Natasha Tétreault
Physiotherapist

Natasha Tétreault firmly believes that pelvic floor dysfunction deserves it’s turn in the spotlight, not hidden away, forgotten, where people are too embarrassed to talk about it. With 1 in 3, possibly even 1 in 2 women experiencing some kind of pelvic floor issue in their lifetime, most women know at least one other person suffering in silence just like them.

“Urine loss and pelvic pain, especially after pregnancy or during menopause, is common, sure. But that doesn’t mean it should be considered a normal or inevitable part of a woman’s life. We just assume it’s normal, so we don’t talk about it,” she says.

Natasha stumbled upon the field of physiotherapy kind of by accident when she was searching for a way to use the knowledge acquired from her Bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology (McGill 2008) in a practical, meaningful way. She completed her Master’s degree in Physiotherapy at the University of Ottawa in 2010, but quickly realized that she was not drawn to conventional orthopedic physiotherapy.

During her 6 years spent training clients with complex neurological conditions in a private rehab setting, she became unexpectedly interested in women’s health due in part to some her clients who had associated pelvic floor dysfunction, but also after having two children of her own. In fact, she was so interested in learning about how physiotherapy can treat pelvic floor dysfunction that she used her second maternity leave to take three courses on the subject! She struck out on a new career path, for 2 years at her previous clinic and now with the Modern Sports team.

She has completed levels 1-3 of the Uro-Santé pelvi-perineal rehab courses under Marie-José Lord, PT and Claudia Brown, PT. She looks forward to taking more advanced courses in pre- and post-natal care and pelvic pain management, as well as pessary fitting.

At the center of Natasha’s approach to treatment is a focus on educating and empowering her clients to take control of an issue that often seems overwhelming. Soft tissue release, breathing and relaxation exercises as well as functional strengthening exercises round out her treatment arsenal.

“It’s rewarding work. And I look forward to the day when pelvic floor physiotherapy becomes more accessible, even standard care post-partum in Canada.”