Reviews
Shirley Kollmann has been critical to my recovery after cervical spinal surgery.
With her tremendous knowledge, physical therapeutic skills, dedication and care, I have recovered very well indeed.
Although my surgery was a success, performed by the brilliant Dr. Dean Chou of UCSF, the surgery was quite serious: a C1-C2 fusion and a C5-C7 laminectomy. After surgery, I could barely walk, brush my teeth, comb my hair, eat, etc. My right arm was nearly paralyzed from C5 palsy.
It was up to Shirley to help me recover by getting my nerves and muscles to work together once again – a monumental task, all while trying to alleviate neck strain. Here were my problems:
Shirley created a regimen of balance, cardio and strength exercises that were staged to match my physical abilities, or lack thereof. (You should note that it’s also important for the client to follow up him or herself on Shirley’s great guidance and do the extra work for a speedier recovery.)
I’m delighted to say that I have recovered quite well in strength, balance and cardio. I’m on the Precor glider with ease, recovered 90% of my arm strength, and can travel, drive, feed myself, etc. And I’m still improving.
My progress has convinced my wife to also become Shirley’s client.
Danny S.
San Francisco, CA
I cannot recommend Shirley more. I had a badly herniated C6/7 disc which resulted in muscle contraction and atrophy in my left arm and pecs. My posture was slightly unbalanced because of that. Under Shirley's guidance we brought we stretched my muscles and got rid of contractions, and really made me feel regain balance and flexibility. She is super good listener and observer, and really knows her stuff. Hope not to need her any more, but if I ever do I know where to go now.
Stephanie W.
San Francisco, CA
I went to see Shirley for hip and low back pain / injury after being desperately frustrated with a previous treatment plan that left me more or less incapacitated. She was very kind and compassionate when assessing my situation, and gave me the confidence to explore a new path to healing. Within 2 visits, I had significantly less pain and more mobility than I had experienced in the previous 5 months. 5 weeks later, I feel strong, mobile, confident, and excited about the things my body can do. I am doing more now than I was before my injury (and I was working out A LOT before my injury). And, each visit seems to unlock new possibilities. She helped me really understand the patterns I've developed over time and break them apart so I can be as active as I want to be without causing myself pain. She's brilliant and insightful and has a great bedside manner that makes it easy to learn from her. My sessions with her are the bright spots in my week - I can't recommend her highly enough.
Shirley Kollmann has been critical to my recovery after cervical spinal surgery.
With her tremendous knowledge, physical therapeutic skills, dedication and care, I have recovered very well indeed.
Although my surgery was a success, performed by the brilliant Dr. Dean Chou of UCSF, the surgery was quite serious: a C1-C2 fusion and a C5-C7 laminectomy. After surgery, I could barely walk, brush my teeth, comb my hair, eat, etc. My right arm was nearly paralyzed from C5 palsy.
It was up to Shirley to help me recover by getting my nerves and muscles to work together once again – a monumental task, all while trying to alleviate neck strain. Here were my problems:
- Dealing with essentially a new neck and the resultant balance challenges.
- Right shoulder out of its socket.
- Nearly dysfunctional right bicep.
- Weak right arm supinator.
- Weak, degenerated butt muscles. (Previously, I thought that butt muscles for simply for visual appreciation, but I now realize they are critical to balance, stability and walking.)
- Stiff lumbar and neck vertebrae.
- Inflexible back and abdominal muscles.
- Slumped posture, affecting breathing and balance.
Shirley created a regimen of balance, cardio and strength exercises that were staged to match my physical abilities, or lack thereof. (You should note that it’s also important for the client to follow up him or herself on Shirley’s great guidance and do the extra work for a speedier recovery.)
I’m delighted to say that I have recovered quite well in strength, balance and cardio. I’m on the Precor glider with ease, recovered 90% of my arm strength, and can travel, drive, feed myself, etc. And I’m still improving.
My progress has convinced my wife to also become Shirley’s client.
Danny S.
San Francisco, CA
I cannot recommend Shirley more. I had a badly herniated C6/7 disc which resulted in muscle contraction and atrophy in my left arm and pecs. My posture was slightly unbalanced because of that. Under Shirley's guidance we brought we stretched my muscles and got rid of contractions, and really made me feel regain balance and flexibility. She is super good listener and observer, and really knows her stuff. Hope not to need her any more, but if I ever do I know where to go now.
Stephanie W.
San Francisco, CA
I went to see Shirley for hip and low back pain / injury after being desperately frustrated with a previous treatment plan that left me more or less incapacitated. She was very kind and compassionate when assessing my situation, and gave me the confidence to explore a new path to healing. Within 2 visits, I had significantly less pain and more mobility than I had experienced in the previous 5 months. 5 weeks later, I feel strong, mobile, confident, and excited about the things my body can do. I am doing more now than I was before my injury (and I was working out A LOT before my injury). And, each visit seems to unlock new possibilities. She helped me really understand the patterns I've developed over time and break them apart so I can be as active as I want to be without causing myself pain. She's brilliant and insightful and has a great bedside manner that makes it easy to learn from her. My sessions with her are the bright spots in my week - I can't recommend her highly enough.
Read Stephanie W.'s review of Physical Therapy& Pilates on Yelp