Alyssa felt the pain in August, but she wasn’t about to go get her back checked out. The competitive cheer season with Cheer Eclipse was about to start and she didn’t want to miss a thing. After resting her back for a couple weeks, Alyssa realized it wasn’t improving. In October, she was diagnosed with a stress fracture in her spine. Surgery wasn’t required but Alyssa needed several weeks of physical therapy. She headed to Advanced Physical Therapy across the street from her school.

“We mainly did my abs, hips and legs,” Alyssa said. “I just could not bend my back.” Over six weeks and two visits a week, Alyssa was released to return to cheer and in time for the track season, where she competed in the hurdles. Although the workouts could be laborious, Alyssa credited APT with making time go fast. “They talk to you and ask a lot of questions,” Alyssa said. “They talk to you about life outside therapy, which was really nice.”