Should you see a chiropractor or a physical therapist for back or neck pain? Start with a more personal question: what is pain still stopping you from doing, and what would you want the next treatment to change?
PT can be a useful first choice when you want help moving comfortably, building strength and returning to everyday activity. At Mindful Movement, your first 60-minute visit is one-on-one with Dr. Emily Warren, DPT, Cert. MDT. You get an assessment, an explanation and an individual starting plan practiced together. You do not have to try an adjustment first to contact us.
In-person PT in Holladay, serving Greater Salt Lake City. No referral needed. Virtual health and wellness visits are also available.
Talk through whether MMPT fits your next step Book your first 60-minute PT visit
Need to compare medical care, injections or surgery too? Start with our back and neck pain decision guide. New or worsening weakness, changes in walking or other urgent warning signs need medical evaluation, rather than waiting for a routine appointment.
What is the difference between chiropractic care and physical therapy?
There is overlap. Chiropractors may use spinal manipulation, exercise, education and other approaches. Physical therapists may use exercise, hands-on care and education. The professional title alone does not tell you what your appointments or home plan will involve.
Ask about the actual plan: what will be examined, what will you practice, how will progress be reviewed and what would prompt a change? You deserve clear answers about likely benefits, risks and alternatives before choosing care.
| What you are experiencing | Ask before choosing care | How MMPT approaches it |
|---|---|---|
| Pain limits sitting, walking or turning your head | What will you assess, and what can I practice between visits? | A one-on-one movement assessment, a starting plan practiced together and a task to track. |
| An adjustment or massage helps, but the relief fades | How will we build on that relief in daily life? | We review what changes symptoms and add activity or strength work at a manageable starting level. |
| You have already tried exercises or PT | What will be different from the plan that did not help? | We review the earlier plan, exercise amount, movement response and the goal that remains difficult. |
| You are considering an injection or surgery | What is each option intended to change, and what would make specialist input important? | We explain what rehabilitation can address and when a medical or surgical assessment should take priority. |
Why start with MMPT?
MMPT is a strong fit if you want time to understand your symptoms and learn what you can do about them. Dr. Emily combines her McKenzie assessment training with movement education, hands-on care when appropriate and progressive exercise. The goal is to connect what happens in the appointment with what you want back outside it.
- Assess a meaningful problem. We discuss your history and examine movement, symptoms and a task that matters to you.
- Try and reassess. We explore an appropriate movement or treatment and review your response, instead of assuming that one exercise suits everyone.
- Practice a manageable home plan. You learn the starting activity, how much to do and what changes should prompt an adjustment.
- Review daily-life progress. Follow-up considers symptoms and function, then changes the plan or discusses further evaluation when needed.
Choosing between chiropractic care and PT for back or neck pain.
We’ll hear what you want from care, explain our approach and make room for your questions before you decide.
John valued a personal, caring approach that looked beyond symptoms.
“Emily addresses the whole person not just the symptoms in a way that is professional, personal & caring .”
John describes his experience of one-on-one care. Individual results vary.
What that process can look like
Illustrative example—not a patient success story: turning your head to check traffic is uncomfortable. We first assess the movement and relevant symptoms. After trying an appropriate movement or treatment, we reassess the turn. If the response is useful, we practice a home plan and agree what to watch over the following days. At follow-up, the question is whether driving and daily movement are becoming easier, and what needs changing if they are not.
What if adjustments help, but the pain keeps coming back?
Temporary relief can be valuable. The next question is how to build on it. Are you walking farther, sleeping more comfortably or returning to lifting? If the benefit stops at the end of the appointment, discuss what you can practice between visits and how the plan will progress.
At MMPT, we review what helped, how long it lasted and what remains limited. Recurring symptoms are a reason to reassess your findings and activity demands; they do not, by themselves, prove that something is out of alignment. If previous exercises or PT disappointed you, use our PT-not-working checklist to identify what a fresh assessment should address.
Watch Dr. Emily explain pain during massage versus working out
Bring your own experience of hands-on treatment and exercise to the assessment. We will help you interpret your response and choose a starting plan that fits you.
Can you see both a chiropractor and a physical therapist?
You can, when the treatments have a clear purpose and the clinicians know what else you are doing. Bring your exercise program, relevant reports and your response to previous care. Avoid adding several new treatments at once without a plan for judging what is helping.
Ask which clinician is addressing each goal, whether advice conflicts and when the combined plan will be reviewed. Coordinated care should help you make progress and understand your next step.
What does the research say about chiropractic care and PT?
Research usually compares particular treatments in people with a defined condition. It does not establish that every PT program is better than every chiropractic program, or predict your individual result.
Spinal manipulation for chronic low back pain
A 2019 BMJ review by Rubinstein and colleagues included 47 trials with 9,211 participants. For chronic low back pain, manipulation produced similar short-term pain outcomes to other recommended therapies and a small advantage in function. This was a review of chronic low back pain, not acute pain or exclusively sciatica. The authors also emphasized discussing potential adverse effects.
Exercise for chronic low back pain
A 2021 Cochrane review of 249 trials found that exercise probably improves pain compared with no treatment, usual care or placebo. The average functional improvement for that comparison was smaller than the review’s threshold for clinical importance. Effects varied, and exercise was not clearly superior to manual therapy in the review’s subgroup comparison. The practical question is which plan you can use and whether it helps your function.
Manipulation and home exercise for recent neck pain
A 2012 trial of 272 adults with neck pain lasting 2–12 weeks found no important pain difference between manipulation and home exercise with advice at the measured follow-ups. It was not a McKenzie trial. It supports including practical home guidance in the conversation without promising that one profession will outperform the other.
For condition-specific choices, see our back-pain decision guide or neck-pain decision guide. Our McKenzie service page explains assessment-led care and the research relevant to that approach.
How do you know whether ongoing appointments are worthwhile?
Agree on a goal that matters to you and a point to review it. Useful progress might include a longer walk, a more comfortable workday, more confident lifting or less disruption from a flare. Improvement varies; no profession or individual treatment can promise your result.
At MMPT, each follow-up has a purpose: reassess, adjust, progress or practice. As you improve, we discuss how to manage more independently. Dry needling and other hands-on tools may support a plan when appropriate; you should understand their role alongside the activity you are rebuilding.
What would make your next appointment worthwhile?
- What have you tried, and what changed beyond the appointment?
- What are you still avoiding or unable to do?
- What would meaningful progress look like over the next stage of care?
- What do you need to understand before deciding?
Explore our back-pain PT or neck-pain PT approach, then choose whether a conversation or a first visit fits your needs.
Let’s make the choice more personal
Your goals and your experience of previous care matter. We can talk about what you hope will change, explain how one-on-one PT works and help you decide whether an assessment with Dr. Emily is a useful next step.
In your free 15-minute consultation, we’ll listen to what you want back, answer your questions and help you decide whether care with Mindful Movement fits. Send a request and we’ll contact you by phone or text to arrange a time.
Request your free 15-minute consultation
Dedicated one-on-one PT with Dr. Emily Warren, DPT, Cert. MDT—McKenzie certified. No referral needed. Your first PT visit is 60 minutes for assessment, explanation and a starting plan practiced together. The free consultation is a conversation before care.
In-person care at our Holladay clinic, serving Greater Salt Lake City. Virtual coaching from anywhere.
Ready to begin? Book your first 60-minute PT appointment · Call/text (385) 332-4939.