We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Dr. Carrie Pagliano, PT. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Dr. Carrie below.
Alright, Dr. Carrie thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Have you ever experienced a times when your entire field felt like it was taking a U-Turn?
For a very long time postpartum women were told to do either one of two things: Just start X (running, workouts, crossfit, etc) and see how it goes OR don’t do that because you’ll make your X (pelvic floor issues, pelvic organ prolapse, incontinence, abdominal separation) worse.
How confusing is that? Either go back to where you were pre-pregnancy 9 months later like nothing happened with ZERO clearance, screening or guidance OR do absolutely nothing because you’re broken, messed up & might make something worse.
In my 25 year career, we’ve gone from zero guidance, to finally more supported guidance for postpartum athletes. Postpartum return to run readiness screenings, early pelvic floor physical therapy before the 6 week OB check, early intervention & education so moms know their deficits & are given a clear pathway forward to get back to doing whatever they want to do, whether it be walking, yoga, pilates or HIIT, all the way to CrossFit, Ultramarathons, Triathlons or whatever else is inbetween.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I’ve always been a runner & had always intended on running and being active in pregnancy & postpartum. Unfortunately life had other plans- I had issues with pelvic girdle pain in pregnancy and an unplanned C-section for my first delivery. After my second child was born, I was having issues with pelvic organ prolapse, stress urinary incontinence & diastasis recti (Abdominal separation).
When I realized that the tools I was using as a physical therapist wasn’t bridging the gap between the treatment table and running or other high impact activities, I was faced with a decision: either give up what I loved to do and accept my postpartum issues or look for answers and find another way. I chose the latter.
I help pregnant and postpartum moms find their way back to the activities they love to do with as little symptoms as possible including running, CrossFit, triathlons, yoga, Pilates, HIIT training and other workouts.
My unique ability to problem solve incredibly complex medical issues in postpartum that mash up sports, orthopedics, urogynecology, psychology as well as strength and conditioning come from my own experiences having difficulty finding answers and my desire that no woman should have to feel forced to give up the activities they love or be told “no” because the answers aren’t simple or obvious.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
I was 2 years into a thriving private practice when the pandemic hit. Most of the public sees physical therapy as a “hands-on” profession; even many PT’s see it as that. Rather than close my doors indefinitely, within 5 days of “shut-down” I began telehealth “check-ins” with clients that gradually evolved into regular telehealth sessions.
I literally was trying to do my job as a physical therapist with my hands (my primary treatment tool…or so I thought) tied behind my back.
What I discovered was that telehealth really made me listen. It made me pay more attention to the client’s environment in their home, their needs, what was going on with the rest of their lives. It allowed me to realize I had so much more information that I’d ever had before and this allowed me to be a better problem solver and provide hyper-specific recommendations that would meet the client’s need.
Resilience actually resulted in me becoming a better therapist by using my other senses and problem solving in a more efficient and effective way.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
Most of my referrals are word of mouth. My client results speak for themselves, but it’s the fact that as a mom who’s gone through these pelvic floor issues, I know what it’s like to feel hopeless and I know what it’s like to find solutions that work. My job is to figure out what’s going on quickly so I can help moms help themselves. I don’t want women to feel like they need me for life to succeed. I’m here to point them in the right direction and then provide them with the tools and knowledge to understand how their bodies work.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://carriepagliano.com/
- Instagram: @carriepagliano
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CarriePaglianoPT
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_l3U6gPactpCK6VhgLBGsA