Physical Therapy in Santa Fe

At CorePhysio, we are committed to finding the root cause of your pain — not just managing the symptoms. Every patient receives a thorough evaluation and a customized, evidence-based plan of care. Our approach routinely helps patients avoid surgery and eliminate long-term dependence on prescription medications, restoring function and quality of life through movement, not medication.

All sessions are 60 or more minutes, one-on-one with your Doctor of Physical Therapy.

Physical Therapy

Functional Manual Therapy (FMT) is CorePhysio’s foundational treatment approach. It is a sophisticated, hands-on method that evaluates and treats restrictions across the body’s entire movement system — joints, muscles, connective tissue, and the nervous system — to restore natural, pain-free function.

Orthopedic Physical Therapy

Our Doctors of Physical Therapy are focused on helping you feel better, move better, and perform at your potential. We conduct a complete orthopedic evaluation for every new patient and build a customized plan of care around your specific goals.

Services include:

• Functional movement assessments (SFMA, FMS)
• Sports injuries — sprains, strains, fractures, overuse
• Back and neck pain
• Shoulder, hip, knee, and ankle injuries
• Headache and jaw pain
• Pre- and post-operative rehabilitation
• Injury prevention programming

 

Vestibular & Neurologic Rehabilitation

Dizziness, vertigo, and balance problems can be disorienting and limiting — and they are often highly treatable. CorePhysio’s vestibular and neurologic specialist Ellen Goodall, DPT uses evidence-based techniques to assess and treat disorders of the inner ear, balance system, and nervous system, including:

• Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV)
• Vestibular neuritis and labyrinthitis
• Post-concussion dizziness and balance issues
• Chronic dizziness and disequilibrium
• Neurologic balance rehabilitation

Most vestibular conditions respond quickly to the right treatment. Many patients experience significant improvement within just a few visits.

 

Aquatic Therapy

Water changes everything. The buoyancy of an aquatic environment reduces joint loading by up to 90%, allowing movement and strengthening that simply is not possible on land — especially in the early stages of recovery from injury or surgery.

CorePhysio’s aquatic therapy program is led by Hannah Hargis, DPT (program director) and Ellen Goodall, DPT, and is ideal for patients managing joint pain, post-operative recovery, neurologic conditions, or anyone who needs a gentler path back to full function. Sessions are held at Santa Fe Community College.

Aquatic therapy is particularly effective for:

• Hip and knee replacements
• Lumbar and cervical spine conditions
• Arthritis and joint hypersensitivity
• Neurologic and vestibular rehabilitation
• General deconditioning and low-impact fitness

 

Dry Needling

“We use a very fine needle to release muscle tension at its neurological source and reset your nervous system—so your body can actually recover, not just compensate.”

 Dry needling at CorePhysio is not a symptom-management technique. It is a precise, evidence-informed tool that works directly on the nervous system — using the soft tissues of the body as access points to restore the conditions your body needs to heal itself.

A fine, solid monofilament needle is inserted into specific tissues to shift the nervous system out of chronic sympathetic overdrive — the fight-or-flight state that most active people are living in more than they realize — and back toward the parasympathetic state where genuine recovery becomes possible. The needle is not the treatment. It is the access point.

 

Why this matters for outdoor athletes

The athletes we work with at CorePhysio carry enormous stress loads—training, altitude, competition, injury, and the demands of daily life. Chronically elevated sympathetic activity shortens muscles chemically, restricts blood flow to tissue, amplifies pain signals, and slows the body’s natural recovery processes.

Every trail runner, skier, climber, or hiker who comes to us has some version of this pattern driving their dysfunction — whether they call it a tight hip flexor, a grumpy shoulder, or a knee that just will not calm down. Dry needling addresses the root cause, not just where it shows up.

 

The CorePhysio Approach

Technique
We use a single-advancement, precisely rotated insertion — treating significantly more tissue with significantly less sympathetic stimulation than the rapid in-out technique commonly used elsewhere.

Sequence
We always address the parasympathetic system first, targeting the auricular vagus nerve to establish nervous system homeostasis before treating the rest of the body.

Duration
Needles remain in place for approximately 60 minutes — allowing the nervous system to complete its natural transition from sympathetic to parasympathetic dominance while the needles continue working.

Philosophy
We treat dry needling as a brain treatment — using the body’s soft tissues as access points to restore the mind and body’s innate capacity to function and heal.

 

Post-surgical rehabilitation

Surgery may be behind you — but your full recovery does not stop there. If you are still feeling stiff, off-balance, or disconnected after a procedure, CorePhysio can help bridge the gap between medical clearance and genuine return to function.

We combine orthopedic rehabilitation with somatic movement techniques — including approaches inspired by the Feldenkrais Method — to retrain your nervous system and restore confident, natural movement from the inside out.

Still not back on the trail, the slopes, or the wall? We help you get back outside doing what you love.

 

CoreHome—Pre & Post-Surgical Home Care

CoreHome brings CorePhysio’s clinical expertise directly to your home during the critical phases of surgical recovery—when getting to a clinic is difficult and continuity of care matters most.

A Doctor of Physical Therapy comes to you, providing the same quality of assessment, hands-on treatment, and exercise guidance available in our clinic. CoreHome is available before and after surgery to optimize your recovery timeline and outcomes.

→ Contact us to schedule CoreHome services

 

NEUBIE Electrical Stimulation

The NEUBIE (Neuro-Bio-Electric Stimulator) is an FDA-cleared device developed by NeuFit that uses patented direct current technology to communicate with the nervous system — restoring muscle activation, reducing protective tension, and accelerating healing. CorePhysio uses the NEUBIE as one targeted tool within our broader treatment approach.

Particularly effective for post-operative recovery, sports injuries, nerve injuries, neuropathy, tendinopathies, and frozen shoulder.

 

Group Wellness Classes

CorePhysio’s group class program brings clinical expertise into an accessible, community-oriented format. All classes are designed and led by our Doctors of Physical Therapy.

 

CoreStrength

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CoreMobility

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CoreBack Health Program

A four-week program designed for people living with chronic or recurring back pain. Led by Hannah Hargis, DPT, this series combines education, movement, and hands-on guidance to give you lasting tools for managing and preventing back pain on your own terms.

The program begins with a free introductory workshop. The paid four-week series follows. Spots are limited.

→ Register for the free workshop  |  → Enroll in the four-week series

[ Workshop: May 20 at 5:30pm. Series begins June 6. ]

 

CoreConnect—Digital Home Exercise & Recovery

Recovery does not stop when you leave the clinic. CoreConnect is CorePhysio’s digital care platform that keeps you connected with your therapist between visits — supporting your home exercise program, tracking your progress, and helping you accelerate your recovery and build lasting fitness habits.

Your therapist monitors your activity and reaches out if anything needs attention, so you are never navigating your recovery alone. CoreConnect is available to active CorePhysio patients. Ask your therapist about getting started.

 

Concussion Screening & Treatment

CorePhysio uses the SCAT5 — the internationally recognized standard for concussion evaluation — to assess and monitor recovery from concussive injury. Our team also addresses the vestibular and visual symptoms that commonly follow concussion, helping patients return to sport, work, and daily activity safely and confidently.

 

Musculoskeletal Ultrasound Diagnostics

CorePhysio is incorporating diagnostic musculoskeletal ultrasound (MSKUS) into clinical practice — allowing real-time visualization of muscles, tendons, ligaments, and other soft tissue structures. This advanced diagnostic tool adds a new level of precision to our assessments, helping us confirm findings, guide treatment decisions, and give patients a clearer picture of what is happening inside their body.