Phoenix Rehab was in egg shape for several years before beginning to rise in 2023.

I had registered the name in 2019 and left it incubated in the back of my mind, until the time was right. At the start of 2023 I decided it was time and, faster than I expected, built a studio home for Phoenix Rehab with the vision of creating a space that people felt comfortable in. A space that felt conducive and supportive to healing, and an inviting alternative to a gym or typical pilates studio.

Phoenix is also a sense of home for myself. I struggled for a long time finding my place in the physiotherapy profession. I entered the degree not knowing what physiotherapy entailed, and finished the degree in 2015 thinking I should probably have studied something else. I forced my way through the early years with the terrible mantra they told us at uni of ‘fake it till you make it’. I didn’t believe in that. I gave up manual therapy after three years, and have worked exclusively in pilates teaching and exercise rehabilitation since. I am glad that I made the decision to give away manual therapy and still, I struggled for a long time to find my professional niche. During those years I also experienced chronic fatigue after Barmah Forest Fever, and wasn’t sure I’d ever return to full-time work. I also didn’t have the desire to return to full-time work. It was on more than one occasion that I considered leaving the profession altogether. I considered farm work and a return to hospitality, as well as an Arts Degree in Creative Writing (which I started and haven’t finished). 

Once I began creating the physical space that is Phoenix Rehab, it felt like I was finally doing the work I wanted to do, how I wanted to do it. Phoenix requires more time and energy than I ever considered I’d have the desire to give. But I do, and it brings me joy to come in to work. To have a home to do the subtle and deep work in.

It’s been an incredible journey so far, and only made possible through the generosity, and trust that people have put into Phoenix Rehab. I thank everybody for the gift of working with them.