Meet Dr. Jackie Roelofs | Holistic Women’s Health Coach and Pelvic Physical Therapist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dr. Jackie Roelofs and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dr. Jackie, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
As a doctor of physical therapy, I saw a major need for a better way to care for women more holistically, particularly in my specialty of women’s health. I was previously working in a corporate PT clinic seeing about 15 patients in a day, and quickly felt that I was unable to provide the highest level of care to my patients due to the constraints of the system I worked under.

I wanted to create a care model where I could care for the holistic needs of women and answer the question those in the 25-35 demographic were asking – how will this physical problem affect me when I want to have kids? I went a level deeper to ask them how these problems were REALLY impacting their life, relationships, and work. It’s NEVER just about the actual health problem. It’s how that is preventing the person from living their life with freedom, joy, and connection to themselves and their community.

Most women come to their OBGYN with problems such as debilitatingly painful periods, painful sex, difficulty postpartum, and fertility issues – but as I worked with more of these women, I realized they are not getting the answers in those places.

I wanted to provide a space where women could hear someone say “I know exactly how to help you” and be proactive in their health AND life, rather than being prescribed birth control pills, told to wait and see, or wait a year and then try to get more help getting pregnant.
My ultimate goal is for the women I work with to live with freedom, joy, and connection to their communities – these are my core values, and I try to embody them in the way I work.

What should our readers know about your business?
I help women who have a history of wacky and painful periods and are daunted by the complexities of their current or future fertility journey to take a proactive and effortless approach to getting pregnant.

My business has definitely evolved in the last 18 months. With my background in pelvic health physical therapy (which usually combines traditional understanding of movement dysfunction as it relates to bowel, bladder, and sexual health issues), I originally started my business with a passion for helping women who have pain with sex and painful periods in a clinical PT-type setting.

As I dove deeper into this niche, I attracted a pretty specific archetype – these women were usually highly successful and driven – the “straight-A student” type. They often had varying degrees of anxiety, and many had a history of trauma. Super physically active. And all around interesting and fun-loving people. Usually ages 25-32ish, considering starting families eventually, wondering how their current issues would effect them when that time came.

They also usually shared an eerily similar story – being offered birth control pills from age 12 for issues ranging from period pain to acne to irregular cycles rather than having a doctor dive deeper into more effective diagnosis and healing. protocol. When they asked the question “How will this effect me when I want to have kids?” they were brushed off with a “come back when you want to get pregnant.”

In turn, those in the active process of trying to conceive are told “come back in a year if you aren’t pregnant yet.” No empowerment to be proactive, to make any changes to optimize fertility. Just a “wait and see” approach. Which if you are a woman wanting to get pregnant, especially for a while, this is complete misery!

This story was very similar to mine, actually.

What makes my practice quite different from other pelvic health and fertility coaching practices is that I use a very story-focused and trauma-informed approach to healing from pain and hormonal dysfunction. Without going too deep into the complex physiology of pain and hormone health – our central nervous systems drive everything; and when there are danger signals going off externally and internally (for whatever reason), our bodies will not prioritize basic functions like digestion and reproduction.

So we have to go beyond the strictly physical and physiological when it comes to healing – from any type of pain and dysfunction, but particularly when it comes to fertility. I say fertility because babies or not, that is actually one of the key indicators for overall health in women. Our cycles tell all when it comes to our health and life.

And of course, there are many women trying to get fertility treatments whose providers haven’t considered their story or their trauma history, which in my opinion is a MAJOR missing link!

I want my clients to experience full freedom to live their lives the way they are wired to (hence the name of my practice, Wired PT and Wellness), joyfully, confidently, and with connection to themselves and their community.

So even though my model has changed – that is still my ultimate goal. When working with me, I want for women to experience being TRULY listened to, VALIDATED, and empowered to make small but manageable changes that can help them 1) live in alignment with their highest selves and 2) get pregnant if/when they want to.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Love this question! Having lived in the Southwest Atlanta neighborhood of Adair Park for 4.5 years, I’d say don’t miss this little corner of the city! Monday Night Garage is the perfect hangout spot on a Saturday afternoon or for a little weeknight relaxation and socialization and has a super special place in our hearts. If they are having a party, especially one that includes costumes and dancing (like their annual adult Prom), do not miss it! Breakfast tacos at Muchacho then take your iced coffee to go on the Eastside beltline.
Early Dinner and cocktails at Beetlecat- bring friends and order EVERYTHING to share (especially if they have the Tuna Tartare)! Then go for a stroll around Inman Park. Ice cream at Butter and Cream.
If you’re into shopping, hit up Ponce City Market, but for the love of God do NOT drive there on a weekend! park somewhere far away and enjoy a walk on the Beltline.
And definitely attend an Atlanta United Game!
JUst realizing all these suggestions in some way involve walking on the Beltline… but truly it’s one of the best things ATL has to offer!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Yes! My grandmother, Jackie Reynolds (my namesake), a long-time Atlanta resident, tragically and suddenly passed away from Covid in January 2021.
The gift she left me enabled me financially to quit a life-sucking job to create the business of my dreams that served a need I saw in so many women.
My grandmother (we called her Dede) and I were very close and I feel that I embody her spirit in many ways. She herself was an entrepreneur and business woman in Atlanta; she started her business at a time when it was much less common for women to own businesses, much less for them to be successful. In fact, she had two male business partners whom she eventually bought out because they “weren’t carrying their weight.”

My business coach and mentor, Dr. Julie Granger, was the one who ultimately asked me the right question- “What is stopping you from doing this?” and encouraged me to take the leap into entrepreneurship before I was 100% confident and ready to do it.

Website: www.wiredpt.com

Instagram: wiredptandwellness

Other: tiktok: @drjacksauce email: jackie@wiredpt.com