Congratulations to Jane Blair Johe, PT, PRPC on becoming one of the newest Certified Pelvic Rehabilitation Practitioners! Read our interview with Blair below.

Tell us about your clinical practice
I work in a free standing outpatient PT center of a large 4 hospital affiliation. 70% lymphedema 30% pelvic floor rehab.

How did you get involved in the pelvic rehabilitation field?
I was already the lymphedema PT (LANA cert.) when I moved to WV. The women's health PT was moving to another state and asked me to please pick up her bladder incontinence patients.

What patient population do you find most rewarding in treating and why?
I do like pelvic pain clients as I can work with other PT’s on staff to problem solve . Both patients and their doctors are so grateful.

If you could get a message out to physical therapists about pelvic rehabilitation what would it be?
That you cannot ignore a very important group of muscles (PF) whether you are treating backs, hips etc. or pain and weakness or balance issues…. it plays such a vital role in wellbeing. Any of these clients should be questioned about bowel and bladder issues.

What has been your favorite Herman & Wallace Course and why?
I took my first course from them in September and was so impressed (compared to other courses)

What lesson have you learned from a Herman & Wallace instructor that has stayed with you?
the PT pelvic floor assessment. Correct postures , breathing and “safe” effort of bowel movements.

What do you find is the most useful resource for your practice?
MedBridge Courses

What motivated you to earn PRPC?
If I only had one pelvic floor referral, I would like to give the best service possible to that client. My referring MD’s are very happy too.

What makes you the most proud to have earned PRPC?
I thought it was a many faceted subject and combined many aspects of my 45 years of physical therapy practice. It made me feel that I do know my profession that I love.

What advice would you give to physical therapists interested in earning PRPC?
Have a broad back ground in multiple areas of PT then I highly recommend Herman and Wallace courses as the best path.

What is in store for you in the future?
A urologist in town contacted me today to set up referring for pre surgery PT (prostate surgery).

Kelley Thibault PT, NCS is an outpatient rehabilitation pro, having more than two decades of experience in that setting. She is a recent convert to Pelvic Rehabilitation, however, and she's jumped in head first! Her practice has shifted in that direction and she has four Herman & Wallace courses under her belt in just the last two years. We reached out to see what lessons she could share with us, and she was kind enough to give us her time today. Welcome to the field, Kelley!

Tell us a bit about your clinical experience:
I have been a physical therapist for 22 years and spent much of my career working in a hospital based outpatient clinic treating primarily neurologic diagnoses. I have worked in a transdisciplinary neurologic program for much of this time. I received my NCS from the APTA in 2004 and recertified in 2014. Over my career I have had an interest in Women’s Health Physical Therapy and attended a course with Holly Herman in the early 1990’s. I began treating more Women’s Health clients about 2 years ago to cover a maternity leave. 75% of my practice now is Women's and Men’s Health. I attended the pelvic floor level 1, 2A, 2B and 3 courses over the past year and have found them to be invaluable!!! I also have taken many of the pelvic courses on MedBridge.

What/who inspired you to become involved in pelvic rehabilitation?
I find it most rewarding to work with women who are postmenopausal and are experiencing dyspareunia and stress and/ or urge incontinence. I find with some education and behavioral modifications these clients can experience gains after the first visit. I also have enjoyed working with the chronic pelvic pain clients who require internal pelvic floor and myofascial work and seeing them return to function with less pain and more confidence.

What has been your favorite Herman & Wallace Course and why?
Pelvic floor rehabilitation works!!! There is so much that can be preventative as well as rehabilitative. I look forward to learning more and more!!! I think my favorite course thus far has been 2A mainly due to the fact that was the last course in the series that I took this past December 2015. The information on constipation and fecal incontinence as well as male pelvic anatomy, physiology and treatment was the piece I so felt I was missing in helping my clients.

What lesson have you learned from a Herman & Wallace instructor that has stayed with you?
I have found the “clinical pearls” given in each course to be invaluable!!! I have reviewed my manuals several times and will continue to do so.

What is in store for you in the future?
I hope to obtain my PRPC or WCS in the next several years and plan to continue to attend courses to improve my practice. I have been able to use my knowledge of pelvic health and treatment with my neurologic clients as well.

This week we end with a fantastic interview with our featured pelvic rehab practitioner. Nancy Suarez, MS, PT, BCB-PMD, PRPC just joined the ranks of the elite Certified Pelvic Rehabilitation Practitioners! Check out our interview below:

Describe your clinical practice:
I work in a private practice specializing in women’s and men’s pelvic floor disorders including bowel and bladder issues, prolapse and sexual dysfunction, prenatal and postpartum rehabilitation, pre and postprostatectomy care, and lumbopelvic pain.

How did you get involved in the pelvic rehabilitation field?
As a physical therapist who regularly took continuing education courses following PT school, I happened to be looking for a course that might give me more knowledge to help some of my geriatric patients improve their urinary incontinence. I took my first Pelvic Floor course given by Hollis Herman and Kathe Wallace in 2000, and immediately began to make a difference in many of my patient’s lives.

What/who inspired you to become involved in pelvic rehabilitation?

Really it was my patients that inspired me to become involved in pelvic floor rehabilitation; I knew embarassingly little about it on my own until my first course! I was very fortunate to have been given the opportunity to join a pelvic floor specialty practice a few years after that first course, and there I honed my skills and began adding more pelvic floor courses to improve my practice.

What patient population do you find most rewarding in treating and why?

It is honestly difficult for me to choose one type of patient that I find MOST rewarding; it is such a privilege to see patients getting better when they may have thought there was no hope. I do find that I love helping middle aged and older women learn about their pelvic floor and learn how to overcome their incontinence, prolapse and pain.

Today we get to hear from Sherine Aubert, PT, DPT, PRPC who just earned her certification! Sherine was kind enough to share her story about discovering pelvic rehabilitation.

Tell us a bit about your clinical practice
Men and women across the life span with urogynecological, colorectal, orthopedic, as well as pre and post-surgical cases including sexual reassignment surgeries make up the majority of the population I treat. Most patients are working towards improving their bedroom and bathroom issues including prolapse, urinary frequency, urinary urgency, incontinence, pelvic pain, coccydynia, voiding dysfunctions, interstitial cystitis, vaginismus and dyspareunia. Educating and setting male patients up with pre surgical prostatectomy pelvic floor muscle strengthening programs and as well as improving outcomes of patients who have undergone sexual reassignment surgeries.

How did you get involved in the pelvic rehabilitation field?
I have always had such respect and fascination with the pelvic floor muscles. They are underestimated and overlooked in many physical therapy settings and I feel passionate about changing this! I have made it my goal to educate and empower individuals while making a comfortable environment to ask questions to further understand their anatomy, function and optimize their health.

What/who inspired you to become involved in pelvic rehabilitation?
I have been very lucky to have many wonderful influences in my academic and professional career. The two pelvic floor “geniuses” who have always had time to discuss new treatments, brainstorm, and optimize my skill set would be Dr. Chris Eddow PT, DPT, OCS, WCS, CHT and Dr. Jamie Taylor PT, DPT. Thanks for always pushing me to the next level ladies, I look forward to advancing the pelvic floor world with you gals!

What do you find is the most useful resource for your practice?
During every initial evaluation I use a pelvic model to show all the pelvic floor muscles, organs and connective tissue with an overview of anatomy and function. I find patients are very appreciative of the explanation and find extreme value in understanding their own anatomy. Every time I show the model, I feel like I am sharing the world’s best secret about their bodies!

What motivated you to earn PRPC?
I appreciated the fact that "PRPC" included men and women's knowledge base.

We're excited to have the chance to interview Lisa Odabachian, MPT, BSN, RN, PRPC, this week's featured Certified Pelvic Rehabilitation Practitioner! Lisa earned her certification in May of 2015 and she was kind enough to share her thoughts with us. Thank you for your contributions to the field of pelvic rehab, Lisa, and congratulations on your certification!

What motivated you to earn PRPC?
For patients and referring providers to have confidence that I have expertise in treating pelvic floor dysfunctions.

What makes you the most proud to have earned PRPC?
That I have evolved into a practitioner that can make a difference in this patient population’s quality of life.

What advice would you give to physical therapists interested in earning PRPC?
Take as many courses with hands on lab work that you can so you can treat with a broad base of knowledge to get the best outcome for your patients!

Tell us a little about your clinical practice:
I am a full-time clinician at a well-known and well-respected hospital-based outpatient women's clinic. I have been at the Beaumont's Women's Urology Center, a multidisciplinary clinic focusing exclusively on women's health, for the past 5 years. incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse, urinary urgency and frequency, chronic pelvic pain conditions (painful intercourse, interstitial cystitis, vulvodynia, abdominal pain), post-surgical pain and weakness, colo-rectal dysfunctions (fecal incontinence, constipation, rectal pain). I have been in clinical practice treating women and men with pelvic dysfunctions for over 14 years at Beaumont Hospital. Prior to that I was a clinical nurse treating patients in a variety of settings. I am currently an ABPTS candidate to sit for the 2016 WCS specialist certification examination in Women's Health physical therapy.

How did you get involved in the pelvic rehabilitation field?
Through the years of being a nurse, family member and friend I have heard many stories from women and men who have had symptoms that were unsuccessfully or only partially helped with medications and/or surgical interventions. When I learned that there were specially trained physical therapists who treat bladder, bowel and sexual problems by providing the patients self-help education and rehabilitation techniques to help resolve these issues, I became charged up to get my master’s in physical therapy so I could then specialize in treating pelvic floor dysfunctions.

What/who inspired you to become involved in pelvic rehabilitation?
When I learned that there were specially trained physical therapists who treat bladder, bowel and sexual problems by providing the patients self-help education and rehabilitation techniques to help resolve these issues, I became charged up to get my master’s in physical therapy so I could then specialize in treating pelvic floor dysfunctions.

What patient population do you find most rewarding in treating and why?
The patients who are motivated in helping themselves by being compliant in their rehabilitation by doing their home exercise program and asking questions are the patients who typically have the best outcomes.

If you could get a message out to physical therapists about pelvic rehabilitation what would it be?
There are so many women and men who could benefit from a skilled pelvic floor physical therapist. Many patients with pelvic floor dysfunction have difficulty being appropriately evaluated and referred to pelvic floor physical therapy, and then if that occurs they often have to travel long distances to find a proficient provider.

What has been your favorite Herman & Wallace Course and why?
I have learned so much from each and every course I have taken. My first course was in Akron Ohio in May 2001 with Holly Herman and Kathe Wallace, so of course that is my most memorable course because it was like opening a Pandora’s Box, in a good way! It all made sense!

What lesson have you learned from a Herman & Wallace instructor that has stayed with you?
Perform a good orthopedic evaluation first

What do you find is the most useful resource for your practice?
I often refer to course/lab course notes.

What is in store for you in the future?
My application has been approved to sit for the 2016 specialist certification examination in Women’s Health in physical therapy to obtain WCS credentials through the APTA.

What role do you see pelvic health playing in general well-being?
It’s huge! When people have bladder, bowel and/or sexual dysfunction, their relationships, social, career, education, emotional, recreational and/or psychological, etc. well-being is affected to varying degrees. People often do not even know they have pelvic floor muscles until there is pain or a functional impairment.

This week we get to feature Katie Tredo, DPT, PRPC, one of the first people to earn her Pelvic Rehabilitation Practitioner Certification! Katie co-owned a private practice in Maryland, and has recently relocated to the Milwaukee area to practice her trade. She was kind of enough to offer her insights with the Pelvic Rehab Report today.

Hi Katie! Tell us a little bit about your clinical practice
I recently joined the staff at Health In Balance Physical Therapy in Mequon, WI. Our team is made up of experienced physical therapists with a variety of interests and specialties. Along with two of my coworkers, my practice is focused on treating men, women, and children with pelvic dysfunctions. I think a practice with such a skilled and diverse set of physical therapists allows us to better serve our patients.

What patient population do you find most rewarding in treating and why?
I find treating patients with pelvic dysfunctions, especially pelvic pain, to be extremely rewarding. Pain, incontinence, and other pelvic dysfunctions can leave patients feeling very isolated and hopeless. Watching my patients open up about their issues then progress toward their goals, returning to their previous activities and relationships without pain or dysfunction is amazing. There are so many quality of life issues that go along with pelvic dysfunctions and I am honored to be a part of each of my patient’s journey to recovery.

If you could get a message out to physical therapists about pelvic rehabilitation what would it be?
I would encourage physical therapists to get comfortable asking about bowel, bladder, and sexual dysfunction on their initial intake forms. Many people will not think to report these issues without being asked and a pelvic dysfunction can be a major component of a hip or back issue. If your patient reports a pelvic dysfunction, be comfortable acknowledging it and make an appropriate referral for them. I enjoy working closely with and sharing patients with other physical therapists so that we can maximize our patients’ recovery.

What role do you see pelvic health playing in general well being?
In the past discussing pelvic dysfunctions was considered embarrassing or taboo. In the past few years, I have seen more and more of my patients educating themselves, discussing their issues with other men or women, and finding themselves the help they need. Many patients are going into their referring physicians and requesting to receive help instead of waiting for their doctor’s suggestion. Patients are becoming more empowered over their own care. I see pelvic health becoming more and more of a focus in people’s lives and that fewer patients will be content living with their dysfunction.

Earlier this week a blog post asked the question "Do male therapists belong in pelvic rehab?" With increased frequency, male therapists are participating in pelvic rehab coursework and practices. Some of the male therapists are even attending coursework as students. I asked Justin Stambaugh, a student from Duke University (who very much impressed me with his command of the material, and his calm, curious, and competent demeanor), a few questions about his path into pelvic rehab. Below are his responses.

Holly: How did your path lead towards pelvic rehab in general?

Justin: Pelvic rehab really necessitates an openness and sense of comfort regarding issues that can be seen as very personal, private, and even taboo. I was drawn to pelvic rehab because I am the type of person who doesn’t believe that individuals should have to suffer in silence because of fear or embarrassment of addressing their issues. I want people to know that they can and should seek treatment for their pelvic health issues, and that physical therapy can be a valuable resource in this regard.

I also value the complexity of pelvic rehab. In addition to the clinical aspect of care there is also the psychosocial element that adds to the scope and depth of treatment. I appreciate that pelvic rehab requires the clinician to continuously evaluate and adapt their approach in order to be proficient.

Additionally I find that often times many physicians, patients, and other physical therapists don’t realize the extent of what we are capable of treating, and how great of an impact we can have on someone’s life. I get excited about educating and promoting this side of the profession.

Holly: What is your viewpoint on how you will be perceived as a male therapist in treating pelvic rehab with a female patient?

Justin: As a male therapist in the pelvic rehab setting I understand that there are some female patients who will be hesitant to work with me solely because of my gender. I think this is an unfortunate fact, however it simply requires me to be a bit more industrious as a practitioner. Patients who may initially be uncomfortable with me due to my gender are really just asking me to prove to them that I know what I’m doing and that I am trustworthy. It is completely understandable that I need to win their trust before moving forward with any type of treatment. I respect my patients and ultimately just want what’s best for them. We can work together on achieving this goal, and find the correct path that suits each patient’s needs based on their comfort level. Often times I think of the phrase “to a man with a hammer, everything looks like a nail”. Although I am capable of performing an internal pelvic floor exam and subsequent treatment, there are also external approaches that may work just as well for an apprehensive patient depending on their presentation. This may also help gain their trust in order to implement more effective care in future sessions.

Holly: How do you think your generation differs from those before you in addressing the entire issue of gender?

Justin: I would like to think that my generation is more open regarding issues of sex and gender. However I think there are still many hurdles left to climb in this regard. I feel that socially my generation is part of an evolution in tolerance and empathy towards diversity with respect to issues such as gender, gender identity, sexual orientation etc. All of these qualities define some part of all of us and are constantly being communicated and evaluated. If we look back through history we see the dynamics of social inequality based on gender. Today we continue to see broad discussions regarding sex and gender. I feel that each generation continues to grow from these conversations and socially we persist in advancing our understanding and comfort regarding this topic.

Holly: Where do you see us (on the continuum) as a profession in normalizing the experience of having treatment directed to the pelvis by any gendered therapist to any gendered patient?

Justin: It would be my hope that in the future more institutions will instruct pelvic health with patient models that allow students to interact and conduct treatment based therapies in a clinical manner. I feel that in order to alleviate some of the gender based fears and apprehension regarding pelvic rehab from a professional perspective, all students should get to experience this aspect of physical therapy before deciding if its for them. I do feel it’s unfortunate that there are not more males who are interested in pelvic rehab. Oftentimes people are afraid of what they don’t know. It seems that perhaps pelvic rehab has remained somewhat enigmatic in that many individuals don’t get to experience this type of patient care, and therefore never approach it. It is such a great benefit to be able to work with this population of patients. I feel that the more exposure and normalization pelvic rehab gets to the patient population as well as to the professionals in the field of physical therapy the more we will see an increase in gender representation within the profession.

If the work of pelvic rehab is in the hands of students like Justin, we have so much to look forward to in our field. Thank you to Justin for being willing to articulate his thoughts and experience so that we can continue to explore issues of gender in pelvic rehabilitation.

In our weekly feature section, Pelvic Rehab Report is proud to present this interview with newly certified practitioner Reeba Varghese, DPT. PRPC.

How did you get involved in the pelvic rehabilitation field?

I was asked to attend a course by my director back in 2008 because they wanted to expand pelvic rehabilitation services to a few of our company's locations. I told my director I did not think this specialty was for me but I would be willing to attend one course and see how I felt. When I attended PF1 I was immediately drawn in by the wealth of knowledge I gained. Learning the intricacies of the human anatomy, specifically the female anatomy just completely opened my eyes to one of Gods most amazing creations. Also, the passion in the instructors was contagious. When I returned to work and started to see patients with incontinence and listened to their stories my passion for supporting these individuals in their rehabilitation journey began to grow. As I continued to expand my knowledge base by attending more courses through Herman and Wallace I realized I had found my niche in the world of physical therapy.

What patient population do you find most rewarding in treating and why?

I feel honored every time a patient walks into my clinic and begins to open up and share about their pelvic health issues. There is so much stigma associated with discussing these issues so when someone is willing to receive help I want to support them however I can. Also, it seems like more and more women I see have been through some kind of traumatic experience in their life and they find their way to you in an emotionally unstable state. What a great opportunity to be a part of their healing journey.

What motivated you to earn PRPC?

After practicing as a physical therapist for 10 years I was re-evaluating my life as a whole and was praying about what direction to go next in my life/career. I felt like the next step for me was to pursue a specialty area that I wanted to invest more time and energy into, as well as seek opportunities for professional growth. Shortly after I made this decision I received an email from Herman and Wallace regarding the fall 2014 PRPC exam. The lightbulb went off and I decided to apply to sit for the exam.

What is in store for you in the future?

One of my biggest dreams is to be a mother one day. I will be getting married this fall and hopefully starting a family. I plan to work part-time once kids come along. I am considering maybe working in a clinic which solely provides pelvic rehabilitation services. I also have a passion for taking my skills and knowledge and serving women in areas that do not have healthcare. I have done medical mission trips to Oaxaca, Mexico and served in an orphanage in Brasov, Romania. I absolutely plan to continue doing medical missions. I think it would be an honor to serve the women and children in the red light districts of India.

Learn more about Reeba Varghese, DPT. PRPC at her Certified Pelvic Rehabilitation Practitioner bio page. You can also learn more about the Pelvic Rehabilitation Practitioner Certification at www.hermanwallace.com/certification.

Today we are so fortunate to hear from Diane Hubbard, PT, who is this week's Featured Pelvic Rehab Practitioner! Diane has completed the full Pelvic Floor Series and puts her skills to use every day. Thank you, Diane for your contributions to the field of pelvic rehabilitation, and for sharing your thoughts with us!

Tell us about your clinical practice
I am working in inpatient rehabilitation. However, I am increasing my time in pelvic rehab, as the caseload increases, in an outpatient rehab setting.

How did you get involved in the pelvic rehabilitation field?
Our hospital system was negotiating with a urology group of physicians to come and serve in our area. One of the requests of the urology group was that the hospital have a pelvic floor trained physical therapist to work with their patients as needed. Our rehab director asked if any of the PTs were interested in working with a urinary incontinence program. I said that I was very interested and was eventually given the opportunity to become trained to work with pelvic floor patients.

I will admit that I had no idea how involved the training would actually be! I really had to contemplate if I was willing to commit to all areas of the training, most especially internal exams. I finally realized that if I was not willing to learn to do internal exams, it would be like trying to perform gait training on someone if I had never seen them walk. I would be doing my patients a disservice if I was not willing to learn to do internal exams. Then I thought, when you go to a gynecologist, you know what to expect and it is fine since they are helping you. So, that is how I looked at it for pelvic floor patients.
It was worth all of the training the first time that my pelvic floor patient said to me that she was so glad that I got trained in this since no one else has been able to help her!

What/who inspired you to become involved in pelvic rehabilitation?
I was working in a SNF and I got a referral from the DON regarding a patient with incontinence. I did not know much about kegels but said that I would try. The patient said that for 40 years, she had used a pad an hour for incontinence of urine but that she was willing to try. We did 15 minutes of kegels 3 x week, then she eventually got down to 3 pads in a 24 hour period for incontinence. We were all surprised and pleased with the results!. That piqued my interest in pelvic rehabilitation.

What patient population do you find most rewarding in treating and why?
I really enjoy helping people who are willing to work hard to help themselves. It is so awesome to see them understand the concepts and perform the exercises and continue them on their own. It is inspirational to see them improve the quality of their own lives!!!

What lesson have you learned from a Herman & Wallace instructor that has stayed with you?
No ?JICING? (just in case) from Holly Herman, as she stood with her hands out and repeated that phrase several times. My co-workers now understand that phrase too!

What is in store for you in the future?
There were no other pelvic floor therapists in my geographic area when I started this training. I had to travel and was mentored by a few pelvic floor therapists who let me observe and shared some paperwork with me. I was glad to learn from the many helpful and experienced people that I met in the H&W education classes. I got my first patient in the same month that I completed the last of the 4 classes in the H&W pelvic floor series. My first patient was coccydynia and the second patient that I had was a male. I was so grateful that I had taken all 4 classes in the series before I started treating or else I would not have had experience in knowing what to do to help those first 2 patients! I am learning as I go, that is for sure! I had to start this program from the ground up, using the resources that I had available. I have been able to secure handouts, learn g-codes, formulate documentation forms and do some marketing. I have been lucky enough to be able to increase my caseload almost every month this year. It is so worth it as I have heard more than 1 patient tell me that they can do this program and that I have given them some hope!

Today we are happy to celebrate Aline Flores, PT, PRPC! Aline is one of the newly minted Certified Pelvic Rehabilitation Practitioners, having passed the exam last month. Here's what she had to say about her career in pelvic rehab. Congratulations, Aline!

Tell us about your clinical practice
This year I opened Natura Physical Therapy, a small private practice specializing in pelvic pain and breast cancer rehabilitation. Manual therapy is a big part of our approach to patient care. I often utilize myofascial release, connective tissue manipulation, trigger point therapy, and manual lymphatic drainage during treat sessions and prescribe 2-3 specific exercises for patients to complete at home. I also provide education on the neurological/physiological/emotional response to pain and teach techniques for patients to be able to modulate this response, including breathing exercises and down training techniques. The majority of my patients are high stressed, overwhelmed and extremely hard on themselves. Helping patients become more compassionate towards themselves is a huge accomplishment.

How did you get involved in pelvic rehabilitation?
I was immediately interested in women’s health when I graduated from physical therapy school in 1997. I sought out a part time position to work/train with a therapist who was treating women with urinary incontinence. At that time I was only treating 1-2 pelvic patients a week primarily using biofeedback and muscle re-education. A year later I was hired by a hospital that was just starting a pelvic health program. Over the years I have been able to help this program grow from very basic pelvic health rehabilitation to treating much more complex pelvic health issues of like vulvodynia, pudendal neuralgia, and interstitial cystitis.

What/who inspired you to become involved in pelvic rehabilitation?
There have been so many women in pelvic rehabilitation that have inspired me and continue to inspire me. Elizabeth Nobel and Holly Herman were definitely early inspirations for me, as therapists in the founding of pelvic rehabilitation. I am always impressed the therapists who are currently making a huge impact with educating the medical community on the value of physical therapy in pelvic health issues. But, my biggest inspiration comes from my patients. Every day I learn something new from one of my patients. Whether it is a better understanding of their experience, or something that has worked, or doesn’t work for them, I am continually improving as a therapist by listening to my patients.

What patient population do you find most rewarding in treating and why?
I really enjoy working with patients with complex pelvic pain. These can be the most challenging patients to work with, but they are also the most rewarding. They keep me thinking critically. Usually these patients have a physical and an emotional component, but often have been told or assume that their symptoms are “all in their head”. It is very rewarding when I can explain the connection between the body, the nervous system and emotion, and the patient, finally feels understood. It is truly an honor to be able to work with these patients as they progress from a very difficult experience to a much more empowered state, where they have better understanding and control of their symptoms.

If you could get a message out to physical therapists about pelvic rehabilitation what would it be?
Pelvic physical therapy is much more than just “Kegels”. Issues involving bowel, bladder and sexual functioning are important activities of daily living that can have a significant musculoskeletal cause. Every physical therapist should have a basic understanding of pelvic floor muscle functioning, even if they don’t directly treat these conditions. The best pelvic rehabilitation therapists are good orthopedic therapists first.

What motivated you to earn PRPC?
Taking the PRPC exam was a challenge to myself to critically think about my knowledge base and how I practice. Although, I try to stay up to date on the most current research on a regular basis, preparing for the exam, encouraged me to be more though and consistent with my review.

What is in store for you in the future?
I hope to keep learning every day. I also plan being more involved in teaching physical therapists interested in pelvic health.