Optimize Pelvic Health

06/11/2026

Meet Dr. Catherine⁠
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Dr. Catherine’s passion for pelvic health started with a deep appreciation for human movement.⁠
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After growing up in San Jose and spending 15 years in ballet and contemporary dance, she pursued her Doctorate of Physical Therapy at Columbia University, where she discovered her passion for pelvic floor therapy and caring for the perinatal population.⁠
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Dr. Catherine has a special interest in:⁠
✨ pregnancy and postpartum recovery⁠
✨ pelvic floor dysfunction⁠
✨ return to movement and exercise⁠
✨ supporting individuals with eating disorders⁠
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She understands that pelvic floor symptoms often impact more than just the body — they can affect confidence, identity, movement, and quality of life.⁠
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Her care combines evidence-based physical therapy with a compassionate, whole-person approach that helps patients feel heard, supported, and understood throughout recovery.⁠
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At Optimize Pelvic Health, we believe pelvic floor therapy should feel individualized, thoughtful, and empowering, and Dr. Catherine embodies that every day.⁠
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📍San Jose, CA⁠⁠⁠⁠
📸 WorkPlay Branding

06/10/2026

Pelvic floor PT isn’t just for women.⁠
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Many men silently deal with:⁠
— pelvic/hip/SIJ pain⁠
— urinary leakage, urgency or frequency⁠
— constipation⁠
— ge***al or testicular pain⁠
— post-surgical symptoms⁠
— pain with sitting or exercise⁠
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…and don’t realize pelvic floor physical therapy may help.⁠
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At Optimize Pelvic Health, Dr. Melody, our male pelvic floor specialist, takes a whole-body approach to pelvic health looking beyond symptoms alone to assess movement, muscle coordination, pressure systems, and stress nervous system tension.⁠
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Pelvic floor dysfunction affects men too.⁠
And no, you do not have to “just live with it.”⁠
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📍San Jose, CA⁠⁠⁠⁠
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05/30/2026

I recently worked with someone whose prolapse symptoms improved with a pessary…

…but urinary leakage got WORSE.

Here’s why:
Without a pessary, sometimes the bladder drops enough that it creates a small “kink” in the urethra.
That kink can accidentally HELP reduce leaking.

Add the pessary → the urethra straightens.
If the urethra itself is weak, urine can move downward more easily → leakage.

The pessary didn’t create the weakness.
It EXPOSED it.

But here’s the interesting part:
The pessary ALSO improved bladder neck funneling (when the top of the urethra opens too early).
Less urine sitting in the urethra = less urgency.
So one symptom improved…
while another showed up.
Pelvic floor symptoms are rarely “one problem = one solution.”
There’s usually more to the story.

📍Optimize Pelvic Health | San Jose Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy

www.optimizepelvichealth.com/request

05/30/2026

05/29/2026

When your “SI joint pain” isn’t actually coming from the SI joint. 👀 Part 1

I worked with an athlete whose SIJ pain was limiting her ability to play. She had already been doing the typical treatments directed at the SI joint itself.

My assessment guided me to her biggest restriction, her intestines not the SIJ.

We treated the abdominal/intestinal restrictions with visceral mobilization and I gave her a self-release exercise using a Coregeous ball.

Her pain resolved immediately.

She returned to playing national team games without pain. 🏆

The body is connected.

Sometimes the area that hurts is not the area creating the problem.

This is why a deeper assessment matters.

If you’ve been told your SI joint is “out” over and over… this is your sign to get a deeper assessment.

Stay tuned for part 2.

05/16/2026

Preparing for a concert in your 40s is basically an athletic event now 😂

Before the No Doubt concert:
✔ stretching
✔ hydrating
✔ mentally preparing to stand for 4 hours
✔ prepping the bathroom stops
✔ wondering how late past my bedtime this will go

Meanwhile 20-year-old me:
“Let’s just wing it.”

But honestly… this phase of life hits different.

A lot of women in their 40s start noticing:
• urgency
• sleep changes
• joint stiffness
• hip/back pain
• pelvic floor symptoms
• slower recovery
• overheating way too easily

And many assume it’s “just aging.”

Hormonal shifts during perimenopause absolutely affect the pelvic floor, bladder, connective tissue, recovery, and muscle function.

Which means symptoms are common but they’re not something you necessarily have to just accept.

📍Optimize Pelvic Health
Pelvic floor therapy in San Jose specializing in perimenopause, bladder symptoms & pelvic pain.