Restore Your Core
Pre-Post Surgery in Indiana
Preparing for Surgery, and Recovering Well Afterward
Whether you have surgery scheduled on your knee, hip, shoulder, or spine — or a hysterectomy, prolapse repair, hernia repair, cesarean birth, or prostate surgery — the weeks before and after your procedure matter.
Restore Your Core Physical Therapy provides individualized prehabilitation and post-surgical physical therapy designed around your specific procedure, your current abilities, and the life you want to get back to.
As a cash-based specialty clinic, you work one-on-one with your Doctor of Physical Therapy for the full duration of every visit. No aides. No rotating between patients. No waiting on insurance authorization to get started. Your plan is built around your recovery, not a payer’s protocol.
We are one of the few practices in central Indiana with clinicians dually trained in orthopedic and pelvic health physical therapy — which means the abdomen, pelvic floor, breath, and bowel and bladder function are part of your rehab conversation from the very first visit, not an afterthought.
Surgeries We Commonly Support
Orthopedic & Spine
- Total and partial joint replacement (knee, hip, shoulder)
- ACL, meniscus, and other knee procedures
- Rotator cuff repair and shoulder stabilization
- Spinal fusion, laminectomy, and discectomy
- Foot, ankle, hand, and wrist procedures
- Tendon and ligament repairs
Pelvic & Abdominal
- Hysterectomy (abdominal, vaginal, laparoscopic, or robotic)
- Pelvic organ prolapse repair, including sacrocolpopexy
- Bladder sling and other continence procedures
- Endometriosis excision
- Myomectomy, ovarian cyst removal, and oophorectomy
- Cesarean birth
- Perineal repair and obstetric injury
- Prostatectomy and other prostate procedures
- Hernia repair (inguinal, umbilical, ventral, hiatal) and diastasis rectus abdominis repair
- Abdominoplasty, DIEP flap reconstruction, and other abdominal wall procedures
- Colorectal and bowel surgery, including ostomy placement or reversal
- Gynecologic, prostate, bladder, and colorectal cancer surgery, including lymph node removal
Don’t see your procedure listed? Reach out — we’re happy to talk through whether therapy is a good fit for your situation.
An Individualized Approach to Surgical Rehab
Recovery is not the same for everyone. Without guidance, it’s common to either push too hard too soon or hold back from movement out of concern for protecting the surgical area. Both can slow you down.
Pelvic and abdominal procedures add another layer. Surgery in this region can affect breathing mechanics, abdominal wall function, pelvic floor coordination, bowel and bladder habits, scar mobility and sensation, comfort with intimacy, and confidence with lifting and exercise. These changes are common — and they are addressable. Many people are told simply to “take it easy for six weeks,” then sent back to full life with no plan for what comes next.
We think you deserve more than that.
Phase 1: Preparing Before Surgery
Prehabilitation focuses on entering surgery as prepared as your circumstances allow, and knowing what to expect on the other side.
Depending on your procedure, your evaluation may look at:
- Joint mobility, muscle strength, and coordination
- Balance, gait, and movement patterns
- Breathing mechanics and how you manage pressure through your abdomen and pelvis
- Pelvic floor muscle strength, coordination, and ability to relax
- Bowel and bladder habits, including constipation patterns
- Abdominal wall function and scar history from prior surgeries
- Baseline measurements for swelling risk, when lymph node removal is planned
Comprehensive Evaluation — We assess the areas relevant to your specific procedure and build an individualized plan from there.
Pelvic Floor and Core Preparation — For pelvic and abdominal procedures, we work on pelvic floor coordination, breath mechanics, and pressure management. This is well established as a preparation strategy before prostatectomy and is increasingly used before gynecologic and abdominal surgery as well.
Targeted Strengthening — Exercises chosen to address strength and endurance around the area being treated, and to prepare you for the demands of recovery.
Manual Therapy and Mobility Work — Hands-on techniques to address mobility restrictions and improve comfort with movement before surgery.
Recovery Rehearsal — We practice the things that will feel hardest in week one: getting in and out of bed, standing from a chair, splinting your incision when you cough or sneeze, using the bathroom without straining, and moving within your surgeon’s precautions. Rehearsing these while you’re comfortable makes them far easier when you’re sore.
Phase 2: Early Recovery
Once you’re cleared by your surgeon, early rehabilitation focuses on helping you move safely and confidently within your surgical guidelines.
Treatment in this phase may address:
- Comfort, swelling, and inflammation management
- Gentle mobility and muscle activation
- Breathing and gentle reconnection with the abdominal wall and pelvic floor
- Safe movement, weight-bearing, and activity progression
- Bowel habits and positioning strategies that reduce straining
- Bladder habits, including urgency or leakage after catheter removal
- Scar care once your incisions are healed and your surgeon has cleared it
- Strategies for daily activities: sleeping, dressing, driving, caring for children, returning to work
Swelling and Lymphatic Care — Our certified lymphedema therapists provide manual lymphatic drainage and complete decongestive therapy, which can be particularly relevant after abdominal or pelvic surgery involving lymph node removal.
Gentle Pelvic Floor and Core Reactivation — Working within your surgical precautions, we help you reconnect with muscles that often feel distant or unresponsive after surgery.
Home Program — Practical, doable exercises to support your progress between visits, always within your surgeon’s guidelines.
Phase 3: Returning to Full Life
As you progress, your rehabilitation advances toward the things that matter to you.
- Restoring range of motion, strength, and motor control
- Building endurance for daily activities
- Progressive loading of the abdominal wall and pelvic floor
- Confidence with lifting, carrying, and impact activity
- Continence and pelvic support under increasing demand
- Comfort with intimacy after pelvic surgery
- Returning to recreational, athletic, or work-specific activity
- An independent program you can carry forward on your own
Scar and Soft Tissue Care — Hands-on and self-care techniques to improve scar mobility, reduce sensitivity, and help numb or tender areas feel like part of your body again.
Progressive Therapeutic Exercise — Graded loading to rebuild strength, coordination, and control for the demands ahead.
Return to Intimacy — After hysterectomy, prolapse repair, perineal injury, prostate surgery, or pelvic radiation, discomfort with intimacy is common and rarely discussed. We address it directly, respectfully, and at your pace.
Functional and Activity-Specific Training — Rehearsing the movements of your work, sport, parenting, or recreation so the return feels like a progression rather than a leap.
Why Surgical Rehab Matters
Individualized care — Your plan reflects your procedure, your abilities, your progress, and your goals, rather than a one-size-fits-all protocol.
Progressive recovery — Your therapist adjusts your program in real time as your strength, mobility, and tolerance improve.
Confidence with movement — Understanding your restrictions, and knowing what is safe, replaces guesswork and hesitation with clarity.
The whole picture — Because our therapists are trained in both orthopedic and pelvic health physical therapy, we can address the hip and the pelvic floor, the incision and the breathing pattern, the strength and the bladder.
A return to what you love — Rehabilitation progresses toward the everyday, recreational, work, or athletic activities that are important to you, guided by your individual recovery and your medical team’s direction.
Available at All Four Indiana Locations
Continuity matters during recovery. Restore Your Core Physical Therapy offers prehabilitation and post-surgical therapy in Brownsburg, Carmel, Greenwood, and West Carmel/Zionsville, so your rehab doesn’t have to pause if your schedule or location changes.
Request an appointment at the location most convenient for you.
Common Questions
What is prehabilitation, exactly? Prehab prepares your body for surgery by addressing strength, mobility, endurance, balance, breathing, and — for pelvic and abdominal procedures — pelvic floor coordination and bowel and bladder habits. It also gives you a clear picture of what recovery will ask of you, so week one is less of a surprise.
When should I start before surgery? That depends on your procedure, your current abilities, and your surgical timeline. Even one or two visits can be worthwhile if your surgery date is close. Your physical therapist can help you determine what makes sense.
When can I start after surgery? Your surgeon sets that timeline, and we work within it. Some people begin gentle work within the first weeks; others wait longer. We’re glad to coordinate with your surgical team.
Do you work with pelvic and abdominal surgeries specifically? Yes. Pelvic health is a core specialty of our practice, not an add-on service. Our therapists hold advanced pelvic health certifications and regularly treat patients recovering from hysterectomy, prolapse repair, cesarean birth, hernia repair, prostatectomy, and abdominal and pelvic cancer surgery.
Does pelvic floor therapy require an internal exam? Not necessarily. An internal assessment can provide useful information, but it is always optional, always explained in advance, and always requires your consent — which you can withdraw at any point. Many patients make meaningful progress with external assessment and treatment alone. You are in charge of what happens in your session.
I had a C-section. Is that a surgery you treat? Yes. A cesarean birth is major abdominal surgery, and it deserves the same rehabilitation attention as any other. Scar mobility and sensation, abdominal wall function, pelvic floor recovery, and returning to lifting and exercise are all things we can help with — whether your surgery was six weeks or six years ago.
I had prostate surgery. Can physical therapy help? Yes. Pelvic floor rehabilitation is a well-established part of recovery after prostatectomy, particularly for urinary continence. Beginning before surgery, when possible, is often recommended.
What about swelling after cancer surgery? We offer manual lymphatic drainage and complete decongestive therapy through our certified lymphedema therapists, which can be relevant after procedures involving lymph node removal.
Do you accept insurance? Restore Your Core Physical Therapy is a cash-based, out-of-network specialty clinic. That means no waiting on insurance authorization, no visit limits set by a payer, and no surprise bills — you know your cost upfront. We provide superbills you can submit to your insurer for potential out-of-network reimbursement, and our services are typically HSA and FSA eligible.
What does a session look like? Every visit is one-on-one with your Doctor of Physical Therapy for the full duration — never split between an aide and a therapist. Comprehensive evaluations are 90 minutes, standard evaluations are 60 minutes, and follow-up visits are 50 minutes. That time lets us move efficiently and adjust your plan as you progress.
Let’s Build Your Recovery Plan
At Restore Your Core Physical Therapy, we believe recovery should be about more than protecting the surgical site. It should be about getting you back to lifting your children, running your route, sleeping comfortably, laughing without leaking, and feeling at home in your body again.
Ready to prepare for surgery or take the next step in your recovery?
As a cash-based clinic, we can get you started quickly — no insurance delays.
Request a consultation at the location nearest you.
Dr. Jordan has always been incredibly helpful, patient, and super supportive in my journey for stronger pelvic floor health. I have noticed such a huge difference in the past few months since starting with her. My lower back pain has improved, and I’m much more aware of the subtle things I need to be doing that make a big impact in the long run. I would most definitely recommend Restore Your Core for any woman – especially post child birth – that are looking to get back to feeling more like themselves!
I highly recommend Restore your Core and especially Jordan! I was feeling very weak in my core after having children, but as a former athlete I figured I could fix things with more training. I’m forever grateful I ended up here even though my symptoms seemed minor. I needed it more than I knew. The manual work Jordan does on my core has changed the visual appearance of my abdomen as well as the feeling, mobility and my posture. I have learned how to engage my deep core with every day activities. I’m looking forward to feeling stronger with running again!