Building Trust for Better Healing: 3 Ways to Increase Trust with Your Physical Therapist

A trusting relationship with your physical therapist (PT) is essential to healing. Trust is a matter of the mind and ample research indicates that the mind-body connection is real. So, bumping up the trust level directly improves your healing potential.

Trust reassures and steadies your emotional mind. You can think freely, breathe easily, and respond courageously. Your mind relaxes, your heart rate lightens, and you move with eager purpose. Your mind opens, your immune system strengthens, and your body's tissues heal.

Building and maintaining trust requires cooperation and merging of expectations and responsibilities. In the PT-patient relationship, the PT serves as the guide, mentor, and cheerleader while the patient makes the critical leadership decisions. To be clear, you – as the patient – are the boss of your healing experience.

Sometimes, the PT may forget and become a bit “bossy.” And sometimes, you may forget to take the lead. As a physical therapist, I want to help you remain at the helm, holding the reigns, directing the show, and steering the ship. You need to know what to expect from your PT to avoid this role confusion.

Following are three essential expectations that your physical therapist must value and routinely practice. As their execution improves, your trust will automatically expand. In turn, your body will heal faster and better.

1.Careful Language: Your PT must choose words that encourage healing. Words create images in your mind and if these images stimulate fear or doubt, your body’s healing will be stifled. Instead, uplifting words that support hope and possibilities motivate the natural healing process.

2.Careful Listening: Your PT must intensely listen to your full story, including current life stressors. They must hear the authentic emotions of your situation. You must feel understood when sharing your “gut” instincts and intuition. Your goals – what matters most to you – should always clearly lead the treatment plan.

3.Careful Planning: Your PT must proceed humbly as you progress in therapy. After the initial evaluation, the first step is taken and then more evaluation is needed before the next step. In other words, no one can predict the exact step-by-step timeline. The plan must be continually modified according to your body’s response to the previous step. For sure, the PT’s humility is required to allow for not knowing and to suggest any necessary pivots.

If your physical therapist appreciates the mind-body connection, they will already be prioritizing these expectations. However, if your PT is not seemingly tuned into this reality, then they may be inadvertently disabling your progress and recovery. Since you are your healing boss, you have two choices, either express your concern and request a change in their approach or shop around and find a different therapist.

In case you are wondering, these same expectations apply to other healthcare professionals – your doctor, your nurse, your chiropractor, your occupational therapist, your speech therapist, and all others. Whoever is a member of your healthcare team must respect the mind-body connection. Remember, you are the leader responsible for making decisions about your team’s membership.

From my professional experience, I have observed patients who assumed the leadership position and those who did not. By far, the most successful outcomes occurred when the patient ignored the naysayers, attended to their emotional needs, and adapted throughout their healing journey. These patients broke glass ceilings and dismantled boxes.

In a nutshell, it’s all about upgrading your mind, consciously and subconsciously. Do it boldly, with passion and confidence!

As a physical therapist and certified clinical hypnotherapist, Ruth E. Smith offers a bold and intriguing mind-body-spirit approach for physical recovery. Her book, Without Boundaries: Optimizing Physical Recovery with Self-Hypnosis, and other writings connect and align with the powers of the mind: belief, language, mindfulness, and imagination. Her campaign, “Be Aware and Power Up!” enlightens and motivates healthcare consumers about hopeful perspectives and strategies for excellent results. Connect on Facebook and Substack.