Meet Laura Velasquez DPT | Pelvic Health Physical Therapist
We had the good fortune of connecting with Laura Velasquez DPT and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Laura, is there something you can share with us that those outside of the industry might not be aware of?
I want people to know that every single person has a pelvic floor and that a majority of pelvic floor concerns are treatable. There has not been a week that has gone by since I opened my practice where I am not explaining to someone exactly what I do as a pelvic floor physical therapist. While many people know what physical therapy is, pelvic health or pelvic floor physical therapy is still not as well known and definitely underutilized. I often simplify it by saying that I can help people with anything that has to do with the bowels, bladder, intercourse, or having a baby. Unfortunately, pelvic floor dysfunction is something that people just accept as “normal” or is considered too taboo to discuss with a doctor much less friends and family. These same concerns that feel impossible or uncomfortable to discuss can also have a massive impact on a person’s quality of life. There are people out there that cannot sit down, are not leaving their house, have not been able to consummate their marriage, are not able to work, and cannot play with their kids or hold their babies because of pelvic floor dysfunction. The majority of these people can find relief by working with a pelvic floor physical therapist. That’s why my passion is to help demystify the pelvic floor, spread awareness about the pelvic floor, and provide a safe environment for treatment. The pelvic floor muscles have a huge impact on bowel, bladder, and sexual function. And there is no way to carry and give birth to a baby without having the pelvic floor and deep core impacted. As a pelvic health physical therapist, I’ve spent years beyond PT school learning how to heal and optimize the pelvic floor to help patients. It’s something that many people don’t think about until it affects them or someone they love. But the truth is, the majority of people will have some type of pelvic floor dysfunction at some point in their life. And when they do, I’m here to help!
What should our readers know about your business?
Peach Fit Physical Therapy is unlike a lot of other physical therapy businesses. It’s a concierge pelvic health physical therapy company, not a big chain clinic or a company with a bunch of physical therapists. You always know the quality of therapy you are going to receive and who you will be seeing. The entire company is owned and run by me. When a new patient has a question, it’s me, the owner and PT, that will call them and discuss their case with them before booking a session. I’m the person behind the phone calls, emails, and texts, not an automated service or someone that’s trained to answer one or two questions. I wanted it to be this way and hope that it will stay this way. One of my favorite things about what I do is building relationships with people. By being the one that is handling client communication, fostering open conversations, and being available for people no matter what the concern, I’m able to build a deep trust with patients that I see make a huge difference in their short term relief and long term health. I want patients to feel comfortable reaching out to me for years to come because of the service they were provided and the trust that was built.
If you had asked my in physical therapy school, I never would have dreamed that I would be running my own physical therapy practice, and definitely not a pelvic health practice. Prior to starting Peach Fit PT, I worked in a really busy orthopedic clinic seeing sometimes 4-5 patients at a time during a one hour time period. I quickly realized that working in a setting where I was just going through the motions with a company goal of billing insurance as much as we could was not why I became a physical therapist. I felt burned out and lost in my career goals. When I began learning more about pelvic floor dysfunction, I discovered a deep passion for helping these patients, I fell in love with physical therapy again. Providing relief to people that were overlooked, under diagnosed, fearful, and often hopeless set a fire under me that was the catalyst behind where I am today. After 4 years in practice, I realized the best way to help people how I believed was most beneficial for them was to open my own practice free of the confines of upper management and insurance restrictions. Now I treat patients one on one for an entire hour and sometimes longer. I am able to see them as often and as long as they need to be seen to get better, not the cadence that an insurance company has seemingly randomly dictated. I’m no longer struggling with burn out, feeling discouraged, or providing treatment I don’t fully believe in. Because of this I have been able to provide quality care and help countless patients get better quicker and stay better longer.
The hardest part of getting to where I am now and opening my own business was taking the “leap of faith” both professionally and financially. Naturally, I was a little nervous that no one would want to come see once I was on my own and that I wouldn’t be able to go back to my old comfortable job if I failed. Thankfully that was not the case at all. I am proud of how much Peach Fit has grown in the year since I opened. I started off as a mobile practitioner without a physical office space. I’ve grown now to having my own space where I treat patients in a calm and comforting environment.
Learning all of the “behind the scenes” parts of business has by far been the biggest challenge I’ve overcome. I knew how to be a physical therapist but not a business owner. I have had to spend countless hours learning about things I never imagined I would have to. I went from just treating patients to being in charge of accounting, marketing, finances, scheduling, and even laundry. I worked with a business coach last year for 6 months and was able to increase my revenue and patient visits by learning systems to save me time and also how to effectively market my services. In PT school, they teach you how to fix people, but they don’t really teach you how to market yourself and your services. It turns out I’ve had a lot of fun leaving my comfort zone and learning more about how to run a business. I’m sure I have many more lessons to come in my future.
Most importantly, opening Peach Fit has allowed me to fulfill my dream of helping patients, creating a community, and allowing me to have work life balance and start a family of my own. My next biggest challenge will be balancing working and being a new mom to my son, Nico, born in April of 2024. Now instead of just treating pregnant and postpartum patients like I always have, I’ll be able to add my own personal experience to improve the care I provide. I’m proud to be a young, successful, female business owner. I’m excited that my son will be able to see me work hard, be passionate, and also be able to change my schedule around to make his little league games.
If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’ve lived in the Smyrna area since 2020, and I am constantly singing it’s praises! Most of my favorite places are in and around the Smyrna/Vinings area. My husband and I are Atlanta Braves season ticket holders for going on 3 years now. You wouldn’t be able to visit me without going to a game and enjoying our favorite spots in the Battery including Superica, PH’ EAST, Antico, and El Super Pan. I just had our first baby in April of this year, so I’m frequenting REV coffee, the Read Shop, and Cafe Lucia for my coffee requirements. My other favorite places to eat and visit in Atlanta are the Bone Garden Cantina, Taqueria Del Sol, The Iberian Pig, Marcels, Meza Luna, Rumi’s Kitchen, Hamp & Harry’s, Tiny Lou’s, and Okiboru, just to name a few!
As owners of two dogs, my husband and I enjoy all of the parks and trails that Atlanta has to offer including Taylor-Brawner Park, Piedmont Park, the Silver Comet Trail, the Westside Reservoir Park, and the Beltline. We also frequent Food Truck Tuesdays at Taylor-Brawner Park during the summer months.
We also love concerts and have enjoyed seeing our favorite artists around Atlanta including the State Farm Arena, Mercedes Benz Stadium, the Roxy, the Tabernacle, Lakewood Amphitheatre, Ameris Bank Amphitheatre, and Truist Park.
And on a Sunday, you will find me at the Smyrna Handmade Market or shopping around the Marietta Square Farmers Market.
Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I could never be where I am today without the unwavering support from my husband and family. I’m not a natural risk taker! Without him cheering me on and giving me pep talks, I would’ve quit a long time ago and settled for a job that wasn’t making me fully happy. Pelvic health physical therapy is extremely specialized physical therapy. It takes countless hours of studying, many in person and online courses, and years of mentorship to really be proficient. I owe a lot of my success to the many pelvic floor physical therapists that have taken time to teach me and mentor me a long the way, most notably Amanda Shipley DPT.
Website: https://www.PeachFitPT.com
Instagram: instagram.com/laurag_pelvicpt instagram.com/peachfitphysicaltherapy
Image Credits
Trent Giles
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