the demonstratees were all Superior T-4.  Much to the instructor's relief they all became neutral after a subclavius  release and infraclavicular pump!  The most gratifying part is to walk the class through a process that they need to practice and apply clinically,  especially for the more complex cases that present to their offices.  Accessory muscle overuse, the over-reliance of end range lateralization, the inability to reciprocate and alternate side to side and especially being aware of delivery of airflow pressure sense into a chest wall for the purpose of neuro-respiratory, physiological and biomechanical variability is the heart and soul of this course.


Thank you to my most professional lab assistant Paige McNerthney, PT for all of your help this weekend and to all of the students who brought their "A" game of attention, focus and energy.  Thanks to Hidef for hosting Postural Respiration.

View Full Photo Album HERE!

Posted August 9, 2023 at 8:05PM
Categories: Courses Clinicians Science

Any time I get to teach in Lincoln, it always feels like a homecoming. It’s an honor to be able to teach at PRI and get to spend time with the PRI family. The group of attendees in person really embraced the idea of family. We had pelvic floor PTs, PT students from Regis University in Denver, strength and conditioning specialists from University of Nebraska, a chiropractor and a plethora of other PTs all uniting for the two days over Myokinematic Restoration. By the end of it, a sign up sheet had been passed around so they could all stay in touch. As an instructor, this was such a special thing to see.


We discussed the importance of determining position before facilitation; what a left anterior chain objectively presents as; the ability to determine a hip with some soft tissue pathology vs non pathology; and a host of treatment techniques to help these findings.


The online attendees had excellent questions and the lab times were fulfilled to the max because of the eagerness among the attendees. It was a great course and I look forward to my next time in Lincoln.

Posted April 20, 2023 at 2:38PM

Thank you Elizabeth Makous for the invitation to come to the Henry Mayo Fitness Center to present Pelvis Restoration this past weekend. Southern California saw snow, rain, and hail Friday and Saturday, but it didn't stop the quest for learning in this group!!!  

I truly enjoyed teaching this past weekend with this group of clinicians. The questions, attention to detail, and intellect was fabulous and assisted the whole class in learning the material. We went into the "weeds" to understand the pelvic inlet and outlet position influencing neuro-muscular need for inhibition and facilitation of muscle for ascension and descension of the respiratory and pelvic diaphragms. This is desired for internal compression and decompression for forward movement. This material can be complicated, but worth the journey for improved patient and client outcomes.

Loc, thank you for being an amazing lab assistant. Thank you to all the course attendees spending a weekend with PRI and learning new concepts and being open to them. Again, thank you to Henry Mayo Fitness and Elizabeth for hosting.

I should note--I did return home to Nebraska to blue skies, sunshine, and 60 degrees!!!

Posted March 7, 2023 at 5:49PM
Categories: Clinicians Courses Science

The evolution of the human being from an infant to an upright, alternating adult is a complicated and multifaceted, sequential, unstable, patterned process, requiring stages, challenges, and self-actualization for optimization.

From infants learning to roll, to toddlers walking behind a push toy, to a competent upright human walking down the stairs backwards (yes, backwards), we presented a 10-component, cumulative Postural Restoration Developmental Sensory Motor Sequence supported by 9 carefully chosen and explained Sensory Integration Principles that support attention to 7 Postural Restoration Developmental Processes. Incorporation of sensory awareness of these processes into the treatment of human beings, fortifies the sensorimotor outcomes that every parent, clinician, and human hopes to experience.

In front of an engaged audience of 7 in-person and a whopping 60 faces on the live stream, comprised of 17 PRC’s and 3 PRT’s, PT’s, ATC’s, personal trainers, massage therapists, an osteopath, an acupuncturist, a health coach, a yoga instructor, lots of familiar faces as well as welcomed new ones, from 9 different countries (Taiwan, Germany, Singapore, Ireland, Japan, France, Poland, Canada, and China), Ron Hruska and I presented the second offering of the Human Evolution course and the first live stream. We enjoyed the enlightening discussions fueled by insightful questions from the audience and I think it’s fair to say we ALL came away from the weekend with a little more to think about in our attempt to better understand the complexities of the developing human being.

‘Understanding how underlying developmental processing of information contributes to the development of sensory motor sequencing and the ‘sense of self’, will enable the caregiver to optimize the use of movement instabilities, without developing overdependence on the respiration or primitive adaptive motor ‘patterning’ for stability’ at any age.

Personally, I’d like to sincerely thank Ron Hruska for his gracious mentoring and for trusting me to deliver this complex and valuable information. (I could go on and on…) Further, Jen Platt was instrumental in assisting with content organization, publication, and is a technological whiz for ensuring we were on the same page, slide, and that the almost 100 videos came through clearly. RJ and Hannah were spectacular from behind the scenes and nothing short of enthusiastically supportive! THANK YOU!

Thanks to all of the attendees for your attention, contributions, thoughts, smiles and ‘thumbs up’ from zoom land. It sure was an honor, a timely opportunity and a very fulfilling experience to be with you all!

Until we meet or meet again….

Lisa

Posted January 24, 2023 at 5:39PM
Categories: Clinicians Courses Science

Divergent Physical Therapy and Wellness in Wellesley,MA just out of Boston proper was the location for Cervical Revolution on Oct. 22-23, 2022.  Cervical Revolution is the introduction to "top-down" PRI concepts of neurology especially autonomics and how the cervical spine at the atlas and occiput directs the cranium and ultimately occlusion. Since this is a complex system, there is also a connection on how occlusion and the cranium can also direct the entire body and all of it's postural and physiologic systems especially when the sphenoid becomes "fixed" and oriented while the rest of the axial skeleton compensates when in a pathologic state. The A/O runs the show until over-referencing with occlusal and cranial consequences drive pathomechanics.

 


What a great group and facility. Wellesley is a beautiful town and was surrounded by forested neighborhoods turning fall colors. Divergent is a state-of-the-art therapy and training center and lends itself to a perfect environment for learning.

This course was unique in that we had 7 PRC/PRT's that made for high level clinical discussions. There were students that were local from the east
coast as well as SoCal, Honolulu and even Alabama. Shout out to Alan, Cody and Paige for the long travels and especially Cody from Honolulu and a 10 hour flight. Neil Hallinan, PRT came up from  'Jersey and always has his expertise and knowledge that adds to the discussion. Thank you to Mike, Connor, Garrett and Cameron for providing their facility to all of us. Big thanks to Louise Kelley, DPT, PRC who brings energy, needed details and technique application to the course. And last but not least, thank you Karen Taylor-Soiles, PT, MA, PRC for providing a warm home, wonderful food and a seasoned provider's insight to the weekend. Louise and I are grateful to you and all in attendance.

Posted November 1, 2022 at 9:02PM
Categories: Courses Clinicians Science

No one could have chosen a better place than Alpine PT in Seattle to initiate my presentation of Cranial Resolution. Although the content of this extensively researched course remains the same, the institute is turning the delivery of the material over to a clinician, someone who has spent nearly four decades integrating the concepts behind this course into her practice. And, fortunately, the people attending this past rendition of the course in Seattle appeared to truly embrace this transition.

The evolution of the questions they asked and the comments they made over the weekend, from both the repeat and first-time attendees, reflected a progressive understanding of:


•    How postural compensations of the body relate to lateralized physical, physiological and psychological adaptations of the brain;
•    How oscillatory frequencies influence the ANS and, subsequently, the CNS;  
•    How poor pressure regulation can lead to dysafferentation and over-convergence of occlusion, hearing, sight, and sound production; and,
•    How, why, when and which non-manual techniques (and some manual techniques featured in the manual) can be used to influence these systems.


It was worth flying across the country, from the eastern seaboard of NC to the Pacific coast, to join Ron in teaching this course, even if the 3-hour time zone difference wreaked temporary havoc with my own ultradian rhythms. I met so many remarkable people: The owners of Alpine PT, Eli, Jeremiah and Murph, could not have been kinder, sharing local coffee and their local bridge troll. Eva, who works at Alpine, made an excellent lab specimen, allowing us to clearly demonstrate both the negative and positive effects biased nasal respiration has on autonomics. And having a dentist, Dr. Jason Pehling, present was such a plus since discussions of patients he shares with several of the local PRI therapists truly brought the course concepts to life. Brandon, Lucas, Paige and Matt all asked such insightful questions and Kevin, who spoke of how he planned to use the concepts from this course to treat crazed horses, were all wonderful to meet. And Kelsey, who took this course to be able to integrate the material into a fitness program she runs for clients with Parkinson’s Disease, touched my heart since it was through my extensive work with this population that I first discovered the role posture and pressure played in the dysfunctional oscillations that are associated with the development of dysautonomia, dystonia and dyskinesia. And, Zac, who gave me the biggest confidence boost of all when, being someone so seasoned in PRI, he came up to me and told me that one of my illustrations regarding how sensory perception affects our autonomic tension "was pure gold." It meant the world to me to hear this from him.

It was my first outing in delivering this material, thanks to everyone for being so kind and giving me such constructive feedback. We will all improve as a result of this experience.  

Posted November 1, 2022 at 7:56PM
Categories: Courses Clinicians Science

Participating with attendees who are interested in latero-trusive function offered by teeth for cervical and podal oscillatory oscillation, is a dream of mine, that has come true. It requires years of work and effort to reach the natural level of biologic non-denominational behavior offered by an Institute or culture of people who believe in the benefits of balancing biased biologic behavior for optimal growth and development. Skip George and I have often discussed the need to develop “non-denominational” minded practitioners in a society where participation is restricted if specific education and doctrine is not abided by or adhered to. This Occlusal course, is a course that was designed for any person or discipline, who does not need to follow or adhere to a specific tooth occlusal denomination. In other words, having nine dentists whom I have not met before, show interest in this Institute’s mindset on how teeth regulate autonomics, podal pressure, occipital-atlanto oscillation resonance and palatopharyngeal patency is so refreshing.

This is not a course one will find in a dental school or program. It is a course that I developed around tooth ‘trusive’ interferences that are associated with oral and non-oral muscular or postural behavior and respiratory flow. Use of PRI appliances and techniques, that I designed to disrupt teeth interferences that ‘lock’ cortical and cranial bones in unilateral positions of functional dominance, allows dentists to become better interdisciplinary minded movement generalists, and movement specialists to become better interdisciplinary minded dental occlusal generalists. The details on how to improve a bite after limited or non-limited occlusion that reflects a neutral occipital atlanto-state, should be provided by the dentist; and the details on how to improve upright interlimb and intralimb atlanto function, after desirable limited or non-limited occlusion has been achieved on a neutral occipital atlanto-position, can be provided by the movement specialist.

After teaching this particular tertiary course, RJ and I feel it can be improved now, by focusing on these clinical details for both the dentists and the movement specialists in the future. People like Drs. Ryan Huckeby DMD, Jonathon Nelson DMD, Rebecca Griffiths DDS, Hailun Wu DDS, Anne Chee DDS, and Annisya Bagdonas DDS,RN have helped me in advancing this course for future participants. A special thank you goes to Deanna Elliott PT,DPT,PRC for helping me in teaching this course in person. She was a great help and her dialogue was especially appreciated.

Posted October 27, 2022 at 4:08PM
Categories: Clinicians Courses Science

What an amazing weekend at The Cantrell Center in Warner Robbins! Thank you Tassie for hosting another PRI course. Your passion for PRI and the science is electric. Almost the entire Cantrell staff was in attendance as well—thank you all for embracing the PRI path and learning. Other attendees were equally energetic in the quest to learn PRI attendees like Gregory attending his 10th course to Kimberly attending her 1st one. This group was attentive, engaged, and asked questions. I loved being your “Coach” for the weekend and sharing Pelvis Restoration with you. Compression and decompression of the thorax and pelvis on the left and right side via the respiratory and pelvic diaphragm integration were highlighted in order to restore alternation and oscillation for Forward Locomotor Movement. I had a lot of fun being in the presence of amazing clinicians this past weekend with their desire to learn. Thank you!

CLICK HERE to view the full photo Album (Thanks to Cantrell Center's Jen Z.)

On a side note, Kelly---I made my flight.  Thank you for your insight.  I made it to the gate 20 minutes prior to take off. 

Posted October 6, 2022 at 2:59PM
Categories: Courses Clinicians Science
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