It was on the verge of springtime—the first beautiful day of the year. Colleen Newton, a grad student, was working in a mentorship therapy program. She was deciding on her area of focus.
"There we were, on this gorgeous day outside. We were blowing bubbles for the cutest little guy, helping him to take his first steps. As he toddled forward, I was hooked. I knew then and there I wanted to work in pediatric physical therapy."
Since 2012, Colleen has done just that, bringing her compassion, joy, and creative touch into her work with the youngest clients and their families.
"It’s all about finding fun ways to reach our therapeutic goals."
Colleen’s Story
Colleen grew up in the Chicagoland area. She was always very active, pursuing sports like softball, volleyball, and soccer. Being on the taller side of her age group growing up, she played basketball (the Center, of course). She knew she enjoyed physical activity and decided to study Exercise Science during her undergraduate work at Marquette University in Milwaukee.
When Colleen started graduate school at the University of Illinois at Chicago, it was time to select a specialty and area of focus. In deciding where to take her career, Colleen looked to her big sister. Despite their 11-year age difference, they were always close; her sister was her role model and mentor.
“My sister works in Occupational Therapy. She and I have so many similar interests, and she urged me to look into the therapies. I explored OT and speech, but I kept coming back to physical therapy. I love working with big gross motor movements and understanding physiology.”
Colleen has always loved working with kids. As a babysitter in her youth, she adored caring for little ones. She loved organizing play activities, seeing kids grow, and progress. Now, as the mom of two young children, she is surrounded by children all day long and couldn't be happier.
"The idea of being able to work (and play) with kids all day is fantastic to me. When I did my grant work in grad school, we did our focused clinical rotations in early intervention. I was out there with my mentor, and I absolutely fell in love with pediatrics. Generalized physical therapy allows you to work with any population, but pediatrics is exactly where I want to be."
"The mentoring and support that comes through working with M Street is huge!"
Bringing Creativite Pediatric Physical Therapy Into a Families Routine
Colleen has always had a creative spirit. Whether it's painting growth charts for her children, nieces, and nephews, or reupholstering furniture, (including a couch!) Colleen brings her keen eye and out-of-the-box approach. Her creativity serves her well in her work at M Street.
“You get really inventive when you incorporate big gross motor activities in the at-home setting. I'm amazed at what we can do with stairs, a stepstool, bubbles, and a ball. You work with whatever the family has on hand in their home, and you've got to be creative with those parameters."
Undaunted, Colleen loves to roll up her sleeves and approach the challenges with originality. Each family who works with M Street is unique, bringing their challenges, schedules, and lifestyles to the table. M Street therapists work with children in their familiar home environment. This often means using toys and regular family activities in the therapeutic approach.
Meeting families in their environment and finding a methodology comfortable for all parties (including the kids) is key to successful pediatric physical therapy.
“One of the biggest challenges is empowering families to find doable ways to follow-through. Fortunately, the challenge is pretty easy to overcome because we build up such a close relationship with the families we work with. We offer kids many unique ways to mix PT into their regular play,” says Colleen.
“It’s all about finding fun ways to reach our therapeutic goals. We’re not going to make a baby do pushups or difficult physical work. We're simply offering adaptations for how they already play. We find new ways to set up play environments to elicit new movement patterns, helping progress come naturally."
One of the challenges of pediatric physical therapy is it’s not always comfortable. Infants and toddlers are learning how to move their bodies and build strength in a way that feels new or different; it’s not always the path of least resistance. For Colleen, a gentle, empathetic approach is the best way to help clients adjust.
"I work with kids across the spectrum of infant to three years old. Physical therapy is tough work for the little ones, especially if they have low muscle tone or decreased strength. We're challenging their bodies or muscles to move in a different way. So, we take a break, give them time to snuggle with their caregivers, and slowly build up to a place where they're comfortable."
"We can challenge kids and see great progress, but still modify the activities and make it easier for the little ones, depending on how they feel that day. For older kiddos, the challenge is often changing the way they want to play. We're helping them figure out new ways to have fun that includes their PT activities.”
Colleen loves seeing the gains her clients make after working with the families in their day-to-day environment. The reward is seeing breakthroughs with little modifications that are easy for the family to follow. By incorporating PT into play, it becomes part of a family's routine and fits right in with their lifestyle.
"The most important factor to me is fostering an open conversation with caregivers."
Working with Colleen at M Street
One aspect of working at M Street that Colleen loves is managing such a diverse caseload.
“I may have kiddos who are dealing with gross motor delays—not sitting, crawling, or walking yet. Some of my clients have Cerebral Palsy or other medically complex issues that contribute to motor delays as well. It’s so wonderful to see all kids’ progress, but I find it most rewarding to see gains for the kids with the most medically complex situations.”
M Street Therapists stay current with the latest research and practices in the field. With regular mentoring meetings, therapists bounce ideas off each other and discuss the latest tools and resources.
"The mentoring and support that comes through working with M Street is huge! Being able to reach out to a group of knowledgeable therapists who you respect, and ask questions about cases and treatment approaches is such a gift."
Colleen loves working with families in their homes and finding ways to help them successfully progress with their gross motor skills. She's quick to adjust and adapt her approach, empowering families to find success.
"The most important thing for families to know is I always have the best interests of their child at heart. I enjoy working with little ones so much. This age group is interesting, fun, and cute. Physical therapy is often challenging, but even on those days when they need extra comfort from their caregivers, I always have their best interests in mind.”
“We work together to get through whatever the kiddos need to work through; we change up our activities. The most important factor to me is fostering an open conversation with caregivers. I love the back and forth with families, where we decide together the best approach to take that day.”
Colleen and the therapists at M Street believe there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to therapy. It’s all about meeting families in a way that works for everyone and finding creative methods to successfully incorporate therapy into your daily routine.
"We offer kids many unique ways to mix PT into their regular play."
