Meet Rebecca Maidansky of Lady Bird Physical Therapy

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rebecca Maidansky.

Rebecca, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
When I really think about where my journey began, I think it started when I was eight years old and my mother was hit by a truck while she was biking. The impact of that crash threw her off her bike and fractured her spine both in her mid and low back. For the next few years, I saw her rehab herself back to good health and by the time I was in high school, we were back to skiing, hiking, biking and rock climbing together. I don’t think I realized how inspiring that was in the moment because, you know, high school. However, in retrospect, I think that’s what drew me to the field of physical therapy, to begin with.

When I first started off my physical therapy career, I was working with athletes in a variety of settings. As we know, athletes come in all shapes, sizes and stages of life. While in those orthopedic and sports settings, we saw a number of pregnant athletes and I noticed that my PT colleagues were terrified of them. They didn’t know what to do with them. They were scared to hurt them. So they treated them with caution, limited their activity and thus their progress. I remember thinking that if 50% of the population can become pregnant throughout their lives, we just have to do better. As someone who has always been a vocal feminist and advocate for women’s rights and health, witnessing those interactions taught me I wanted and needed to learn more.

When I moved to Austin, I was lucky enough to get a job at a large pelvic floor clinic. During my time there, I gained the mentorship and experience to help me better understand how the pelvic floor and whole body are connected. I started to learn more about pelvic pain and pregnancy. I started to better understand how I could better serve the pregnant athletes I saw years before. Yet I was still hearing them coming in with stories about interactions with providers who were telling them their pain and symptoms were normal, that feeling uncomfortable is “just pregnancy” or “just postpartum.” And that’s when it clicked.

I founded Lady Bird Physical Therapy in 2019 because I wanted to do better for pregnant and postpartum people. There is no reason why pregnancy and postpartum recovery need to hurt. There’s no reason why we need to be telling me that peeing their pants for the rest of their lives is just part of parenthood. There’s no reason why as a medical system and society, we’re not doing better at supporting and advocating for people going through this monumental physical, mental and emotional life transition. And there’s no reason why we aren’t helping people prepare for these changes proactively. Lady Bird PT exists to fill that gap and provide that support. That’s my story!

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
This question made me laugh out loud. Absolutely not. As for the struggles, it depends on how far back you want to go. When I first graduated with my doctorate in physical therapy, I remember getting my first job and thinking, “is this it?” After 26 years as a student, am I just done now? It made me question a lot of things. I briefly considered going to a coding Bootcamp. Briefly.

At the time, I decided the problem was the setting. So I changed settings. I got another job. I was happy for a few months and then again, I found myself wondering the same thing. I think, like so many other lifelong students, I’m just not meant to sit still in any place.

It really wasn’t until I founded Lady Bird PT that I thought, “ah, I’ve finally arrived.” I found a population of people I was deeply passionate about helping. I felt hungry to learn more both for myself and for them. Running a business on top of being a clinician was an exciting and welcomed challenge. For a moment, things actually did feel smooth. The clinic got busy and I made my first hire. That was February of 2020. You can guess the rest.

2020 was… 2020. There were endless challenges, but I think what I’ve learned throughout the past few years is that there will never be a steady-state where everything is running smoothly and nothing needs improving. And if it does ever happen, I’ll be bored. So I welcome the struggles and the mayhem. It keeps life exciting.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Lady Bird Physical Therapy?
Lady Bird Physical Therapy is a pelvic floor PT clinic specializing in helping pregnant and postpartum people navigate pregnancy pains, prepare for birth and recover postpartum. We support all birthing people. When someone comes to see us for their first visit, we spend a long time getting to know them. Getting to know their problems and their goals. After we spend time getting to know them, we plan a personalized physical evaluation to help determining what’s going on with their body. We look at everything from balance and lower body strength to the way that they breathe and move. We look at their abdominal wall and muscles, their pelvic floor and their ability to use these muscles for what they’re there for. We work with folks in Austin in our clinic down south and with folks all over the world virtually.

When people come to see us, they’ve often already seen another PT and felt like they “failed,” and it’s our job to figure out what went wrong. Oftentimes, the reason PT “fails” is because something in the program is missing. It’s our job to make sure nobody feels like they’ve flunked out of PT. Outside of physical therapy services, we have a couple of products to support birthing people, including a self-paced Birth Preparation & Postpartum Planning course and an e-book providing folks with a six-week program to regain strength postpartum.

We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
I don’t know that there is a global definition of success I’d fall back on because I think it looks so different for everyone. For me, success is about how I feel. I feel successful when I am energized and passionate at work but go home and can enjoy the rest of my life and loved ones with that same energy and passion. To me, that balance is a success.

Contact Info:

• Email: rebecca@ladybirdpt.com
• Website: www.ladybirdpt.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ladybirdpt/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ladybirdpt
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCr81WQtIXbFiuaFxfic1M2w
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/lady-bird-physical-therapy-austin

Image Credits
Caroline McKinney