Shockwave Therapy: Your Questions, Answered Straight

High-energy acoustic pressure waves delivered through the skin into the tissue underneath. The body reads that controlled stimulus as a fresh injury and reopens the healing process that stalled out. Nothing is injected and nothing is cut. It is sometimes called ESWT (extracorporeal shockwave therapy) or EPAT.

No. Those deliver far lower energy and are generally used to manage symptoms during a session. Shockwave delivers enough mechanical energy to provoke a biological response in the tissue. It’s a different category of treatment, which is also why it feels different.

Shockwave uses acoustic pressure waves and is targeted to a specific structure. EMTT uses high-energy magnetic pulses that pass painlessly through an entire joint or region, reaching depth and volume that shockwave can’t. We use them together because they do different jobs.

Most clinics that offer shockwave own one machine and use it on everything. We use focused shockwave, radial pressure waves and EMTT, because a deep hip problem and a surface-level tendon problem don’t respond to the same tool. Having the choice is what lets us match the device to the tissue.

You’ll feel a firm, deep thumping — most clients describe it as intense but tolerable, and we adjust intensity throughout. Treatment on the area lasts about 5 to 10 minutes. Some soreness for a day or two afterward is normal and is actually part of the healing response.

Usually 20 to 30 minutes door to door. The shockwave portion is the short part; the rest is assessment and the hands-on work that goes with it.

None. You drive yourself home and go back to your day. We usually ask you to avoid high-impact activity for 24 to 48 hours after each session so the healing response isn’t interrupted.

In most cases yes, with adjustments. We’d rather modify your training than stop it — but we’ll tell you honestly if continuing to load the tissue is the reason it hasn’t healed.

Clothing that gives us access to the area being treated. If you’ve had imaging — X-ray, MRI, ultrasound — bring the report. It genuinely changes the conversation.

Most conditions respond in 4 to 6 sessions, typically once a week. Longstanding or deeper problems sometimes need more. You’ll get a realistic number when we speak — before you commit to anything.

Many clients notice a change within 2 to 3 sessions. Because shockwave works by rebuilding tissue rather than numbing pain, the biggest improvements often continue for weeks after the final session.

When shockwave works, it works by changing the tissue, so the result isn’t on a timer the way a cortisone shot is. What it can’t do is protect you from whatever caused the problem in the first place. That’s the part your plan has to address.

That happens, and we’d rather say so now than after you’ve paid for six sessions. If you’re not responding, we stop and reassess rather than selling you more of the same. Sometimes the answer is a different tool, and sometimes it’s a referral to someone else.

Almost always. Shockwave restarts healing; loading the tissue correctly is what makes the repair durable. You’re seeing a Doctor of Physical Therapy, so that plan comes as part of it rather than as an upsell.

For appropriate candidates it’s a well-tolerated, non-invasive treatment. The common side effects are short-lived: soreness, redness or minor swelling in the treated area for a day or two. It avoids the risks that come with injections and surgery because nothing enters the body.

Shockwave is generally not appropriate over active infection or open wounds, over a known tumour, in people on blood thinners or with a bleeding disorder, during pregnancy, or directly over growth plates in children. We screen all of this before we ever treat you.

It depends on what and where, and it’s exactly the kind of thing that gets decided on examination rather than over the internet. Tell us when you call and we’ll give you a straight answer before you come in.

Yes, and we do. If your problem is structural in a way shockwave can’t reach, or if the honest answer is that you need an orthopaedic opinion, we’ll tell you on the first visit and point you where you should actually go. We’d rather lose the case than sell you sessions that won’t help.

We are a cash-pay, out-of-network clinic by design — it’s what lets you get an hour with an actual doctor instead of 15 minutes and a visit cap. Most insurers don’t cover shockwave anyway. We give you the full cost up front, and we can provide documentation for HSA/FSA or out-of-network reimbursement.

Because the honest answer depends on what you’ve got and how many sessions it needs, and a number on a page without that context is just bait. Ask us and we’ll tell you the whole figure on the phone, including whether we think it’s worth it in your case.

In most cases yes. We’ll give you documentation you can submit. Check with your plan administrator, since rules vary.

No. We’ll tell you what a realistic course looks like, but we don’t push prepaid blocks of sessions on people who haven’t started treatment yet.

Most commonly plantar fasciitis and heel pain, Achilles tendinopathy, knee pain and osteoarthritis, hip and glute tendon pain, shoulder pain including calcific tendinitis, tennis and golfer’s elbow, hand and wrist pain, low back and muscle pain, shin splints and calf problems, and bones that aren’t healing. Each of those has its own page on this site.

Longstanding problems are the ones shockwave is designed for. A tendon that has been painful for two years is usually a tendon whose healing process stopped, not one that’s still injured. Restarting it is the whole point of the treatment.

Yes. Part of what you’re paying for is the examination. We’d rather work out what’s actually wrong than treat the label somebody else put on it.

No. There are clinics locally that do, and it’s a different service with different equipment and protocols. Everything we do is musculoskeletal — tendons, joints, muscle and bone.

Not usually. Many of our clients come to us after cortisone wore off. Bring your imaging and reports and we’ll give you a straight assessment of whether shockwave is a realistic option for your case. There’s a full comparison of the two on our Shockwave vs. Cortisone page.

Sometimes yes, sometimes no, and it depends entirely on what the surgery is for. If you have a mechanical problem that needs fixing mechanically, shockwave won’t fix it and we’ll say so. Our Shockwave vs. Surgery page walks through where each one wins.

They’re aiming at a similar goal by different means — one provokes the healing response from outside, the other introduces material. Cost, invasiveness and evidence differ. We compare them honestly on the Shockwave vs. PRP & Stem Cell page, including where injections are the better choice.

No, and it isn’t a replacement for physical therapy either. Shockwave restarts a stalled healing process; rehab rebuilds capacity so it holds. Clinics that only own the device give you half of that. Our Shockwave vs. Physical Therapy page explains the difference.

861 Harold Place, Unit 307, Chula Vista, CA 91914 — just off Eastlake, with free parking directly outside the clinic. Call or text (619) 397-1391.

Monday to Thursday, 9:00am to 6:00pm. Friday, 8:00am to 5:00pm. Closed Saturday and Sunday.

Yes — Kearny Mesa, at 8911 Complex Drive, Suite F, San Diego, CA 92123. Note your preference on the inquiry form and we’ll book you wherever is easier for you.

No. California is a direct-access state, so you can see a physical therapist without a physician’s referral.

We come back to you within one business day. You’ll get a real conversation — whether shockwave is likely to help your specific problem, what a course involves, exactly what it costs, and whether something else would serve you better.