Self-guided pain plans
Stop guessing what your pain needs.
Back and neck pain do not always need the same exercise, stretch, or treatment. These guides walk you through a structured process for testing movement, watching how your symptoms respond, and using that response to decide what to do next.
Low back pain
The Low Back Pain Guide
A step-by-step plan for testing how your low back symptoms respond to movement. Learn which directions to try, what changes matter, and how the location and behavior of your pain can help guide your next step.
- Know which movements and directions to test first
- Track whether symptoms centralize, spread, or stay the same
- Progress or modify based on what actually changes
- Know when self-care is no longer the right path
Neck pain
The Neck Pain Guide
A practical self-guided plan for testing how your neck symptoms respond to movement. Instead of assuming what you need, use changes in pain, range of motion, and symptom location to help identify what to try next.
- Test the movements and directions most likely to matter
- Track pain location, range of motion, and symptom response
- Progress or modify based on what changes
- Know when self-care is no longer the right path
Why this approach?
The guides are built around response-based clinical reasoning from Mechanical Diagnosis & Therapy (MDT), commonly associated with the McKenzie Method. Movement is tested, symptoms are reassessed, and what happens next is guided by the response rather than by a one-size-fits-all exercise prescription.
Learn how MDT works →These guides are educational and self-guided, not a substitute for individualized medical care. If symptoms are severe or rapidly worsening, or you develop significant weakness, numbness, or other concerning symptoms, seek an in-person evaluation.