Body Temple Physical Therapy is an integrative physical therapy practice providing wellness through concierge, slow medicine. We are a cash pay, private practice model, working outside of the traditional insurance-based health care system in Oakland, California. Our vision is to help clients regain their trust in their body's innate ability to self heal.
We value whole body health, including the mental and spiritual, and understand that the layers are interconnected and cannot be separated from our physical health. Our mission is to combine traditional physical therapy modalities with complementary and alternative modalities (CAM) such as yoga as a tool to realize whole body health.
We value whole body health, including the mental and spiritual, and understand that the layers are interconnected and cannot be separated from our physical health. Our mission is to combine traditional physical therapy modalities with complementary and alternative modalities (CAM) such as yoga as a tool to realize whole body health.
Services
We do not participate with any insurance programs. We do provide Superbills upon request, for clients with HSA and FSA accounts. Body Temple PT is considered wellness, prevention, and fitness intervention, not Traditional Physical Therapy, and treatments include services which are not covered by most insurance companies.
I went to see my very gifted physical therapist friend Liz Gillem Duncanson at Body Temple Physical Therapy and Yoga for a treatment on Tuesday for my piriformis syndrome. What I received was a full body, mind, spirit healing. My mind was blown by her knowledge and perception. The work we did was deep on many levels.
Support your at-home practice by creating a sacred space with physical props to encourage regular physical and mental self-care practices. Please be sure to read our Exercise Ball Size Guide to ensure that you purchase the correct ball. Disclaimer: Body Temple PT provides links to online products and medical devices sold by retailers such as Amazon.
Reviews (20)
J. L.
Jun 25, 2020
Report
This is a telehealth review.
Went to see Liz before covid, she was absolutely amazing. I've been through a lot of PTs / health practitioners and her effectiveness and incisiveness blows all of them out of the water. You know how occasionally in life you meet someone who is a genuine genius at something? I was so excited to keep working with her when quarantine happened.
I put off booking a telehealth appointment for 3 months, even though my condition was getting worse & killing me, because I thought there was no possible way it could work. I was like, PT isn't like other types
Went to see Liz before covid, she was absolutely amazing. I've been through a lot of PTs / health practitioners and her effectiveness and incisiveness blows all of them out of the water. You know how occasionally in life you meet someone who is a genuine genius at something? I was so excited to keep working with her when quarantine happened.
I put off booking a telehealth appointment for 3 months, even though my condition was getting worse & killing me, because I thought there was no possible way it could work. I was like, PT isn't like other types
Rebecca N.
Apr 27, 2020
Report
I've been seeing Liz for years and when I hurt my leg this week I knew she'd be able to help. Sure enough after 5 minutes on our video call she knew what was wrong, explained the muscles involved, and gave me exercises to help. I wasn't sure how PT was going to work on video but Liz's intuition and smarts work just as well online!
Julia S.
Feb 11, 2020
Report
Liz is an incredible physical therapist. My appointments usually are a combination of an assessment of what's going on in my body, some exercises, and massage and cupping. I have become significantly stronger since starting to work with Liz, and my back went from being in pain all of the time, to very rare occasional flare ups that I now know how to deal with and resolve within a couple days. She is warm and supportive and I keep learning about anatomy and what's going on in my body from her! I cannot recommend her enough.
Howard A.
Oct 18, 2019
Report
Ann S.
Jun 27, 2019
Report
I went to Liz for help with a degenerated disk in my neck and joint pain in my knees. I've been dealing with this pain for several years, and have seen 2 other physical therapists who were not helpful. I had resigned myself to living with pain when Liz was recommended to me by a friend, and after only 3 sessions with her I can see why people say working with her is life changing. Liz starts with basics, rebuilding your body starting with your core posture and spinal alignment. She incorporates more traditional physical therapy exercises with breathing and yoga using an approach that has guided
Sylvie S.
Dec 08, 2018
Report
After years of looking for the person who will bring some relief to my hip pain, Liz brought healing right away. She however did not only look at my physical body, but gave me breathing technics to gently soothe the nervous system and start a much deeper recovery. She has since helped me with the many wounds of over- or improperly exercising, starting by looking at what and how I got there, offering different ways to do the same yoga pause or daily movement I had done poorly for too long, as well as exercises to do at home, finishing by massaging very cleverly the damaged location, and comforting
Jason Hardage
Dec 02, 2018
Report
Tianna Meriage Reiter
Sep 08, 2018
Report
I've worked with Liz both one on one and have attended her Yoga Therapeutics to Cultivate a Sustainable Core workshop. As a fellow PT, yoga therapist, I have great respect for Liz. She is a wealth of knowledge and insight. She has really mastered the art of blending both Western and Eastern medicine. Highly recommend attending one of her workshops so you can get the chance to learn from her too!
Maria S.
Oct 10, 2017
Report
Liz is so good at what she does and she makes the time go so fast! I walked out feeling great and optimistic about my recovery. I showed up with the assessment from my MRI scans from a dislocated shoulder. It was a series of mumbo-jumbo medical lingo that made no sense to me. Liz got out the shoulder sculpture and explained what each of the terms meant. She then had me do a series of exercises which were fun, in order to see where my shoulder was at. It was the fastest hour and a half. What struck me about working with Liz is how present she is. You definitely do not feel like a number or that
Sirena Masket
Sep 11, 2017
Report
I collect wonderful healers and I can honestly say that Liz is one of the best all around practitioners I have ever worked with. She has an insane body of knowledge and an incredible inside-out understanding of the body. She has helped get to the bottom of my body issues in 15 minutes of watching me move and asking good questions, that doctor appointments and MRIs couldn't resolve. She has helped me tremendously with her hands on work, and has given me simple exercises to work on at home that have helped me to transform my life-long body issues. I can't say enough about how special she is. She
Cate L.
Dec 31, 2016
Report
No exaggeration, Liz has changed my life. She does the best body work I've ever had, but the biggest thing is that she's helped me understand how to maintain a neutral spine so that I am not constantly injuring myself through bad posture. When we started working together I was so tight in certain areas/ weak in others that it was hard to even hold good posture for short periods, but I have made big steps through the exercises Liz prescribed and through increased awareness of how my body moves. Thank you Liz!
Katherine F.
Dec 02, 2016
Report
Wow! Liz is an incredible physical therapist. We met in a Yoga Teacher Training and I came out to Oakland to work on some tension/mobility issues. Her vast knowledge of anatomy is extremely impressive and she is able to locate the source of pain with precision and care. She is extremely deliberate during sessions and makes the absolute most of your time together. In one session, Liz was able to help me release tension in my muscles with bodywork, cupping, and exercises. I left the session feeling like not a minute was wasted and with exercises to continue practicing on my own. I cannot recommend
Dene J.
Mar 18, 2014
Report
I have had chronic pain and serious body issues for 14 years. About a year and a half ago, after seeing PTs for over 10 years I lost hope. I felt I had tried everything: dietary changes, meds, holistic care, acupuncture, yoga, etc. I was at a loss and in complete despair. Soon after, I found Liz and have been hooked ever since. She has taught me how to retrain my body with breath, movement, yoga therapy, and she is the only massage therapist to do body work on me and not flare me up! I am now practicing yoga and exercising around 5 times a week and, albeit not pain free, I have a significant reduction
Joan G.
Jan 19, 2014
Report
Liz is very talented. She diagnosed the cause of my back/hip pain, applied massage and cupping, and suggested very effective exercises. I'm not keen on exercises, but these were so effective that I was willing to do them. If you are looking for a solution to your problem, she's the one you should see! Very highly recommended!
Iris R.
Jan 07, 2012
Report
I send everyone I know to Liz, because she's amazing at what she does.
I was able to recover from two herniated discs in record time. I was able to sustain a healthy weight throughout my pregnancy and "bounce-back" to a non-pregnant body faster than anyone I've seen. I have been able to change my perspective on exercise and fitness (used to be a yucky chore, now a fun way to spend my time).
All of this happened because of Liz, and because of her knowledgeable advice and sunny attitude towards "fixing" me.
I was able to recover from two herniated discs in record time. I was able to sustain a healthy weight throughout my pregnancy and "bounce-back" to a non-pregnant body faster than anyone I've seen. I have been able to change my perspective on exercise and fitness (used to be a yucky chore, now a fun way to spend my time).
All of this happened because of Liz, and because of her knowledgeable advice and sunny attitude towards "fixing" me.
Karen H.
Nov 16, 2011
Report
Fabulous--can't say enough
I have gone to Liz for nearly 3 years. She is my physical therapist and masseuse all rolled into one (I have done some personal training with her too). I try to see her every 2 weeks for 'maintenance' and boy, has it made a difference. She can always find what needs to be worked on; will explain what is connected to what (will show me anatomy schematics on her iPhone); and tell me what exercises and stretches I should do. I referred her to my sister-in-law who lives out of town, and she was so impressed that she is going to work in visits to Liz on all
I have gone to Liz for nearly 3 years. She is my physical therapist and masseuse all rolled into one (I have done some personal training with her too). I try to see her every 2 weeks for 'maintenance' and boy, has it made a difference. She can always find what needs to be worked on; will explain what is connected to what (will show me anatomy schematics on her iPhone); and tell me what exercises and stretches I should do. I referred her to my sister-in-law who lives out of town, and she was so impressed that she is going to work in visits to Liz on all
Gary K.
Oct 21, 2011
Report
My wife and I have been working with Liz for 3+ years. We're both reasonably fit (Liz - please agree with me here), but a variety of injuries and other ailments have gotten in the way of feeling our best. Liz has been huge for us - she spends the time working to understand your personal situation and design a personal plan for each person. Her style is great - supportive but not overly aggressive. She is very knowledgeable about physiology and body mechanics so we feel we are in good hands. In addition, she is a MASTER massage therapist, and is great at working out the kinks and stress
Jason L.
Jun 28, 2011
Report
I'm a 40 year-old male weekend warrior who also happens to be a healthcare practitioner. A year ago, I was in Hawaii and ran full-speed with a bit too much exuberance into the ocean, only to twist my ankle so badly that I needed to go to the hospital and have a wheelchair through the airport on the way home. A few months later, I was still suffering, unable to hike, run, and even hopped around my office while trying to help others with their own aches and pains. Not a great advertisement for my own services. After x-rays, rest, acupuncture, pain relievers, and consulting two other physical
Selena M.
Jun 02, 2011
Report
Liz fixed me. She is worth every cent and every second.
After being quite invincible thorough my 20's, my office job finally begin taking its toll. Extremely uncomfortable tingling and pain in my head and neck became a daily occurrence. Little did I know, I didn't have to live with it. Liz worked her magic, and the tingling was gone the next day, and the pain left in another day. She put the icing on the cake by teaching me exercises I can do to prevent a recurrence.
Liz is also a great spirit. She brightens up the room and your day.
After being quite invincible thorough my 20's, my office job finally begin taking its toll. Extremely uncomfortable tingling and pain in my head and neck became a daily occurrence. Little did I know, I didn't have to live with it. Liz worked her magic, and the tingling was gone the next day, and the pain left in another day. She put the icing on the cake by teaching me exercises I can do to prevent a recurrence.
Liz is also a great spirit. She brightens up the room and your day.
Bob B.
Dec 23, 2009
Report
