Therapist spotlight: Meet Julia!

Throughout our blog posts, The Athlete Centre will be profiling our amazing therapists to help clients/patients learn more about the therapist’s areas of expertise, interest and background.

Julia is a Certified Athletic Therapist in Canada – CAT(C) and working in a rehabilitation setting has always been her ultimate dream job. Her goal is getting clients back to what they enjoy. “It is rewarding to look at each injury as a problem to solve. I get to use a variety of skills in order to help individuals recover from injury and or reach performance goals…I love that I can incorporate my passion for yoga in order to compliment my practice as an Athletic Therapist”.

Her interest in Athletic Therapy was peaked after she sustained a severe ankle injury in high school. “I was on crutches for three weeks with no guidance or education on injury management. I was pushed to go back to play soccer too early and so the injury did not heal properly…this is when I realized that there had to be a better way to deal with this injury”. She fell in love with hands on therapy, exercise and yoga during her Athletic Therapy studies. “Even though I started (rehabilitation) years after the initial injury with the skills I learned in school and my love for yoga, I can say my ankle has fully recovered”.

So, why Athletic Therapy? “I like working with clients that are interested in taking an active role in their rehabilitation and or performance goals, but I do enjoy working with runners, soccer players and para athletes”. Athletic Therapy is a diverse field where therapists not only work with clients in the clinic, but also at the field of play. Currently she is working with the Westshore Rugby club delivering not only therapy services to their athletes, but mentoring future Athletic Therapists as part of placements hours for their degree program. “I find that my skills are constantly challenged, which means no two days are the same.”

Working as an Athletic Therapist – does that mean you only work with athletes? Yes, but the definition of an athlete is very broad. It can be someone who likes to garden, or walk their dog, or someone who plays chess. You do not have to be a professional athlete to be treated like one. Athletic Therapists deliver leading edge therapy as they are trained to work with the best of the best. Julia especially enjoys working with clients who suffer from chronic injuries. She explains that “…most chronic injuries are caused by poor body mechanics or movement patterns, and I love finding ways to improve both of these things”.

While Julia treats all athletes, when asked what her proudest moment as an Athletic Therapist has been? “ I am most proud of working with the Canadian Paralympic Rowing team as they prepared for the 2016 Paralympics”. There is something truly patriotic about working with ambassadors of our country!