Hauber Method™ Success Stories (from People Like You!)
Below, you'll read heartwarming, inspiring, encouraging, and even astonishing success stories from people of all ages and backgrounds who have relieved their pain by practicing the Hauber Method™.
The program was offered in video format (without personal instruction) for a few years, and some testimonials refer to the use of those videos. The rest of the testimonials below come from students who have attended Hauber Method™ workshops and/or worked with Sara Hauber individually.
The program was offered in video format (without personal instruction) for a few years, and some testimonials refer to the use of those videos. The rest of the testimonials below come from students who have attended Hauber Method™ workshops and/or worked with Sara Hauber individually.
Pain resolved!
I came to Sara's workshop with a nagging pain, and I left without it. What more needs to be said? --Diane N.
I came to Sara's workshop with a nagging pain, and I left without it. What more needs to be said? --Diane N.
Back pain free at age 72 thanks to the Hauber Method™
Dear Sara: I am amazed that my sensitive lower back which has been annoying me with a flare up every few months since the 1990s has been without pain now since I began the Hauber Method™ in February. The time I have spent doing the exercises that you teach us has been so well spent. You teach your Hauber Method™ so clearly and stress doing the exercises with proper form, which is a real key to our success as your students. Your handbook is a treasure trove of useful information. I have been doing the yard work in recent weeks without any pain afterwards! I did not think this was possible for me!
I teach a yoga class once a week to a group of retired women at our rural community center and am so grateful that my back issues no longer disrupt my yoga practice and teaching. I can do sun salutations again without pain after 10 years! Just today one of my friends told me she looks forward to my yoga class each week because I help her understand how to protect her lower back. Thank you for the Hauber Method™, which has taught me what I need to know to heal my back and help others with this common health issue.
--Ellen J.
Dear Sara: I am amazed that my sensitive lower back which has been annoying me with a flare up every few months since the 1990s has been without pain now since I began the Hauber Method™ in February. The time I have spent doing the exercises that you teach us has been so well spent. You teach your Hauber Method™ so clearly and stress doing the exercises with proper form, which is a real key to our success as your students. Your handbook is a treasure trove of useful information. I have been doing the yard work in recent weeks without any pain afterwards! I did not think this was possible for me!
I teach a yoga class once a week to a group of retired women at our rural community center and am so grateful that my back issues no longer disrupt my yoga practice and teaching. I can do sun salutations again without pain after 10 years! Just today one of my friends told me she looks forward to my yoga class each week because I help her understand how to protect her lower back. Thank you for the Hauber Method™, which has taught me what I need to know to heal my back and help others with this common health issue.
--Ellen J.
My pain is alleviated, even after using the first video!
Though I am not technically a fitness professional (yet!), I am a yoga teacher and public health professional. I just want to speak to the unique value and importance of the Hauber Method™.
I have practiced yoga since age 14 (I am 27 now), and I have now developed 2 partially herniated discs in my lower back. My doctors can’t seem to tell me where this could have come from, and I am often told that someone my age “should not” have these physical issues. But, after working with Sara and reading the information she has synthesized into this system, I have come to realize what went wrong. It has simply been a case of NOT ENOUGH STRENGTH, AND TOO MUCH FLEXIBILITY. Over 10+ years, this has translated into a chronic injury.
Now, it took me WAY too many visits with health and fitness professionals to realize this. If, as Sara eloquently states in her blog post "Alone in the Fight to Heal Back Pain Naturally?", I had been given a regimen of targeted strength training and proper stretching by my first physical therapist (or the next one, or the one after that), then I wouldn’t have had to scour the world looking for someone to help me alleviate my pain.
The Hauber Method™ has helped me alleviate my pain, and I have just been working with the first video! I can’t wait to do the entire series, and to move into pain-free living.
I wish there were more fitness, wellness, and health professionals like Sara. --Nina Marie C.
Though I am not technically a fitness professional (yet!), I am a yoga teacher and public health professional. I just want to speak to the unique value and importance of the Hauber Method™.
I have practiced yoga since age 14 (I am 27 now), and I have now developed 2 partially herniated discs in my lower back. My doctors can’t seem to tell me where this could have come from, and I am often told that someone my age “should not” have these physical issues. But, after working with Sara and reading the information she has synthesized into this system, I have come to realize what went wrong. It has simply been a case of NOT ENOUGH STRENGTH, AND TOO MUCH FLEXIBILITY. Over 10+ years, this has translated into a chronic injury.
Now, it took me WAY too many visits with health and fitness professionals to realize this. If, as Sara eloquently states in her blog post "Alone in the Fight to Heal Back Pain Naturally?", I had been given a regimen of targeted strength training and proper stretching by my first physical therapist (or the next one, or the one after that), then I wouldn’t have had to scour the world looking for someone to help me alleviate my pain.
The Hauber Method™ has helped me alleviate my pain, and I have just been working with the first video! I can’t wait to do the entire series, and to move into pain-free living.
I wish there were more fitness, wellness, and health professionals like Sara. --Nina Marie C.
My quickest recovery in 6 years happened because of the Hauber Method™.
Dear Sara: I had a microdiscectomy a year and a half ago. The surgery prevented me from further nerve damage and ‘saved’ my left sciatic nerve. Unfortunately it did not get rid of the pain. Professionals in Poland had mainly suggested exercise, but I was afraid to move because of the past 5 years of my brain learning that movement meant pain. It wasn’t until I was in bed with another hernia that I went back and did a two week intensive physio programme and learned that I need to move. It then took a lot of reminding (of myself) that I not only need to move but keep moving daily.
Finding the right movements and the right professionals is the difficulty. I therefore was thrilled to have found your programme. And like you say, you are living proof (and now so am I), that the programme you offer works. I am now slowly back to being able to work a couple of hours a day and not feel pain at the end of it. I feel stronger and more in control of my health. And when in pain, I know what to do. I had a relapse a week ago, and within a day, the pain subsided, as I did the first Hauber Method™ sessions. That is my quickest recovery from a flare up in 6 years. Thank you for being the lone voice. I hope you get heard more often. A very grateful follower. --Agnieszka
Dear Sara: I had a microdiscectomy a year and a half ago. The surgery prevented me from further nerve damage and ‘saved’ my left sciatic nerve. Unfortunately it did not get rid of the pain. Professionals in Poland had mainly suggested exercise, but I was afraid to move because of the past 5 years of my brain learning that movement meant pain. It wasn’t until I was in bed with another hernia that I went back and did a two week intensive physio programme and learned that I need to move. It then took a lot of reminding (of myself) that I not only need to move but keep moving daily.
Finding the right movements and the right professionals is the difficulty. I therefore was thrilled to have found your programme. And like you say, you are living proof (and now so am I), that the programme you offer works. I am now slowly back to being able to work a couple of hours a day and not feel pain at the end of it. I feel stronger and more in control of my health. And when in pain, I know what to do. I had a relapse a week ago, and within a day, the pain subsided, as I did the first Hauber Method™ sessions. That is my quickest recovery from a flare up in 6 years. Thank you for being the lone voice. I hope you get heard more often. A very grateful follower. --Agnieszka
I don’t know how to thank Sara Hauber enough for helping me transform my life.
Having suffered a debilitating injury that resulted in two severely herniated and ruptured discs in my lumbar spine, along with sciatic pain radiating down both legs, I had felt for nearly three years like I was in my 80’s, rather than in my 30’s. I tried every treatment available: chiropractic, acupuncture, cranio-sacral therapy, massage and deep tissue work, physical therapy, VAX-D decompression therapy – each of which provided minor temporary relief, but never for more than a day or two at a time. I obtained several series of steroid injections in my low back every other month for over two years, and those only lasted a few weeks at a time. Doctors prescribed every painkiller and muscle relaxer available, but I was unable to tolerate the side effects of any medications.
Furthermore, I did not want to become dependent on drugs to get by. After two and a half years of almost daily treatments and constant pain, I finally resorted to surgery, which provided only minimal improvement. I felt my life was over. I was so depressed from having endured such severe levels of pain for so long and having spent so much of my life in various treatments, I was desperate to make it all end.
Then, one day, I heard about Sara’s “Happy Hips and a Healthy Back” workshop at Namaskar Yoga in Chicago. I thought about it for days, but I feared that trying yet another avenue for relief would just be a disappointment like everything else. However, I decided at the last minute to go ahead and give it a chance, and it turned out to be the best decision I could have ever made.
The day of the workshop, I had been having a particularly rough day, and I limped into the yoga studio that day, hunched over, with a pain level of about 8 on a scale of 10. Within the first five minutes of the workshop, however, I was completely amazed when the pain dropped to an almost undetectable level! What a miracle! I was able to stand up straight, and even do strength and balance exercises that I never thought possible. I remember smiling in the middle of the workshop and thinking to myself, “I don’t know if I’ve smiled genuinely like this since before the accident happened [3 years before].”
I signed up for individual training to have Sara come to work with me in my home. During our sessions, she has taught me exercises tailored to my specific physical needs, which vary due to the complexities of the injuries. The exercises are different from any standard physical therapy I had been prescribed by several providers in the past. Sara’s approach has helped me learn to alleviate pain by targeting the muscle groups that become weakened due to overcompensation, as well as understanding how to interpret the signals my body sends me so that I instinctively know which exercises will be most effective at any given time. Now, I feel empowered to treat myself, rather than relying on doctors and alternative therapists to give me expensive and less effective treatments in their offices.
Sara’s cheerful and positive demeanor has served as a real source of motivation for me to approach each day with new hope. I wish there were more people like Sara in the pain management industry, who truly understand what it takes to overcome a live-changing injury. She is one of the most inspiring individuals I’ve ever had the pleasure to know, and I am eternally grateful that she has committed herself to helping people like me. Thank you, thank you, Sara Hauber. --Jennifer H.
Having suffered a debilitating injury that resulted in two severely herniated and ruptured discs in my lumbar spine, along with sciatic pain radiating down both legs, I had felt for nearly three years like I was in my 80’s, rather than in my 30’s. I tried every treatment available: chiropractic, acupuncture, cranio-sacral therapy, massage and deep tissue work, physical therapy, VAX-D decompression therapy – each of which provided minor temporary relief, but never for more than a day or two at a time. I obtained several series of steroid injections in my low back every other month for over two years, and those only lasted a few weeks at a time. Doctors prescribed every painkiller and muscle relaxer available, but I was unable to tolerate the side effects of any medications.
Furthermore, I did not want to become dependent on drugs to get by. After two and a half years of almost daily treatments and constant pain, I finally resorted to surgery, which provided only minimal improvement. I felt my life was over. I was so depressed from having endured such severe levels of pain for so long and having spent so much of my life in various treatments, I was desperate to make it all end.
Then, one day, I heard about Sara’s “Happy Hips and a Healthy Back” workshop at Namaskar Yoga in Chicago. I thought about it for days, but I feared that trying yet another avenue for relief would just be a disappointment like everything else. However, I decided at the last minute to go ahead and give it a chance, and it turned out to be the best decision I could have ever made.
The day of the workshop, I had been having a particularly rough day, and I limped into the yoga studio that day, hunched over, with a pain level of about 8 on a scale of 10. Within the first five minutes of the workshop, however, I was completely amazed when the pain dropped to an almost undetectable level! What a miracle! I was able to stand up straight, and even do strength and balance exercises that I never thought possible. I remember smiling in the middle of the workshop and thinking to myself, “I don’t know if I’ve smiled genuinely like this since before the accident happened [3 years before].”
I signed up for individual training to have Sara come to work with me in my home. During our sessions, she has taught me exercises tailored to my specific physical needs, which vary due to the complexities of the injuries. The exercises are different from any standard physical therapy I had been prescribed by several providers in the past. Sara’s approach has helped me learn to alleviate pain by targeting the muscle groups that become weakened due to overcompensation, as well as understanding how to interpret the signals my body sends me so that I instinctively know which exercises will be most effective at any given time. Now, I feel empowered to treat myself, rather than relying on doctors and alternative therapists to give me expensive and less effective treatments in their offices.
Sara’s cheerful and positive demeanor has served as a real source of motivation for me to approach each day with new hope. I wish there were more people like Sara in the pain management industry, who truly understand what it takes to overcome a live-changing injury. She is one of the most inspiring individuals I’ve ever had the pleasure to know, and I am eternally grateful that she has committed herself to helping people like me. Thank you, thank you, Sara Hauber. --Jennifer H.
Sara: I cannot begin to tell you what a difference your class has made in my life.
The Hauber Method™ has eliminated my lower back problems completely! I believe that because you start from first principles and build up from there, you also give us the tools to understand, evaluate, and correct any future problems we may have. During my 60 years on this planet, I have tried many types of bodywork, yoga, etc., to stop my pain, and I love them all, but the Hauber Method™ is the ONLY thing that has given me lasting relief. The way you teach us how to visualize our body coming into correct alignment has enabled me to finally "feel" what my body needs to stay healthy.
I am telling everyone who will listen about your teachings. You are amazing!!! --Karen F.
The Hauber Method™ has eliminated my lower back problems completely! I believe that because you start from first principles and build up from there, you also give us the tools to understand, evaluate, and correct any future problems we may have. During my 60 years on this planet, I have tried many types of bodywork, yoga, etc., to stop my pain, and I love them all, but the Hauber Method™ is the ONLY thing that has given me lasting relief. The way you teach us how to visualize our body coming into correct alignment has enabled me to finally "feel" what my body needs to stay healthy.
I am telling everyone who will listen about your teachings. You are amazing!!! --Karen F.
Sara, I can't thank you enough. You have taught me so much about how my body works.
For example, it never occurred to me that my back pain might be associated with problems in my legs. Because of your instruction, I now have no back or knee pain, and I can do exercises (even those that used to hurt me) without any pain because I know the correct form. I now love working out. You gave me the courage to challenge myself, and for that I will be forever grateful and will never forget you. Thank you.
--Tina S.
For example, it never occurred to me that my back pain might be associated with problems in my legs. Because of your instruction, I now have no back or knee pain, and I can do exercises (even those that used to hurt me) without any pain because I know the correct form. I now love working out. You gave me the courage to challenge myself, and for that I will be forever grateful and will never forget you. Thank you.
--Tina S.
After 35 years of being a professional musician...
...sitting hunched over the guitar for many hours each day, I grudgingly accepted back pain and stiffness as a constant. In just three classes Sara has given me techniques to alleviate the pain as well as an instinctive knowledge of how to position my spine while playing [guitar] that feels incredibly free and healthy. --David B.
...sitting hunched over the guitar for many hours each day, I grudgingly accepted back pain and stiffness as a constant. In just three classes Sara has given me techniques to alleviate the pain as well as an instinctive knowledge of how to position my spine while playing [guitar] that feels incredibly free and healthy. --David B.
Dear Sara: You have given me hope that having lower back problems ...
does not necessarily mean that Yoga Asanas are out of question. My previous attempts to resume my Yoga practice more or less always ended up in re-injury of my back. [Yoga without Back Pain] is the first series of Yoga classes where my back has not only not been injured, but felt better after class.
Thanks for specializing in the back; I know so many people who could benefit [from your instruction]. --P.J.
does not necessarily mean that Yoga Asanas are out of question. My previous attempts to resume my Yoga practice more or less always ended up in re-injury of my back. [Yoga without Back Pain] is the first series of Yoga classes where my back has not only not been injured, but felt better after class.
Thanks for specializing in the back; I know so many people who could benefit [from your instruction]. --P.J.
Sara's teaching style is appealing and accessible.
She seems to really get what I need and just zone in on giving that to me. I'd been looking for a way to stop my back pain for 5 years, and Sara taught me the way to solve the problem in 2 sessions. Plus, because of her help, I am wearing jeans and tops that had been gathering dust for months. I could not have done this without you, Sara Hauber! --Alicia S.
I learned more from Sara in 30 minutes than in several weeks of OT and PT
I have been working with both an occupational therapist (OT) and physical therapist (PT) for many weeks to help with my arm, shoulder, upper back, and neck pain. Their treatment plan just wasn't working. My pain, which I’d been living with for 2 years, wasn't getting any better.
In just one 30-minute session with Sara Hauber, she showed me several stretches and exercises to help with the painful areas, and she spent considerable time making sure my posture, form, and technique were correct. I could feel an improvement in my body immediately. Unlike the PT and OT appointments, I finally felt like the work I was doing was impacting the specific areas causing me pain. Plus, I felt better after the session instead of worse. It was a revelation. I am excited to continue learning from Sara so my body can start feeling some relief instead of feeling stuck in pain. Thank you, Sara! --Laura S.
I have been working with both an occupational therapist (OT) and physical therapist (PT) for many weeks to help with my arm, shoulder, upper back, and neck pain. Their treatment plan just wasn't working. My pain, which I’d been living with for 2 years, wasn't getting any better.
In just one 30-minute session with Sara Hauber, she showed me several stretches and exercises to help with the painful areas, and she spent considerable time making sure my posture, form, and technique were correct. I could feel an improvement in my body immediately. Unlike the PT and OT appointments, I finally felt like the work I was doing was impacting the specific areas causing me pain. Plus, I felt better after the session instead of worse. It was a revelation. I am excited to continue learning from Sara so my body can start feeling some relief instead of feeling stuck in pain. Thank you, Sara! --Laura S.
Dear Sara: My experience with other people in professions similar to yours has not been positive, save one.
I had physical therapy for my back a few years ago, and my therapist at the time was very helpful. His mantra was much like yours in that prevention was key and doing the stretches regularly was key to a pain-free life.
From you, I expected to learn some basic exercises and stretches that would help me reduce the pain I felt in my knee. To be honest I was a little skeptical.
But what I gained in 3 sessions was a world of knowledge that has helped me in ways I hadn't expected in such a short period of time.
As an example, I will refer to the "hurting of my back" incident two weeks ago. I've suffered from back pain for years and when I throw my back out I'm usually on the floor for several days.
However, while on my back, I forced myself to do several of the movements that you described during the first two sessions. I found that my recovery period was shorter and I was able to walk in a shorter time span. I'm not saying it was a miracle, but I am saying that because of what you taught me I was able to keep my muscles engaged so they wouldn't stiffen and cause more trouble for me.
I've also found that by doing the exercises and the stretches as you showed, the pain in my knee has lessened.
Would I recommend your work to others? Definitely.
Thank you for everything, Sara. --David P.
I had physical therapy for my back a few years ago, and my therapist at the time was very helpful. His mantra was much like yours in that prevention was key and doing the stretches regularly was key to a pain-free life.
From you, I expected to learn some basic exercises and stretches that would help me reduce the pain I felt in my knee. To be honest I was a little skeptical.
But what I gained in 3 sessions was a world of knowledge that has helped me in ways I hadn't expected in such a short period of time.
As an example, I will refer to the "hurting of my back" incident two weeks ago. I've suffered from back pain for years and when I throw my back out I'm usually on the floor for several days.
However, while on my back, I forced myself to do several of the movements that you described during the first two sessions. I found that my recovery period was shorter and I was able to walk in a shorter time span. I'm not saying it was a miracle, but I am saying that because of what you taught me I was able to keep my muscles engaged so they wouldn't stiffen and cause more trouble for me.
I've also found that by doing the exercises and the stretches as you showed, the pain in my knee has lessened.
Would I recommend your work to others? Definitely.
Thank you for everything, Sara. --David P.
I can sit without pain, and that never happened before!
I had a 2-day seminar where sitting the whole day was on the agenda. I was dreading it. I had just seen your [Session 1] video and had all the elements of proper form in my mind. I spent both days seated BUT putting great attention into my form. And it worked! I escaped the weekend seminar without back pain, and that never happens. --Hauber Method™ pilot program tester
I had a 2-day seminar where sitting the whole day was on the agenda. I was dreading it. I had just seen your [Session 1] video and had all the elements of proper form in my mind. I spent both days seated BUT putting great attention into my form. And it worked! I escaped the weekend seminar without back pain, and that never happens. --Hauber Method™ pilot program tester
Sara: Your back care workshop series was a revelation to me!
The knowledge you impart is indispensable to a wise practice of yoga, whether you are young or older, whether you have back problems or not. --Anna W.
The knowledge you impart is indispensable to a wise practice of yoga, whether you are young or older, whether you have back problems or not. --Anna W.
Sara is the real deal.
She has figured out what really causes most back pain (posture, muscle strength, proper muscle use) and how to address it. As a former massage therapist, I’ve had many clients ask me how to strengthen their back and avoid recurrent back pain. I never knew exactly what to tell them, but Sara has figured it out. Now I point everyone with back or hip pain in her direction. Her postures are simple but challenging and they really work. --Paula L.
She has figured out what really causes most back pain (posture, muscle strength, proper muscle use) and how to address it. As a former massage therapist, I’ve had many clients ask me how to strengthen their back and avoid recurrent back pain. I never knew exactly what to tell them, but Sara has figured it out. Now I point everyone with back or hip pain in her direction. Her postures are simple but challenging and they really work. --Paula L.
Sara: Thank you for your wonderful workshop "You Really Can Be Back Pain Free."
As a runner, I find that a lot of the exercises and stretches you taught will reduce my risk of injury. As a personal trainer and fitness manager, I have already implemented some of what I learned into my own practice. I would love to send my staff to you for further training in the future. Thank you so much for your instruction and enthusiasm. --Carolyn M.
As a runner, I find that a lot of the exercises and stretches you taught will reduce my risk of injury. As a personal trainer and fitness manager, I have already implemented some of what I learned into my own practice. I would love to send my staff to you for further training in the future. Thank you so much for your instruction and enthusiasm. --Carolyn M.
Sara's humor and information provide the best combination for me to learn something.
She always gives me some new information, then demonstrates it in a way that’s easy to understand and remember. I love her format of giving a clear image of what is going on when we do something that can hurt us, then showing us how to do it correctly and why. Sara’s combination of humor, extensive knowledge, and practical moves I can do to keep my back whole and healthy are awesome. --Carol C.
She always gives me some new information, then demonstrates it in a way that’s easy to understand and remember. I love her format of giving a clear image of what is going on when we do something that can hurt us, then showing us how to do it correctly and why. Sara’s combination of humor, extensive knowledge, and practical moves I can do to keep my back whole and healthy are awesome. --Carol C.
Sara is amazing!
If I could recommend her to everyone, I would. Her [back care] methods give real results you can feel instantly. --Rachael S.
If I could recommend her to everyone, I would. Her [back care] methods give real results you can feel instantly. --Rachael S.
Sara: I just started yoga and am so happy that I took your workshop early on ...
so I won't hurt my back by following the [false] assumption that all yoga is good for your back.
It was also great to learn about the other parts of my body that are tight and contribute to my back pain. I started this process thinking my back pain was centered in my back, and that yoga would help me. I left your class understanding how I need to modify traditional yoga and expand my practice beyond the back! --Eric H.
so I won't hurt my back by following the [false] assumption that all yoga is good for your back.
It was also great to learn about the other parts of my body that are tight and contribute to my back pain. I started this process thinking my back pain was centered in my back, and that yoga would help me. I left your class understanding how I need to modify traditional yoga and expand my practice beyond the back! --Eric H.
Yoga teachers need Sara.
If yoga instructors would take her courses as part of their training, we would have fewer hip and back injuries. --Joy M.
If yoga instructors would take her courses as part of their training, we would have fewer hip and back injuries. --Joy M.
Now doing cartwheels!
I dragged myself [to Sara's workshop] while experiencing great pain in my low back, hips, legs, and entire midsection, but sauntered out an hour later feeling like I could do cartwheels!!! My entire mood and outlook changed as well. --Jenn H.
I dragged myself [to Sara's workshop] while experiencing great pain in my low back, hips, legs, and entire midsection, but sauntered out an hour later feeling like I could do cartwheels!!! My entire mood and outlook changed as well. --Jenn H.