Austin Manual Therapy Associates

The best!
Unfortunately, I’ve had need of a lot of physical therapy, knees and shoulders, over the years. From California to New England, Texas and Thailand, mostly I’ve had good experiences, but at AMT, in every category, I’ve got to give them the highest ratings. The office staff goes out of their way to accommodate, expedite, simplify, in every way possible, and my therapist, Benjamin, exudes confidence in the way you’d expect from someone at the top of their field. My concerns over a possible re injury of a shoulder I’d had surgically repaired, were allayed by expert diagnostic manipulation and the exercises that I was given has me feeling stronger and without any trace of the frailty and soreness I came in with. This is where I’d send any of my friends if they needed therapy.

Update to my last review: The front desk girl that was the problem child is no longer there (hopefully was fired). Five stars across the board for James and my therapist, Elaine. My rotator cuff rehab is going perfectly and I’m ahead of schedule for a complete recovery soon!

Best PT in Austin these days! As a longtime athlete (with lifelong talent for klutziness) I have been thru more injuries & PT than anyone I’ve heard of at this point. Been to just about every PT practice in Austin over the last 30+ years… and James is stunning in the range & breadth of his knowledge, skill set, and effective communication with clients of all kinds. Would give 5 stars except for the dismissive, unhelpful, and at times downright rude attitude of the front desk lady both in person or by phone (scheduling, insurance & payment functions of the practice). All other staff very personable & professional. Great team of therapists can help you overcome just about any issue you may have.

I was scheduled for back surgery seven months ago. I was in horrible pain from a bulging disc and had tried the physical therapy group my surgeon «recommended». They made my situation worse. As a last resort, I listened to my wife, who had had treatments with Leeda at Austin Manual Therapy the previous year. (Note to self: Listen to your wife more often.) In just a few sessions with Leeda, my pain was substantially reduced, I had no need for the multiple narcotics that were ineffective anyway, and I cancelled my surgery!
My timeline went like this: End of October I walked in to their office barely able to walk, on multiple drugs, not able to drive myself, and by the end of December I was snorkeling in Cancun!
I cannot recommend Austin Manual Therapy highly enough. What amazed me, outside of my own recovery, was the diverse patient demographic. You see every age and type of person there. From old out of shape farts like me, to college age athletes, to folks recovering from a stroke, to post surgery Olympian types, etc. Their treatment focus is very individual, friendly, empathetic, and professional.

It’s this simple: Austin Manual Therapy is awesome. Mary was my therapist last year following hip replacement; this time it’s a frozen shoulder. Age isn’t my friend, but the folks at AMT are! Pleasant, knowledgeable staff, comfortable environment that isn’t pretentious & doesn’t feel like a gym. Most important: they help you!

Dr. David Middaugh and his staff are wonderful ! I began ankle physical therapy at a time when I could barely walk because of the pain. My orthopedic surgeon told me that I had no alternative other than a very expensive and complicated surgery that had a low probability of success, and that physical therapy would be a waste of time. He said I would likely remain in pain and limp for the rest of my life. Well, two months after beginning physical therapy with Dr. Middaugh, I am pain-​free and even running again ! It is like a miracle ! I highly recommend Dr. Middaugh, as he has tremendous skill, he spent a lot of time with me, and he genuinely cares … he was determined to heal my ankle and he did. I am forever grateful to you Dr. Middaugh !

I was referred to Austin Manual Therapy by my orthapaedist after I had lateral meniscus repair. I’ve been seeing David at AMT, twice a week for the first couple of weeks, and now just once a week since I’m progressing well.
I was really impressed with how David didn’t concentrate just on the knee itself, but on my hip and ankle motion and how that contributes to ongoing knee problems. I have bunions, flat feet, and am slightly knock-​kneed, and all of this contributes to me overpronating and effing up my knees. We worked on knee mobility and strengthening of course, but we’ve also worked on hip and foot arch exercises to protect me from having knee problems in the future.
As others have noted, they do have overlapping appointments here (hour-​long appointments, but new patients arriving each half hour), but that’s never been a detriment to my therapy. David spends the first few minutes of our hour doing mobility manipulation on my knee, then we work through a few exercises. Typically he shows me an exercise and has me work on it for a few minutes while he’s helping his other patient. It works quite smoothly and keeps the therapists busy.

I was referred to Ben Keene at Austin Manual Therapy by my orthopedic surgeon after having an MCL knee repair and meniscus scope in October 2004. Ben and James were both awesome and I really felt I had their team on my side during my recovery.
The beginning of my therapy involved trying to make a full pedal rotation on the stationary bike. It took me a few weeks, but when I finally completed a full circle, the whole office was clapping for me and cheering me on. It was a wonderful experience. I arranged a gift basket for Ben when I finally «graduated» from therapy, but no gift could ever be enough for the appreciation I had for this group.
I would recommend them with my highest regards. Their service was exemplary and the results were outstanding.

I’ve been nothing but impressed by Austin Manual Therapy. Ben has been my therapist. Not only has he fixed the pain (yea!) but he clearly has the goal of getting me to place where the therapy can end and I can get on with my life. Their focus really seems to be on helping people wherever they happen to be — I’m thrilled that my doctor recommended them.

I’m skeptical about any medical professionals but I really trusted and somehow enjoyed going to physical therapy here. Mary was my physical therapist and I have nothing but shining positive things to say about her and Austin Manual Therapy. The facility is clean, friendly, and professional and I never had a problem getting an appointment when I needed one. I had had back problems for something like ten years before someone acknowledged and actually helped alleviate the pain simply caused my a leg length discrepancy. They made having lumbar degenerative disease feel and sound as simple as it really is… ahem it’s a fancy scary word for arthritis on a 30 year old. The point is, I feel better now and I have someone to turn to if it flares up again… if only my insurance were that friendly about it!

I’ve adjusted my initial review after hearing back from Austin Manual Therapy. I do really appreciate a company that takes the time to reach out to Unilocal reviewers. My edited review below.
Austin Manual Therapy is about as good as any other PT I’ve been to. Usually I have the first appointment of the day (7:00 AM), and though my appointment runs an hour, the next patient arrives at about 7:30 AM.
Even though this first thirty minutes is my one-​on-​one time, I usually spend 10 – 12 on a bike while my therapist does some paperwork. He usually says to do the bike for 7 minutes, but then doesn’t return until 8 – 17 minutes have passed.
Only once did they triple-​book my appointment (meaning two people at 7am, and then a 3^rd at 7:30). They assure me this was an isolated case, and it’s true that I’ve only seen it happen the one time.
In their note to me (via Unilocal), Austin Manual Therapy also told me that ½ my time is hands-​on care, and the other half is guided exercise. I’m not sure what the «hands-​on» means, but if it literally means the PT doing things like applying pressure to my knee, evaluating muscle movement, etc, this is more like 10 – 12 minutes.
I just prefer an environment where I have the PTs full attention for an hour, and go less often. That way, the minority of my appointment is learning an exercise (to do at home), and the majority is the PT working on the muscle groups associated with my injury/​pain. This also saves me money (fewer co-​pays).

I’m a competitive cyclist, who recently developed a hip problem for the past month or so. I could still ride but had to deal with a constant tweak in my left hip. I just assumed it was a strained hip flexor or something along those lines. I met with Taylor at Austin Manual Therapy for about half an hour. He performed a few Range of Motion tests on both hip joints. His conclusion was a simple tight hip joint. Literally 30 minutes of «manual therapy» later I no longer feel any twinge at all. He was awesome. He also explained what each maneuver he was doing did to help the problem. Afterward he shared a few simple stretches and movements to help keep the hip lose.

So happy my doc referred me to Austin Manual Therapy. Taylor my PT is part healer, part trainer, part anatomy teacher — happy and healing! — at Austin Manual Therapy Associates.

Recently hurt my shoulder. First injury I’ve ever had that required physical therapy. I was both intimidated by the unknown and frustrated that I wasn’t able to work out at my normal intense manner. Thank goodness I went to Austin Manual Therapy! My physical therapist was Mary and she was FABULOUS! I was just discharged and I already know I’m going to miss her.
The office staff are all very friendly and laid-​back. Everyone is focused on getting you better. My favorite thing was Mary’s approach to what my goals were and ensuring I made them. I got back into cycling quickly and now have a load of exercises to keep my shoulder happy.

I was referred to Austin Manual Therapy Associates by my doctor for my mid-​back problem recently. I have been seeing James Harris, Co-​Founder for AMTA. Since day one, I have been thoroughly impressed with the staff, the amount of knowledge and education I get from James on every visit and most importantly, I am getting better and stronger with the guidance of James and I couldn’t be happier. I’ll continue to see James for my treatments and would highly recommend him to anyone who is seeking to get better.

I’ve had therapy with Mary at Austin Manual Therapy for two different problems close together in time, and it’s been a great experience.
I never had PT before, but I’ve seen it done for my parents, and I was always very impressed with how effective the treatment can be and how smart the therapists tend to be about seeing the patient’s needs and limitations.
So my turn comes, with a nasty and mysterious affliction of one leg and hip. Apparently I had a big honking nerve inflammation due to constrictions in one place or another. Mary did all kinds of interesting things to evaluate how the pain was triggered, which core muscles weren’t strong enough to hold everything where it should have been, and some musculoskeletal misalignment and things that were kinda locked up and needed to release.
I’ve always wondered how people figure out that they should go to the chiropractor or the massage therapist or whatever, but the beauty of this experience was that I got all of the above, in accordance with the different needs of different places in the body. Chiropractic jerks and tissue massage to get back to symmetry and loosen up the locked-​up parts, and exercises to improve the core to hold things in the new alignment. Mary listened really well to my strange descriptions, and paid really close attention to the form of my exercises, to explain what was important until it penetrated my stubborn brain.
Then when my leg and hip were ok again, I got my doctor to prescribe PT for my shoulder that had been rickety for years, and now it’s 100% better too, in a few weeks. That’s 2 for 2.
The business end works smoothly here. Easy to schedule and handle billing, and appointments are on time. It’s not a big noisy clinic, and there’s extra help when someone needs it. Enjoyable atmosphere but things are always getting done.