Meet Stephanie Duffey of Empower Physio and Wellness

Today we’d like to introduce you to Stephanie Duffey. 

Hi Stephanie, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself
I can confidently say that I never thought I’d be doing what I am doing today…but am forever grateful of where my life has led me. 

I pretty much always knew I wanted to be a physical therapist. From the first day I volunteered in a PT clinic, I knew this was the path for me. While earning my doctor of physical therapy degree from The Ohio State University, I thought I wanted to work FOR someone who owned their own practice. I loved the freedom that private practice provided- you could help the individual in front of you the way they truly needed to be helped and not be dictated by corporate America or insurance companies. But I had zero training in business, marketing, and sales, so working for someone else who was doing those things seemed to be the perfect solution. 

But that isn’t what God or life had in store for me. A friend of mine got me involved in a group of PT entrepreneurs and I soon realized that it wasn’t as hard or complicated as I thought. The idea kept pulling on my heart and I realized I was being called to start my own practice. 

This was born from the desire to do PT differently. People need to be truly heard and given individualized attention so that the underlying cause of the problem can be fixed, instead of just putting a band-aid on a bigger problem. They need to know how stress, sleep, and nutrition affect the way they feel physically. They need someone to explain what is going on with their body, someone to truly believe in them and their goals, and someone to guide them in the process of allowing their body to heal. This is severely lacking in our current medical system. It is my mission to provide this experience to people so they can regain hope and confidence in their body’s ability to move. 

I learned a lot through my own struggles with pain and injury. Throughout my teenage and adult life, I struggled with knee and neck pain that would come and go. It really got in the way of things I loved like running, exercise, and playing with my son. It wasn’t until I became a PT, and even went to PT myself, that I learned that the underlying issue was never fixed- that was why my pain kept coming back. Once I committed to the process of healing the root cause, I got off the rollercoaster of pain and injury flaring up every few months. It feels so amazing to focus on living my life, not modifying my life to stay out of pain. I want other people to have this same freedom and confidence as well. It is truly life-changing. 

It is so rewarding to see the transformations people make in their lives when we work together. We heal years of back and neck pain, get injured runners back on the road, eliminate debilitating headaches, and get people back to the activities they love- things like hiking, traveling, keeping up with grandkids, running, gardening, and living life unrestricted. It is truly humbling and amazing. 

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
There have definitely been struggles! But those struggles have made me a stronger, more resilient, and more self-aware human. 

The comparison game is very real. When I was first figuring out what I wanted to do, it was so easy to compare myself to other PT entrepreneurs with successful clinics. How did they know what they wanted to do? How did they gain that much success? Why couldn’t I seem to figure it out? It took a lot of self-reflection, journaling, and coaching to figure out what my vision was and make it a reality. Very few of my close friends or PT classmates were starting their own practice, so it was a very lonely place to be. 

The freedom I gained with having my own practice is 100% worth it, but there is a tradeoff. When you work for a clinic, you don’t have to worry about sales and marketing. But as a solopreneur, this all falls on me. I invested a lot of time and money learning these things after I graduated. This is a constant, ongoing process because there is always more to learn. I wouldn’t trade this freedom for anything though! 

Even now that I have an established and successful practice, the fear of failure is very real. What if it all goes away? I find confidence in knowing that my practice is a calling from God. I trust that He will provide and guide me through the ups and downs. This brings me peace through any struggles I face. 

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
I created Empower Physio and Wellness to do PT differently. I am so proud of the transformations my clients make in their lives. I’ve seen people go from deep lows, nearly being suicidal, to gaining hope and confidence that life can be better. It honestly brings me to tears and I’m so humbled to facilitate that transformation for people. 

Throughout my schooling and early professional career, I saw too many people get bounced around in the healthcare system. Before coming to see me, they may have had imaging, injections, medications, and other interventions that didn’t help or just put a band-aid on the problem. They have been told things like “You’ll never run again”, “Just stop doing the activity that bothers you”, or “You need surgery”. My clients tell me that these things they’ve been told by other healthcare providers and physicians don’t sit well with them. They want another option. I want to give them that other option. 

My clients tell me that before seeing me, they have never had someone actually listen to them the way I do, never had a provider explain to them what is going on using pictures and joint models the way I do, or never gotten the results they wanted. They say they finally understand what is going on and the treatment plan I outline makes sense to them, which makes them so happy. I say this because a better experience is possible. So many people have accepted that that’s just the way it is and don’t think they’ll ever feel better. It is my mission to give people a different experience and regain hope. 

My absolute favorite things to help people with are back pain, neck pain, headaches, knee pain, and running-related injuries. I use a combination of hands-on treatments like dry needling, cupping, and trigger point release, and combine it with movement retraining, corrective exercise, and strength training to help people fix the root cause of the problem and keep their pain or injury from constantly coming back. 

What makes you happy?
Definitely my family. Seeing my son smile and hearing him laugh is the BEST! It brings me a deep sense of joy and happiness that I have a hard time describing. Knowing that I can provide him with experiences, playtime, and opportunities that bring him such joy is the absolute best thing in the world. 

I also love going on active adventures with my husband. It creates such a wonderful bonding moment. I love having those memories. 

Contact Info:

• Email: stephanie@empowerphysioandwellness.com
• Website: empowerphysioandwellness.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/empowerphysioandwellness
• Other: https://goo.gl/maps/Nk2nTR91bYziSpzr9

Image Credits
Shutterhead Studios