Annie O’Connor
PT, OCS, Cert. MDT
is founder and CEO of World of Hurt LLC a company dedicated to the teaching, research, consulting and clinical practice of Pain Mechanism Classification System for pain related disability. Annie has co-authored 2019, Pain Mechanism Classification Chapter, in the Rehabilitation of The Spine: A Patient Center Approach 3e, Liebenson C (ed) with Wolters Kluwer Philadelphia publisher. She co-authored 2017, Therapeutic Exercise Chapter, in the Orthopedic Knowledge Update Spine 5, with the American Academy for Orthopedic Surgeons publisher. This chapter is dedicated to Medical Doctors application of pain mechanism classification and the importance of therapeutic exercise selection for pain related disability. She co-authored 2015 book “A World of Hurt: A Guide to Classifying Pain” and September 2016 Journal Article in the Journal of Manual and Manipulative Therapy “Validation of a pain mechanism classification system (PMCS) in physical therapy practice.” Both publications offer a research supported “paradigm shift” in managing musculoskeletal pain promoting effective and efficient outcomes with significant cost savings. Annie is co-authoring a book “World of Hurt: Treat Your Own Pain” where the focus is educating people who suffer persistent pain identify their dominating pain mechanisms and reduce their suffering with education, movement and healthy lifestyle eating plans. Annie is an Orthopedic Clinical Specialist (OCS) of the American Physical Therapy Association and has a Certification in Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy in the McKenzie Method (Cert. MDT). Annie is a sought out speaker and teacher nationally and internationally on musculoskeletal pain mechanism classification, neurodynamic evaluation and treatment, mechanical diagnosis and therapy of spine and extremities, kinetic chain evaluation, functional manual therapy and exercise prescription. She was instrumental in establishing the Pain Mechanism Classification System approach for musculoskeletal pain and neurological spasticity at the Shirley Ryan Ability Lab formerly known as the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. She is a member of American Physical Therapy Association orthopedic and canine section, the North American Spine Society exercise committee, and McKenzie Institute. Annie sits on the Advisory Board for Greentree Mind Company, Specialty Panel Member for Physical Therapy with AIM Specialty Healthcare Company, and Research and Advisory Board for My Abilities a Health Care data analytics company. Annie continues to treat orthopedic, neurological patients, and canines with pain to achieve the best life possible
Melissa Watson
MSPT, Cert. MDT
received her Master’s in Physical Therapy and her Bachelor’s in Exercise Physiology from Ohio University. Melissa has over 19 years of clinical experience in neurological physical therapy rehabilitation specializing in pain, spasticity, and functional return. Melissa is a certified clinical instructor where she mentors clinicians of all disciplines and students in physical therapy. Melissa is certified in Mechanical Diagnosis and Treatment – McKenzie Method, a member of North American Spine Society Exercise Committee and is a recognized leader in small group Women Leadership Groups. She is an instructor of the World of Hurt Courses: Pain Mechanism Classification System and uses both sub grouping methods exclusively in her neurological clinical practice. She has an interest in musculoskeletal pain, spasticity and applying both pain classification and MDT principles within the neurological population.