FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Here at The Charlotte Athlete, we work a full 1-hour 1-on-1 session with the same Doctor of Physical Therapy for active adults, busy professionals, youth athletes, and athletes.
We believe if you have a body, you’re an athlete. Where we treat each patient like family and friends.

Wearing comfortable loose-fitting clothing that helps expose the area that we will be evaluating and treating is best practiced. For example, if you have a knee problem, it is best to wear shorts. For a shoulder problem, a tank top is a good option. For low back problems, wear a loose-fitting shirt and pants.

You can come directly to us before seeing your physician, or any other healthcare provider. We specialize in being the first point of care for patients suffering from acute or chronic pain issues and we are trained in screening for pathology that may not make you amenable to physical therapy. We are trained to assess the whole body and can begin helping to correct your problem immediately. This makes it very easy for patients to begin feeling better sooner, as they are not subjected to the lengthy process of being passed around from one specialist to another.

Yes, We Offer Some

Yes! We are trained qualified professionals who use this technique to treat muscle pain. Dry needling releases and improves inactive points of the muscle that reduces tension. We use this technique using a thin filiform needle to slightly penetrate the skin in order to stimulate underlying myofascial trigger points of muscular and connective tissues.

Yes! We use this treatment during your exercises through external pressure to maintain arterial inflow or a compression device. This type of therapy reduces the stress of a limb by decreasing blood flow to the working muscles and bringing recovery to hypertrophy and preventing disuse of atrophy of your muscles.

Physical therapy (PT) helps individuals recover their bodies from any existing acute / chronic injuries, pre/post-operations, and rehabilitations. Physical therapy helps the entire quality of life as we do our best to get recovered not only right now but for later as well through customized plans and strategies for the healing phases, you will experience.

We listen first and foremost. Your fellow will discuss the following:

1.) Your medical history.
2.) Your current problems/complaints.
3.) Pain intensity, what aggravates and eases the problem.
4.) How this is impacting your daily activities or your functional limitations
5.) Your goals with physical therapy.
6.) Medications, tests, and procedures related to your health.

1. Palpation - touching around the area of the pain/problem. This is done to check for the presence of tenderness, swelling, soft tissue integrity, tissue temperature, inflammation, etc.
2. Range of Motion (ROM) - the therapist will move the joint(s) to check for the quality of movement and any restrictions.
3. Muscle Testing - the therapist may check for strength and the quality of the muscle contraction. Pain and weakness may be noted. Often the muscle strength is graded. This is also part of a neurological screening.
4. Neurological Screening - the therapist may check to see how the nerves are communicating with the muscles, sensing touch, pain, vibration, or temperature. Reflexes may be assessed as well.
5. Special Tests - the therapist may perform special tests to confirm/rule out the presence of additional problems.
6. Posture Assessment - the positions of joints relative to ideal and each other may be assessed.

We truly listen to how your body is feeling that day and review what you typically do on a daily basis that could be contributing to your pain point(s). We will talk over tips and techniques for you to try after our sessions while we do hands-on manual therapy, exercises, and educative solutions to rehabilitate your body that will help improve your physical condition without pushing you past your limits or comfort zone.

Performance therapy helps individuals recover from specific injuries, aches, and pains. This PT is necessary for many people because the body changes and is affected over time. Consistent improvement of movement will benefit your mobility whether you are needing your body back to normal from a sport or day-to-day life activities.

1. Palpation - touching around the area of the pain/problem. This is done to check for the presence of tenderness, swelling, soft tissue integrity, tissue temperature, inflammation, etc.
2. Range of Motion (ROM) - the therapist will move the joint(s) to check for the quality of movement and any restrictions.
3. Muscle Testing - the therapist may check for strength and the quality of the muscle contraction. Pain and weakness may be noted. Often the muscle strength is graded. This is also part of a neurological screening.
4. Neurological Screening - the therapist may check to see how the nerves are communicating with the muscles, sensing touch, pain, vibration, or temperature. Reflexes may be assessed as well.
5. Special Tests - the therapist may perform special tests to confirm/rule out the presence of additional problems.
6. Posture Assessment - the positions of joints relative to ideal and each other may be assessed.

We continue to listen to how your body is feeling that day and review what you typically do on a daily basis that could be contributing to your pain point(s). During this PT we go over your short-term and long-term goals to reach. We run tests of multiple sensitivity, nerves, muscle assessments, ranges of motion, strength, and reflexes. We will talk over tips and techniques for you to try after our sessions while we do hands-on manual therapy, exercises, and educative solutions to rehabilitate your body that will help improve your physical condition without pushing you past your limits or comfort zone.