Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy in Falls Church & Reston, VA: Offering ICE Certified Specialist Care

I’m excited to share that I have officially earned my ICE Physio Certified Specialist: Pelvic certification through the Institue of Clinical Excellence!

This is a certification that I have been looking forward to pursuing for a long time. Earning it required intentional planning and a vigorous learning schedule, something I had not taken on since PT school. However, this time I was also balancing work and raising two kids!

In physical therapy, it is common to attent weekend courses to stay current on research, learn new techniques, and collaborate with colleagues. This experience went far beyond that.

This certification was an intensive, hands on process designed to elevate how I evaluate, treat, and support patients with pelvic floor concerns, with up to date research and real clinical application. 

What is Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy?

Pelvic floor physical therapy focuses on a group of muscles that play a major role in:

• Core stability
• Bladder and bowel control
• Sexual health
• Pregnancy and postpartum recovery
• Hip and spine health
• Athletic performance

Pelvic floor dysfunction is incredibly common though often underdiagnosed or misunderstood. It can present itself in the form of low back pain or hip pain. Many people deal with symptoms of leaking (especially with exercise), pelvic pain, pressure, or core weakness (and diastasis recti) and just assume it’s “normal”. Even though it is common, it is NOT normal and it IS treatable.

What it Took to Earn This Certification

Becoming an ICE Certified Pelvic Specialists requires a rigorous, multi-month schedule, including

• Two separate 8 week online courses covering pelvic health across the lifespan
• A live, in-person weekend intensive with hands-on training and skill demonstraction
• Multiple exams, including written tests and a live practical assessment
• Leading to 16+ weeks of advanced study and application beyond my doctoral training and any other previous trainings that I have had.

Many certifications only rely on online testing, but one of the great things about ICE is that it requires hands-on competency before awarding the credential.

What I Learned and Can Help Treat

This training allows me to confidently assess and treat a wide range of pelvic health conditions for women including:

• Pregnancy and postpartum recovery
• Urinary leakage (with exercise, coughing, running, lifting, etc)
• Pelvic pain and painful intercourse
• Diastasis recti and core dysfunction
• Pelvic organ prolaspe and pressure symptoms
• Return to running, lifting, and sport (including high level athletes)
• Sexual health concerns
• Chronic pelvic pain conditions

This program emphasizes modern, evidence-based, and fitness-forward approaches in creating the curriculum. The people who developed it have done an excellent job staying on top of the research as well as performing research for women with pelvic floor conditions. This is an area that is highly disregarded in the literature. The training created looks beyond "just Kegels.” It’s about helping you move, perform, and live without limitations and functionally. My goal is to get up up and moving and managing your symptoms, so that you are not just in control when laying down, but also when lifting your toddler.

Who Does This Serve

You don’t have to be newly postpartum to benefit from pelvic floor PT. This is for you if you:

• Are newly pregnant and want support in staying active through pregnancy and birth prep
• Feeling pressure or heaviness in your pelvis
• Leak when you exercise, sneeze, or laugh
• Have pain with sitting, movement, or intimacy
• Are postpartum at any stage
• Want to return to a high-level activity safely including running or lifing
• Have been told “this is just normal” (it’s not)

Why this Matters

One of the things about social media that I am happy about is how the pelvic floor is finally getting the attention it deserves. The problem is that not all of the information on social media is correct. It is important to choose providers who are up to date on the research to give you the care that you deserve to safely get back to activity during or after baby, no matter if that was in the past week, or several years ago.

In PT school, I made a commitment to always strive to provide my patients with the best care that I can offer, which lead me to wan to earn this certification. If you have been dealing with pelvic floor symptoms, and are unsure where to start, I would love to help you out. If you have been told to “just live with it,” I promise there is a better option. If you would like receive high-quality pelvic floor physical therapy in Falls Church or Reston, VA, give us a call at Advantage Physical Therapy. We would love to help you out! If you are not local to the area, here is a link that can help you find an ICE certified specialist near you. 

If you are interested in following us on Instagram for helpful tips we are @advantagept

Author

Alana Hamilton Alana Hamilton is a physical therapist at Advantage Physical Therapy in Falls Church, Virginia. She is a proud Hokie from Virginia Tech with a major in Biology and a minor in psychology and sociology. Following graduation, she immediately got her doctorate in Physical Therapy from Radford University. She is an avid fan of Pilates, running, and hiking. On the weekends, she can be found hanging out with her family and babies as well as doing Spartan races with her old physical therapy classmates and friends. She is a big believer that during rehabilitation, "Motion is the Lotion" and that staying active is key to remaining healthy.