I am originally from Cleveland Ohio. I became certified as a personal trainer through the American College of Sports Medicine in 2012 while I attended Eastern Michigan University to obtain a B.S. in Exercise Science (2013). I then attended the University of Toledo, completing my Doctorate in Physical Therapy in 2016. After graduation I married my husband Michael and we moved to Phoenix, Arizona.
I have a love of languages and moving to Phoenix was a good opportunity to perfect my Spanish. I greatly enjoyed working in an environment where about half of my patients spoke Spanish as a first language. While in Arizona, I practiced full time at a private practice outpatient clinic and worked part time in home health physical therapy.
If curiosity is a disease, then I definitely have it. I love a challenge, so I set about taking continuing education courses to hone my clinical skills for treating complex patients in a variety of specialty areas including chronic pain, pelvic health, aquatic therapy, neurological disorders, TMJ rehab, and POTS/vasovagal disorders to name a few. I pursued specialty certifications and advanced training in dry needling, Graston, and LSVT Big for treatment of Parkinson's disease. I am committed to being a lifelong learner and look forward to unravelling the complexities of the human body to understand it even more in the future.
My favorite conditions to treat are pediatric and adult chronic pain disorders, and dizziness associated with vasovagal problems. I was a kid with chronic pain myself and enjoy the opportunity to give hope to kids that they can grow up to live full lives despite the challenges they face from having chronic health issues. I firmly believe that we are not defined by our past nor our present circumstances, but instead by our reactions to them.
I enjoy teaching, and while in Arizona I was chosen to assist in development of a mentoring program for new graduate therapists for my company. I also had the opportunity to regularly assist in training PT students from a variety of universities as a clinical instructor. I am now honored to continue teaching clinical skills to PT students by assisting with labs and serving as a guest lecturer at the University of Toledo.
In hopes of sharing knowledge with both clinicians and everyday people; I started consulting as a media contributor for multiple news outlets and began publishing a blog to make quality health information accessible for everyone.
When I am not working, I enjoy spending time with my husband Michael, our dog Kona, and our family. I enjoy doing gymnastics, walking my dog, reading, glass blowing, art projects, playing musical instruments, volunteering with Young Life and helping with different community service projects through my local church.
