Mindful Healing
Welcome! You are likely here because you are looking for solutions. You are motivated and ready to take steps to improve your situation… because where you are now is uncomfortable.
Let’s face it-- discomfort is a part of this human experience. Whether you are in pain or something just isn’t working right, your experience is letting you know a change is needed. My job is to help you figure out what change is needed so that you can take steps to reach your goals. Or if you are a healthcare/wellness professional, to provide resources that help your clients reach their goals.
It might be helpful to think of symptoms as the body’s primitive way of saying “something needs to change.” When it is not clear what changes are needed, it’s time to call in an expert. Sometimes it’s a bit like detective work in that I help to look, listen, and feel for clues that indicate what is needed for the body to restore optimal health. While I’m happy to help with simple orthopedic or pelvic floor cases, my unique specialties make me an expert in chronic pain, connective tissue disorders, dysautonomia, hypermobility-related chronic pain/instability, and abdomino-pelvic pain.
I’ve been managing injuries and conditions since the age of 12, when I first encountered physical therapy as a patient. My physical therapists identified that hypermobility was contributing to my recurrent injuries and aches. Many years and misdiagnoses later, it was determined that my orthopedic, neurological, and GI symptoms were all signs of hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS), a genetic connective tissue disorder that predisposes me to dysautonomia (a dysregulation of the autonomic nervous system) and other chronic conditions. Between my personal and professional experiences as a doctor of physical therapy and yoga therapist, I’ve learned a lot about caring for injuries and medical conditions.
I'm well-versed in a variety of techniques and approaches and am willing to explore a lot of options to find what works best for my clients. Current evidence indicates that the techniques we use don't matter nearly as much as the process of feeling heard, understood, and supported as you learn about your body's ability to intelligently adapt to challenges and restore health and wellness.
My approach to rehabilitation and wellness honors the complexity of the human experience, often called a biopsychosocial approach. Essentially, we are so much more than mechanical physical bodies and our health and healing is influenced by all aspects of our selves, not just the biomechanical bits. Our thoughts, emotions, relationships, habits and behaviors all have the potential to shift our physiology. An integrative, holistic approach offers many different ways to influence our own physiology! By changing up the inputs and even how the nervous system processes data, we can get a different output. For a quick and accessible resource that helps the user reframe pain as a complex output of the brain, I recommend The Protectometer: a guidebook to Explain Pain by Lorimer Moseley and David Butler, or Greg Lehman's free e-book on pain recovery strategies (a bit longer, but either is worth the investment in your health!)
You’ll find I offer a variety of services to support your journey toward health and resiliency. From in-person physical therapy or therapeutic yoga to online health coaching and educational courses, I look forward to connecting with you and supporting your growth.
Stay Inspired,
Dr. Catherine Lewan
Testimonials
Catherine tailors her classes to the needs of participants of all ages and conditions. She uses props to enhance each movement, and modifications that offer me the opportunity to take care of my body using weekly Pilates and Yoga group classes. I also see her in the clinic for treatment of my arthritis, and I have found her expertise, respect for the human body and her personal centeredness to be an extraordinary resource.
Catherine is an energetic, bright, and passionate facilitator. She makes class fun and enjoyable!
Catherine has a very effective style, and is open to questions. She is very knowledgable, with good visuals, hands-on instruction, and example exercises. Great course! Thank you!
-Chris V
I have taken classes, workshops, and private sessions with Catherine, and find her to be very knowledgable, present, and sincerely interested in helping each student to reach their own potential. Her teaching is clear, based on science as well as experience. She has a strong ‘body sense’ and loves to challenge her own limits and will challenge you to be your own best self!
-MS
“Dr. Catherine – the breathing techniques have literally ALREADY assisted with my bathroom habits. I am committed to continuing on this treatment path.
I’ve been seeing Dr. Cat for about 5 months for pelvic floor physical therapy (after working for ~2 years on and off with other physical therapists previously). Dr. Cat truly has taught me so much about my whole body and the power of the mind-body connection. I had been living with pelvic floor dysfunction/vaginismus for basically my entire life, and it wasn’t until seeing her that I felt like I could play an equal role in my own treatment. Dr. Cat always listened to my priorities and needs in our sessions. She helped me notice so many smaller “wins” and did a great job connecting those changes to my long-term goals. I have such a deeper understanding of the factors that can influence pain in my pelvic floor (as well as other parts of my body that are directly connected, like my hips, back, abdominals, glutes, and thighs). My treatment has consistently felt personalized, dynamic, and unique to my individual needs as a patient. Dr. Cat has encouraged me to honor my own body and focus on the work that kept me motivated and feeling positive toward my treatment outcomes. She also provided me with recommendations to other specialists when issues came up that felt outside of her scope of practice, which played a huge role in my success as a patient. Pelvic floor therapy is a treatment that really relies on trusting and respecting your therapist, and I would highly recommend Dr. Cat as a member for anyone’s pelvic floor team. My pain during sex/sexual activities has decreased significantly since I started working with Dr. Cat, and I feel so much more in control of my body and choices thanks to my treatment with her!
Catherine and her class (the environment she creates) are great examples of warmth and competence in action. Catherine is open, kind, gracious, generous, smart and very good at what she does.
-MaryPat
Catherine is very approachable, friendly and is there to help you on your path. With her background in dance, Pilates, yoga, and the fact that she is a physical therapist, you really could not get a more knowledgeable teacher. I have been her student for years and absolutely love her! And I know you will too.
I took a course from you a couple years ago about using pilates/yoga with geriatric patients. You presented the material in a smooth, understandable, and engaging way. I was just getting into yoga at the time, and you helped spur me onward into that wonderful realm. I am currently going over, again, the workbook from that course. Just wanted you to know that you helped to re-energize an old physical therapist’s practice of his profession, and continue to influence in a very positive way the outcomes of all my patient interactions. I offer you my sincere gratitude.
– Stan
I was in a lot of pain with mobility issues. Catherine Lewan, DPT, was very understanding and made me feel comfortable about discussing all the ways that the pain was interfering with my daily activities. Cat employed several modalities to address my pain as well as muscle weaknesses (and areas of tightness!) that I hadn’t noticed before but to which my body was reacting. Cat provided me with options to consider regarding my plan of care and included my goals in each step of the treatment. She listened well and came up with a plan tailored to my needs. I now am more knowledgeable about my body and if my pain returns, I have some tools to use to try to address it. I know too that she is available in case my pain persists, and I need a re-evaluation. Working with Cat has convinced me that physical therapists can address the whole patient, not just a joint or limb that is in pain. Finally, Cat was always positive and encouraging. I could not have achieved my great results without her!
Kim– student PTA and experienced personal trainer and exercise instructor
Dr. Catherine Lewan is very knowledgeable about EDS/POTS, and is always furthering her education on the subject. This makes her a wonderful physical therapist and an excellent problem solver for patients like myself. She teaches me so much about being hypermobile, no other physician has been able to help me like she has. I am better able to manage my symptoms now. I am so thankful for Dr. Catherine.
EDS/POTS
I have worked with Catherine after each of my vaginal births, and also during one of my pregnancies. Her knowledge of the body’s systems is unparalleled. Each time I met with Catherine, I had multiple new tools and realizations about myself to work with on my own. She helped me heal from a mild bladder prolapse and reduce my diastasis recti to a subclinical level. I refer patients to Catherine on a weekly basis because I know she will have some ideas and skills to impart to just about anyone imaginable! Thank you, Catherine!
– Lela Beem, studio owner Grateful Yoga of Evanston, co-founder of The Amala School of Prenatal Yoga
