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“I was told surgery was the answer — or I had to stop.”
Dan had been dealing with shoulder pain since college.
He was diagnosed with a SLAP tear his senior year, and that injury ended his tennis career. Surgery was presented as the main option. Playing through it made things worse. Cortisone shots helped briefly, then left him in more pain once they wore off.
“So I stopped lifting. I stopped playing tennis. I stopped doing a lot of the things I loved.”
For years, Dan adjusted his life around what he believed his shoulder couldn’t handle. He stayed active where he could, avoided overhead lifting, and accepted that some things just weren’t possible anymore.
He later found pickleball — and for a while, it worked.
“The mechanics were different. Everything stayed below the shoulder, and I didn’t have pain. So I thought, okay, this works.”
As his pickleball career grew, so did the demands. More hours on court. More tournaments. More intensity.
Eventually, the shoulder pain came back.
“I hit an overhead during a lesson and my arm went numb. I could barely lift it. I had 20 more hours on court that week and didn’t know how I was going to do it.”
That’s when he realized adjusting and avoiding wasn’t enough anymore.
“I didn’t believe strengthening could fix it.”
Dan was skeptical walking into Made 2 Move.
“What I thought PT was… that’s not what Made 2 Move is.”
In his mind, physical therapy was something people did if they didn’t want surgery — not something that actually fixed the problem. He believed that if surgery wasn’t the option, then stopping or limiting activity was.
Then he met Nicolette.
“She listened to everything — my shoulder history, what I was told before, the beliefs I had. And she told me those beliefs were limiting.”
She explained how strengthening his shoulder — not resting it — could help him get back to doing what he needed to do for his career.
“I didn’t believe it at first. I really didn’t. I couldn’t see how strengthening would fix something I was told was torn.”
But Dan respects expertise — and he’s willing to work.
“So I said, let’s give it a shot. Worst case, I prove myself right. Best case, I’m wrong.”
The work was hard. It wasn’t immediate. But over time, things started to change.
“I went back on court and felt strong. Then I went to the gym and lifted overhead — with no pain. That was the moment.”
“I was told I’d never do that again. And I was doing it.”
“Now I know injuries aren’t the end.”
Just as his shoulder was feeling strong again, Dan suffered a severe hamstring injury during a tournament. He could barely walk.
“I texted and said, great news — my shoulder feels amazing. Bad news — my hamstring is really bad.”
Instead of panic, there was a plan.
“We can get you back,” Nicolette told him.
And she did.
Dan returned to competition, won tournaments, qualified for nationals, and logged over 150 hours on court in a single month — the most of his career.
“My life is dramatically different now. I feel supported. I know if something happens, there’s a way to fix it.”
The biggest change wasn’t just physical — it was mental.
“It’s not surgery or you’re done. You don’t have to stop living life.”
Dan now sees physical therapy as part of maintaining his body and his career.
“I don’t mind investing in something I know gives me value. I want to be able to do this for a long time, and now I feel like I’ve been given the foundation to do that.”
For anyone skeptical, he keeps it simple:
“You can fix your body if you’re willing to put in the work. And at Made 2 Move, they’ll help you do that.”
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