Expert and Empathetic Care to Optimize Your Pelvic Health
Offering Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy for all Genders
At Santa Cruz Pelvic Health, we help you get out of pain and improve bowel and urinary function so you can feel better, stop leaking, prepare better and recover more quickly from childbirth or surgery or finally address the chronic issues that have been impacting your quality of life so you can move with ease, get back to exercise, improve sexual health and enjoy your life with confidence.
Testimonials
“Taflyn is a gifted healer with advanced training in nerve work that helped me resolve 10 years of chronic hip pain”
O.W.
“Jen took the time to listen deeply to my long history of pelvic floor issues and then undertook a course of treatment that was targeted specifically to me”
K.S.
“I have made worlds of progress which I would never have been able to accomplish on my own”
A.R.
Taflyn Wilschinsky (she/her), Doctor of Physical Therapy, Owner
Taflyn’s specialty training in pelvic rehabilitation includes treatment for a variety of conditions associated with the pelvic floor. She is passionate about working with patients to optimize pelvic health, helping them overcome issues such as pelvic pain, urinary problems, chronic constipation, and other bowel problems- as well as helping patients to prepare for and recover from surgery, including c-sections, other abdominal surgeries, and prostate surgery. She also works with individuals before, during, and after pregnancy, and throughout the lifespan, to assist and empower them to recover and maintain pelvic floor muscle coordination, flexibility, and strength.
Assuring optimal pelvic floor function allows patients to be confident and comfortable in their bodies throughout the seasons of life. Taflyn’s goal when working with patients is to find the unique combination of exercise, hands on treatment and other strategies to address pelvic health conditions that may be limiting their physical activity and other important aspects of their life.
Jen Rawlins (she/her), Doctor of Physical Therapy
Jen and Taflyn met in January of 2020 when they were both assisting with an introductory pelvic health training course and connected over a mutual passion for pelvic health. At the time, Jen had recently had her second child and was planning to move her family back to her hometown in Arizona. Many pandemic-influenced life changes later, Jen and her family moved to Santa Cruz, and Taflyn convinced her to join the team at Santa Cruz Pelvic Health.
Jen’s interest in pelvic health was sparked when she was a physical therapy student and saw her mentor struggling to treat patients with obvious pelvic health needs. He encouraged her to specialize in pelvic health. During her graduate training, she gained experience in the treatment of urinary incontinence, bowel issues such as constipation and IBS, and sexual dysfunction such as pain with sex and limitation with orgasm. After graduation, she continued her pelvic health education with additional clinical courses, and went on to spearhead a pelvic health department at a large outpatient clinic in Sunnyvale.
Jen has a special certification, (the CAPP-OB), through the American Physical Therapy Association, recognizing her skills and abilities in working with pregnant and postpartum individuals. As a mother who benefited from being treated by a colleague after her first child was born, Jen understands the difficulties of the postpartum period, and how pelvic floor physical therapy can help. She loves helping new parents overcome symptoms such as back pain and urinary leakage, while managing the daily demands of infant care such as feeding, carrying the car seat or lifting the stroller. With her own lifelong love of fitness, Jen also enjoys helping parents resume more high level physical activity, such as running and working out without symptoms.
In addition to working with patients during pregnancy and postpartum, Jen also loves treating women throughout the lifespan, and believes in a holistic approach to pelvic health treatment: addressing factors such as diet, sleep and stress in addition to posture and movement to help improve symptoms.
Jenna Riley (she/her), Doctor of Physical Therapy
Jenna has long appreciated the unique role physical therapy plays in the field of health care. She appreciates that being a physical therapist allows for more time with patients, both within a treatment session and over the course of a plan of care. Jenna is a great fit at Santa Cruz Pelvic Health as she sees the importance of spending a full hour with patients during a treatment session. Additionally, she enjoys being able to work with patients over time in order to progress them from small wins, such as improved bladder control with day to day activities, to achieving bigger goals, like staying dry while running a 10K. Jenna’s graduate training in pelvic health is consistent with the holistic perspective of Santa Cruz Pelvic Health, in that she understands, for example, how back pain or foot problems could impact pelvic floor symptoms.
When Jenna started working with pelvic floor patients, she found she had a natural affinity for listening and creating a sense of comfort for people dealing with sensitive issues such as pain with sex. She also enjoys helping patients regain control as she guides them along the path from first steps to full symptom resolution. Jenna has worked with patients of all genders and across the lifespan, including helping a mature woman return to gardening by decreasing the need for bathroom breaks to assisting a young cyclist in overcoming hip and pelvic pain. Other examples include helping a young mom with SI joint pain get back to running around with her toddlers and helping an older man resolve incontinence after prostate surgery.
As a long time swimmer turned avid running enthusiast, Jenna understands the importance of being able to participate in activities that you love. She looks forward to helping her patients overcome their pelvic health symptoms so they can return to living more comfortably and fully.
Individualized one-on-one care
Wholistic Approach
The pelvis is at the center of the body and the functions encompassed here are affected by myriad factors. At Santa Cruz Pelvic Health, your therapist takes a thorough history and prioritizes your most prevalent issues while maintaining a broad view of all the elements that can impact the pelvis and pelvic floor muscle function.
Move to Improve
The pelvic floor is a group of muscles and just like other muscles in the body the pelvic floor muscles are affected by positions and movements we are in most often throughout our daily lives. Our postural habits can, therefore, contribute to the pelvic floor muscles being overly tense, short and stiff or weak. Our goal with therapy is to help you learn new movements to improve your pelvic floor mobility and function.
Hands on Treatment
Just as many of us have a tendency to hold tension in the shoulders or the jaw, the pelvic floor muscles are a common site of chronic muscle holding or tension. These overactive muscle patterns can be triggered by injury or other stressors. Hands on treatment can be an excellent means to improve awareness and relaxation of the pelvic floor muscles to improve function and alleviate pain in this area of the body.
Exercises Tailored to Your Movement Goals
Whether your goals are broadly athletic or simply around day to day activities, your exercises will be designed to build towards these goals and may even be fun!