How Therapists Can Manage a Sedentary Job: An interview with Celina Caovan, DPT

How Therapists Can Manage a Sedentary Job: An interview with Celina Caovan, DPT

Curt and Katie interview Celina Caovan about physical self-care for therapists. We talk about how to mitigate the impacts of a sedentary job as well as the benefits of physical therapy and consistent physical activity. We also look into what physical therapy is, how clients can advocate for it, and how therapists might collaborate to support the physical and mental health of their patients.

Transcripts for this episode will be available at mtsgpodcast.com!

An Interview with Celina Caovan, DPT

Celina Caovan received both her undergraduate degree and Doctorate of Physical Therapy degree from the University of Southern California. She has been practicing in an outpatient orthopedic setting in the South Bay in California for the last two years and is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist.

In this podcast episode, we talk about how therapists can take care of their bodies while working in a sedentary job

Many therapist friends of ours have described low back pain and challenges in maintaining physical health when much of the work we do is while sitting.

What should therapists know about physical activity and physical therapy?

“Physical therapists are trained movement experts… we can diagnose, we can treat using hands on skills, patient education, and then we prescribe individual exercise for a bunch of different injuries, the ultimate goal being to improve the way someone moves and emphasize injury prevention. And the cool thing about physical therapy: it can be an alternative to pain medication, in a society where they prescribe a lot of a lot of pain medication, and then surgery as well.” – Celina Caovan, DPT

There are a number of subspecialties in physical therapy to support all different elements of improving movement

The importance of moving outside of a sedentary job

US Department of Health guidelines on activity levels

What can therapists do to take care of themselves during the work week?

Getting out of the chair, some chair exercises

Stretching and gentle movements during the breaks between sessions

No drastic differences in activity from the work week to the weekend (i.e., avoid weekend warrior behavior, especially when extremely sedentary during the week_

Slowly increase activity and gradually increase cardio or resistance training

Stretching (static and dynamic), warming up, and cooling down

How can therapists think about physical therapy for their clients?

“Someone's physical and mental health – that’s interconnected… that mind body connection. And I think this would be a really great opportunity for us to create this interdisciplinary relationship where we can approach it from a physical and mental standpoint.” – Celina Caovan, DPT

Referrals and direct access to physical therapy

Psychoeducation and support for advocacy to obtain physical therapy

Chiropractors versus physical therapists

How physical and mental health therapists can collaborate to support patients

 Resources for Modern Therapists mentioned in this Podcast Episode:

We’ve pulled together resources mentioned in this episode and put together some handy-dandy links. Please note that some of the links below may be affiliate links, so if you purchase after clicking below, we may get a little bit of cash in our pockets. We thank you in advance! Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans from the US Department of Health and Human Services

Beach Cities Orthopedics and Sports Medicine

Reach out to Celina Caovan, DPT: celinaDPT at gmail.com

Consultation services with Curt Widhalm or Katie Vernoy:

The Fifty-Minute Hour

Connect with the Modern Therapist Community:

Our Facebook Group – The Modern Therapists Group

Modern Therapist’s Survival Guide Creative Credits:

Voice Over by DW McCann https://www.facebook.com/McCannDW/

Music by Crystal Grooms Mangano https://groomsymusic.com/