Reviews

“Thank you, Secili and Optimal Motion PT for seeing the potential in my ability to heal that surpassed what I dared to dream! I came to Secili after seven years in a wheelchair with a highly complicated medical history and little lasting progress under the care of five other physical therapists. I was frail, weak, fatigued, and the future looked bleak. Unlike so many medical professionals, Secili looked past the diagnosis on my prescription and saw me as a whole person in need of healing. On days I had appointments with Secili, my husband could see that I was more joyful and energetic. She has consistently been an encourager, motivator, cheerleader, advocate, and cared for me like a family member. At the beginning of 2020, Secili had helped me begin walking on the treadmill and a pace of one mile in 45 minutes was miraculous. Once the impacts of COVID began, I was concerned that I would lose much of the progress I had made. Secili encouraged me to do circuit training twice a week in her office, while continuing to walk and hike with my husband. While few patients were coming into the office, the staff at Optimal Motion welcomed my husband to workout alongside me to provide extra motivation. By the summer, I ran my first 5k in less than 40 minutes and my doctors were shocked. Although I still have medical challenges, I’m in the best shape of my life, and working out is now one of my passions. Thank you, Secili and Optimal Motion for coming alongside me on this journey of healing, as I know that God brought all of you into my life when I needed hope and healing the most!”

– Lindsey M.

I was having bladder pain, chronic pain, nerve pain down my legs and hip and SI dysfunction. My life has improved because Secili brings joy to all who know her. I feel more hopeful about my chronic pain and my fitness moving forward. Secili is amazing! She is empathetic yet extremely knowledgable about all different facets of PT. She is like a true wonder in the field…she looks at so many aspects of the body to help try to find the underlying cause of your pain, not just want the doctor may have noticed. She is always so positive and encouraging and helps remind you that things will get better! Secili is such an amazing PT who looks at the “whole person” including their different biomechanics, diets, supplements, etc. and their situations into consideration when she is recommending a course of treatment. I have recommended her to my family members and closest friends. She is really the Cream de la Cream!

– Kelly T.

I started seeing Secili shortly after the birth of my 2nd child. I had developed hip problems that impacted everything I did – from carrying my children around, to walking around, to even sitting comfortably. Over the course of several months, I saw Secili regularly. She took a broader view of my pain and determined that the hip was not really the problem. Secili worked to rebalance areas that pregnancy had thrown off, which in turn, resolved my hip problems, as well as other problems I didn’t even realize I had. Since working with Secili, I have completed 5 marathons, several half marathons, and logged countless miles on the roads and trails. I would recommend Secili to anyone in need of PT. She will work with you to figure out a tailored plan to improve your mobility, pain, etc. She truly cares about her patients and is wonderful to work with.

– Courtney F.

I began seeing Secili in Spring of 2017 as a last ditch effort to treat my right hip. After an unsuccessful surgery for hip impingement and a labral tear in 2012 I was left with more pain than I’d had pre-surgery. By the time I began seeing Secili, I’d been in and out of physical therapy for years and tried everything from platelet rich plasma to acupuncture to regular massage to treat the flare-ups that seemed to happen every couple months no matter how diligent I was about keeping my hip and the rest of my body active and strong. Though I’d seen some really fantastic physical therapists, no one could seem to get to the bottom of why my hip pain continued to flare up despite the incredible amount of time and energy I’d been spending trying to control the pain. When I first saw Secili and she suggested my pelvic floor might be involved in my hip pain, I wasn’t sold on the idea since I didn’t have any of what I consider to be the typical signs and symptoms. However, within a month of weekly visits using dry needling and ultrasound guidance to assist me in finding and firing the correct muscles with a focus on the pelvic floor I couldn’t believe how much better the entire right side of my body felt. Secili is efficient, thoughtful, and fully engaged every time we meet. She listens to me and takes into account my ideas about my body and treatment, but is not afraid to offer other ideas if she disagrees. She makes herself accessible by text or phone between appointments if I need her and I can tell she gives thought to my case between sessions. But the best evidence Secili’s skill is the fact that 7 years after surgery I finally no longer need weekly physical therapy! I feel so lucky to have found her and had her as a partner in my recovery.

– Rosemary C.

To say that Secili has changed my life, is no understatement. If you are battling core issues, pelvic floor troubles, or hypermobility, I cannot recommend a better provider. I started seeing her for physical therapy about 5 years ago after the birth of my first child and a recent back injury. I saw numerous other providers and was even considering surgery. Secili quickly diagnosed muscle imbalances and trigger points located elsewhere in my spine and treated me with a combination of exercises and dry needling. I was back on my feet within a month with no more debilitating pain! I’ve continued to see Secili over the years to address both acute and chronic issues and have had so much success. I’m now exercising daily and on my way to building fitness. I totally credit Secili for helping me live a pain-free and healthy life!

– Catherine C.

My neck pain brought me to Dr DeStefano. The therapy and treatment she provided was amazing! My life has improved because I’ve learned how I can heal my body. Dr DeStefano is knowledgeable and she gave caring care. And I had fun… all while my pain and strength improved! I learned so much from my experience with Dr. DeStefano.

– Angelika R.

Secili has been the best decision of a physical therapist I could make. My scoliosis and degenerative disc disease were painful and limiting my quality of life. Secili has worked hard on multiple therapeutic approaches to find what is best and an individualized treatment program. I would highly recommend her. She treats be entire patient rather than a particular body part.

– Barbara J.

I tore my rectus abdominus from my pubic bone a little over a year ago and have had two surgeries to repair. I have continued having pain and issues while diligently performing exercises and seeking treatment from 3-4 different Physical Therapists and 2 Chiropractors. What’s I’ve learned is that, unfortunately, most practitioners don’t know the core muscles well enough to actually help… they told me to do planks, and so I did planks… but most just don’t have the level of experience to specifically recognize the intricacies of using the correct muscles (and using them correctly!) I finally found Secili DeStefano. I could tell after a single visit that this lady KNOWS what she is doing, (and that I’ve wasted the past year with every other therapist I’ve seen 🙁 …) I never really understood until now how important it is to find the right doctors… they just aren’t all created equally! She is extremely detailed in her instructions, personable, helpful, accommodating, passionate about what she does… you name it. I can’t say enough good things about her. In summary, my personal experience with the injury has been a long and challenging year. I have still not fully recovered but I feel I would have had much more success if I had found a better physical therapist right off the bat. I HIGHLY recommend trying to get in to see Secili DeStefano specifically.

– Dan P.

Matt’s running assessment was incredibly helpful to keep me from injuring myself over and over again. It’s a friendly atmosphere and hugely improved my issues. Highly recommended.

– K.W.

“I don’t know if I can run on the track at the gym. I’ll be the slowest runner there. What if I have to stop and catch my breath? This jogging takes forever. Trying to get my six mile run down below 9 minutes per mile is never going to happen, even if I can complete the six miles. Maybe I should take up swimming. I am 46 and getting up there and maybe I’ll never be able to run like I used to. My feet and ankles hurt so much!! One running analysis and six weeks later after learning my left leg was crossing over the middle plane of my body when it landed, my right arm was swinging out of alignment, my hip flexors were weak, and some simple stretching and strengthening exercises as well as minor attention to alignment and form, and listen to me my inner dialogue now: “I can’t believe I can do a six mile run below 8 minutes per mile. I couldn’t even do that in college. I love running around the track now. Haven’t been beaten yet. And it is so easy to do! I can do 7 miles now, sometimes 8. I can even have dessert now 🙂 No pain in the feet and ankles. So light on my feet – I feel like I’m floating rather than running. Did someone say half marathon?? And age? Just a number :)” Thanks, Matt for the Running Analysis. It has made such a huge difference in my running and I truly look forward to the track each day!!

– Lisa M.

I had the best overall experience with Matt Barnes in Reston!

 1. The therapy: I drove all the way to Reston from North Arlington because I had heard that Matt Barnes can heal hamstrings. I had chronic hamstring pain in both hamstrings and could not even sit at the point I had seen Matt Barnes. I had had therapy on it before, as well as dry needling, and it did not work. I finally saw Dr. Amanda Trucksess, whom I love, and who finally referred me to Matt Barnes. (It was a coincidence that friends had told me about she knew him and I had heard of him already.) Dr. Truckess expected that I would eventually need PRP therapy because my condition was so chronic and long-lasting. She did not expect that physical therapy would be successful and told me that PRP was definitely a viable solution if and when the physical therapy failed. Due to the cost of PRP, I decided to try physical therapy anyway because of what I had heard about Matt. I am so happy I did! Indeed, Matt ended up helping me be able to sit, then sit longer, then have little to no pain with a combination of therapy, exercise, and needling. Because Matt is a runner and athlete, as I am, he understood my physiology and movements completely and knew exactly where to put the needles. His needling was very effective. I was also committed to the exercises he gave me.

ADDED BENEFIT: my rear grew bigger! My friend recently stopped me and said “I noticed you are carrying more junk in your trunk…in a good way!” I would not say I am JLo, but I do notice my jeans are tighter in the back! I could not believe it was noticeable! So, anyone who wants that “almost” JLo look without surgical intervention, can start to go in that direction with tips from Matt Barnes! Lol!

 2. Appointments: Perhaps the initial appointment was slightly difficult to obtain, however after the initial appointment, I had a very easy time of setting regular appointments with quite a few available times for my convenience. I even had limitations in that I only wanted Matt Barnes, so I expected it to be very difficult to make appointments. On the contrary, when I have gone to other physical therapy offices, I have had a much more difficult time securing appointments and waited an inordinate amount of time for my initial appointments at other facilities. I did not have that experience here …on the contrary, I pleasantly surprised.

– Inga M.