Tell us a little about yourself. 

I am Mia, physical therapist, wife, mom of 2 boys (+ a fur baby). I grew up in the DC area and absolutely LOVE this city (even though I recently moved to northern Virginia). I love to explore DC (food, parks, alleys, museums) as well as get out to the water or the mountains; I am happy if the weather is nice, I can be outside and I am spending time with friends or family. 

What inspired you to become a physical therapist, and what motivates you to continue in the field?

I have always been athletic and therefore experienced lots of little tweaks and injuries (luckily nothing too serious). I always knew I wanted to be in the healthcare field and that I wanted to help people. I first told my parents in middle school that I wanted to be a physical therapist. I am motivated to stay in this field, because I find joy in other people being active, healthy and feeling good about themselves. 

What sets you apart from other physical therapists? What is your unique approach or philosophy?

I think that being a good physical therapist requires taking the time to learn about the patient and their goals on an individual level. Then, I like to find a happy medium in my treatment style between manual therapy and exercise. I have taken a lot of manual therapy coursework so I think I am proficient in manual therapy, but I think teaching people how to move and exercise to keep themselves healthy and pain free is so important too. I love exercise and I think if people can find a way to move their body and feel good, they will love it too! 

How do you stay current with the latest advancements and techniques in physical therapy? Are you learning anything new right now? 

I love to learn and take classes and I wish I had endless time and money to learn everything! I am currently focusing my coursework on pelvic floor physical therapy because I think looking at the entire body is so important, and sometimes the pelvic floor is the missing puzzle piece to their ongoing pain. I think pelvic health is super fascinating and I wish everyone knew more about it! 

Mia is an excellent physical therapist. She is friendly, she listens, and she asks your opinion of treatment options. Highly recommended.   -G.H.

Can you describe a moment when you felt particularly proud of helping a patient?

Although everyone is appreciative of their care and happy to be pain free again, I find that my pelvic floor patients are the most appreciative and express that their lives have been changed with physical therapy. I think pelvic floor physical therapy isn’t talked about or prescribed enough and so my patients are not only happy to be feeling better, but shocked to have found an answer to their pain. 

What are your goals for the future, both professionally and personally, in the field of physical therapy?

I am very interested in pelvic health and I am currently taking coursework with the American Physical Therapy Association to get my Certificate of Achievement in Obstetric Pelvic Health as well as Herman and Wallace for my Pelvic Rehabilitation Practitioner Certification. On a personal level, I am trying to exercise more, and recently trained for a 10-miler, so maybe a longer race in my future?

How do you maintain work life balance and what do you do for fun? 

My life is work and parenting two littles right now and that is fun (for me), but it’s also busy. We do our best to turn off work during the early evening hours and get outside and enjoy time with our boys. Outside of my family, I do my best to exercise regularly, spend time outside, eat delicious food and stay in touch with friends.