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Finding Steady Ground: Balance in Motion, Balance in Care
In this episode, Kathy sits down with Dr. Katie Wadland, PT, DPT, a board-certified geriatric clinical specialist and founder of Healthy Aging Physical Therapy, a home-based PT/OT practice supporting older adults across Greater Boston. Katie shares how her team helps seniors stay safe, mobile, and independent by working with them right inside their own homes where real barriers, habits, and daily challenges are most visible.
Katie breaks down how functional, goal-driven therapy works in the home, the difference it makes when PTs and OTs collaborate closely, and how she uncovers each patient’s true motivation, the deeper “why” behind wanting to move better. She and Kathy compare notes about navigating older homes, fall risks, clutter, and creative adaptions that help people age in place with dignity. They share how each engage with family members to assemble a team all focused on the success of their patient or client.
The conversation then shifts into Katie’s personal life as a midlife woman: raising teens, running a thriving business, supporting a mother living with Parkinson’s, and managing the emotional weight of years of caregiving. She talks candidly about overwhelm, guilt, boundary-setting, and the constant recalibration required when home, work, and family needs collide. She also shares the small systems (like her beloved Google Tasks) that keep her grounded, and how yoga, nature, and an unexpectedly perfect Golden Retriever help her recharge.
This episode is a warm, real conversation about caring for others, caring for ourselves, and finding solid footing in seasons that pull in every direction.
Key Takeaways
In-home therapy reveals the real barriers to aging in place—from clutter and tight staircases to the daily habits and small challenges that aren’t visible in a clinic.
Functional, goal-driven care matters most: Katie focuses on what patients actually want to do—like garden, shower safely, or return to social routines—and builds therapy around those practical goals.
Collaborative PT/OT support strengthens outcomes, ensuring consistent guidance on balance, fall prevention, equipment, and home modifications.
Midlife caregiving brings constant emotional and logistical weight: Katie shares the realities of supporting a parent with Parkinson’s while raising teens and running a business.
Recharge rituals restore balance: Yoga, nature, and the grounding presence of her new dog help her reset when everything feels like too much.
Resources and Mentions
Healthy Aging Physical Therapy: https://healthyagingpt.com/
Tons of resources and videos on balance and falls: https://healthyagingpt.com/balance-and-falls
Their great monthly blog: https://healthyagingpt.com/toc
About Katie Wadland
Dr. Katie Wadland, PT, DPT, Board-Certified Geriatric Clinical graduate of the MGH Institute of Health Professions and the owner/founder of Healthy Aging Physical Therapy (HAPT). She brings over 17 years of experience in inpatient, outpatient, and home care rehabilitation, having worked at many of the region’s top hospitals and home health agencies.
Since launching HAPT in July 2020 as a solo provider, Katie has grown the practice into a thriving team of 23 clinicians and support staff. HAPT serves older adults across MA with Medicare Part B–covered outpatient-at-home physical and occupational therapy, specializing in Parkinson’s disease, balance and falls, vestibular dysfunction, post-hospital recovery, and other complex neurologic and medical diagnoses.
Katie is passionate about community health and wellness education, and her team frequently partners with local senior centers and councils on aging to provide evidence-based strength and balance classes, fall prevention workshops, and community outreach programs.
View all episodes
By Kathy VinesIn this episode, Kathy sits down with Dr. Katie Wadland, PT, DPT, a board-certified geriatric clinical specialist and founder of Healthy Aging Physical Therapy, a home-based PT/OT practice supporting older adults across Greater Boston. Katie shares how her team helps seniors stay safe, mobile, and independent by working with them right inside their own homes where real barriers, habits, and daily challenges are most visible.
Katie breaks down how functional, goal-driven therapy works in the home, the difference it makes when PTs and OTs collaborate closely, and how she uncovers each patient’s true motivation, the deeper “why” behind wanting to move better. She and Kathy compare notes about navigating older homes, fall risks, clutter, and creative adaptions that help people age in place with dignity. They share how each engage with family members to assemble a team all focused on the success of their patient or client.
The conversation then shifts into Katie’s personal life as a midlife woman: raising teens, running a thriving business, supporting a mother living with Parkinson’s, and managing the emotional weight of years of caregiving. She talks candidly about overwhelm, guilt, boundary-setting, and the constant recalibration required when home, work, and family needs collide. She also shares the small systems (like her beloved Google Tasks) that keep her grounded, and how yoga, nature, and an unexpectedly perfect Golden Retriever help her recharge.
This episode is a warm, real conversation about caring for others, caring for ourselves, and finding solid footing in seasons that pull in every direction.
Key Takeaways
In-home therapy reveals the real barriers to aging in place—from clutter and tight staircases to the daily habits and small challenges that aren’t visible in a clinic.
Functional, goal-driven care matters most: Katie focuses on what patients actually want to do—like garden, shower safely, or return to social routines—and builds therapy around those practical goals.
Collaborative PT/OT support strengthens outcomes, ensuring consistent guidance on balance, fall prevention, equipment, and home modifications.
Midlife caregiving brings constant emotional and logistical weight: Katie shares the realities of supporting a parent with Parkinson’s while raising teens and running a business.
Recharge rituals restore balance: Yoga, nature, and the grounding presence of her new dog help her reset when everything feels like too much.
Resources and Mentions
Healthy Aging Physical Therapy: https://healthyagingpt.com/
Tons of resources and videos on balance and falls: https://healthyagingpt.com/balance-and-falls
Their great monthly blog: https://healthyagingpt.com/toc
About Katie Wadland
Dr. Katie Wadland, PT, DPT, Board-Certified Geriatric Clinical graduate of the MGH Institute of Health Professions and the owner/founder of Healthy Aging Physical Therapy (HAPT). She brings over 17 years of experience in inpatient, outpatient, and home care rehabilitation, having worked at many of the region’s top hospitals and home health agencies.
Since launching HAPT in July 2020 as a solo provider, Katie has grown the practice into a thriving team of 23 clinicians and support staff. HAPT serves older adults across MA with Medicare Part B–covered outpatient-at-home physical and occupational therapy, specializing in Parkinson’s disease, balance and falls, vestibular dysfunction, post-hospital recovery, and other complex neurologic and medical diagnoses.
Katie is passionate about community health and wellness education, and her team frequently partners with local senior centers and councils on aging to provide evidence-based strength and balance classes, fall prevention workshops, and community outreach programs.