Meredy Parker, PT, DPT

Meredy Parker has been practicing physical therapy for 26 years and specializes in pelvic girdle dysfunction, perinatal musculoskeletal issues, as well as spine and pelvic floor muscle dysfunction. Dr. Parker founded Chicago Physical Therapists in 2009 and has grown the practice to include nine physical therapists with exceptional skills and a shared vision of providing the highest quality integrative care in a comfortable setting. Meredy has received post-graduate training through countless resources including the Michigan State College of Osteopathic Medicine, mentoring programs at the Shirley Ryan Ability Lab, and Loyola University Medical Center’s Urogynecology Department. She continued her training through The Herman & Wallace Institute of Pelvic Rehabilitation (including lab assisting for courses), The American Physical Therapy Association, Pelvic Sanity, International Pelvic Pain Society, Evidence in Motion, Reframe Rehab, and The Institute for Birth Healing amongst others. Dr. Parker is a Pregnancy and Post-Partum Corrective Exercise Specialist (S Duval CES) and is certified in Dry Needling for orthopedics (Kinetacore,2012), and for the pelvic floor (EIM, 2021).

Education: B.S. in Physical Therapy from The Chicago Medical School in 1996; Doctorate in Physical Therapy from Andrews University in 2008; Doctoral thesis on Diastasis Rectus Abdominis published in the APTA Journal of Women’s Health Physical Therapy.

Laura Gleason, PT, DPT, OCS

Laura has been a Physical Therapist since 2005 after completing her Doctorate of Physical Therapy from Saint Louis University and has extensive training and experience in pelvic health and orthopedics. She is passionate about treating the whole person, not just a diagnosis, and providing individualized treatment based on each person’s goals.

Laura was drawn to the world of pelvic health and perinatal care after her own experiences as a patient after the birth of her first daughter in 2013. Since then, she has completed many courses through Hermann and Wallace Pelvic Rehabilitation Institute to specialize in treating people with bladder and bowel dysfunction and pelvic pain. She is trained in visceral mobilization and also has a special interest in diastasis recti. Laura is certified as a Pregnancy and Postpartum Corrective Exercise Specialist (PCES) and is a member of the Global Pelvic Health Alliance.

Treating people with running-related injuries and general orthopedic conditions are also passions of Laura’s. She completed an orthopedic residency through Evidence in Motion and was board certified in orthopedics (OCS) in 2011. She is skilled with Video Gait Analysis, is a Certified Running Technique Specialist (Pose Method), has taken and taught numerous courses regarding running technique and injuries.

In her free time, Laura enjoys spending time with her husband and two daughters, staying active and being outdoors, instructing fitness classes for moms, and providing outreach and education to postpartum people through her company, Beyond the Bump Wellness.

Alesha Riley, PT, DPT

Alesha has been a physical therapist since 2007, specializing in orthopedic conditions and women’s health. She is especially passionate about working with people who suffer from chronic pain and perinatal women. Her work encompasses women with other pelvic conditions including pelvic joint pain, pain with intercourse, in addition to urinary and fecal urgency, frequency, and incontinence.

Alesha completed a Bachelors of Science degree in Exercise Physiology at Saint Louis University in 2005. She continued her education to procure a Masters and ultimately a Doctorate degree in Physical Therapy.

During graduate school, she worked post-operatively with total joint replacement patients as a physical therapy aide. Her post graduate education has included Mechanical Diagnosis & Treatment of the spine and extremities through the McKenzie Institute, and Perinatal & Pelvic Floor Therapy through the American Physical Therapy Association.

Alesha further honed her skills in orthopedics and pelvic health over the course of 10 years at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. She had the unique opportunity to work in the Chronic Pain Center, where she collaborated with a multidisciplinary team to treat people with debilitating chronic pain. This experience significantly enhanced her understanding of pain and the importance of treating the whole person.

Alesha believes that one of the most powerful tools in rehabilitation is understanding one’s condition. She integrates education, and prioritizes the concerns and goals of each person, to create an individualized plan to fit into his or her life. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her daughter, running, and attending the theater and ballet.

Lauren Goldammer, PT, DPT

Lauren earned her Doctorate in Physical Therapy from the Mayo Clinic School of Health Sciences in Rochester, MN in 2020. There she served as the class president and a teaching assistant. Since graduation, Lauren has taken the initiative to deepen her knowledge and skills by receiving a certification in LSVT BIG and is currently pursuing further certifications in Manual Lymphatic Drainage and Fall Prevention.

Lauren is passionate about working with individuals on the hypermobility spectrum, with dysautonomia conditions, and with chronic pain and helping them find avenues to progress with their goals. She has also had the privilege to work with patients with a wide range of conditions across multiple age groups, including outpatient pediatrics, outpatient orthopedics, inpatient neurology, and geriatrics. She enjoys treating patients with a wide variety of diagnoses and seeks to provide her patients both individualized treatment and education.

She is also fluent in Spanish.

In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her husband, traveling, and exploring Chicago.

Lauren is only taking telehealth patients at this time.

Email: [email protected]

Sarah Macias, PT, MPT, COMT

Sarah has been practicing in Orthopedics since earning her Physical Therapy degree from Northern Illinois University in 2004. She earned an Orthopedic Specialty through the APTA in 2008 and a Manual Therapy Certification in 2018 through the Manual Therapy Institute. After taking introductory coursework in pelvic floor rehabilitation in 2020, Sarah found a new passion in treating pelvic floor dysfunction, as well as pregnant and postpartum women. She also has a special interest in cancer rehabilitation, especially following breast surgery or mastectomy.

Sarah’s career has offered her extensive experience in treating a wide variety of orthopedic conditions, having worked closely with orthopedic surgeons for more than 15 years. She values patient education and a comprehensive treatment approach, assessing the whole patient to find the root cause of their symptoms.

Sarah utilizes manual therapy, Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization, taping techniques, postural education and functional movement analysis to assist her patients in meeting their rehab goals. She performs Video Gait Analysis to assess and treat the injured runner.

Sarah has a background in dance and enjoys staying active. She spends her free time taking road trips with her family, biking around the city, and spending warm summer days at the dog beach with her family and her dog, Pop Tart.

Andrea Sosa, PT, DPT

Andrea is a Doctor of Physical Therapy and earned both her Doctorate and Bachelor’s Degrees from Missouri State University. After graduation, Andrea completed a residency program in women’s and pelvic health at Loyola University Medical Center, and became a board-certified pelvic health specialist in 2019. She has been working in the pelvic health field ever since, treating male, female, and non-binary patients seeking pelvic floor physical therapy. Andrea has also received certifications in Lymphedema prevention and breast cancer rehabilitation, and is committed to working with individuals who seek assistance in these areas.

Furthermore, Andrea is passionate about working with prenatal and postpartum patients, ensuring they receive personalized care to promote their physical well-being. Andrea utilizes biofeedback in her patient care. Additionally, Andrea feels inspired by cases involving rehabilitation after urogynecology and gynecology surgeries, as well as post-prostatectomies. She is also motivated to work with patients before and after gender-affirming surgeries.

In her free time, Andrea enjoys quilting, walking her cat Jerry, and playing tennis both competitively and with friends.

She is also fluent in Spanish.

Email: [email protected]

Tish Butler, PTA

Tish Butler, PTA, was born and raised in Chicago, and has 14 years of outpatient orthopedic experience.

Tish enjoys treating a variety of diagnoses including shoulders, ACLs, hips, knees and feet, both surgical and non-surgical. Being a former Division 1 volleyball athlete, she enjoys working with all types of athletes and runners. Most recently, Tish has received specialized training in the treatment and education of women’s and men’s pelvic health issues. She is able to treat a variety of female and male conditions, including pelvic pain, tailbone pain, incontinence, diastasis recti, and prenatal and postpartum care.

Tish is motivated and dedicated in using the most appropriate and evidence based treatments to facilitate a full recovery. Tish guarantees a fun, positive and encouraging healing experience. Outside of the clinic, Tish enjoys spending time with her husband and two boys, trying out new restaurants, and traveling to tropical climates.

Shantae Williams, PT, DPT

Dr. Shantae Williams has extensive experience treating orthopedic and pelvic floor conditions. She graduated from Michigan State University with her Bachelors of Science in Kinesiology and went on to get her Doctorate of Physical Therapy at Central Michigan University. She has trained with the American Physical Therapy Association to specialize in pelvic floor and obstetrics.

Dr. Williams enjoys working with all pelvic health and orthopedic conditions but has a special interest in chronic pain, sexual dysfunction, and pregnancy and postpartum.

Dr. Williams believes in treating not just the the symptoms but the whole person and takes a holistic approach to include the mind, the body, and the spirit. Her goal is to facilitate an environment of healing and provide her patients the tools to maximize their potential and return to doing the things that they love.

Shana Mangaldas, OTR/L, CLT

Shana has been working as a licensed occupational therapist since 2020. She earned her Master’s in Occupational Therapy from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She specializes in orthopedic wrist, hand and elbow conditions including but not limited to fractures, carpal tunnel syndrome, cubital tunnel syndrome, lateral epicondylitis (Tennis elbow), medial epicondylitis (Golfer’s elbow), arthritis, trigger finger, DeQuervain’s tenosynovitis (mommy’s thumb) and TFCC injuries with extensive experience in post-operative care for each of these as well.

She also has been practicing as a Certified Lymphedema Therapist for the past four years. Having closely worked with an oncology clinic, she specializes in treating lymphedema of the head/neck, arms, breast and legs during and after cancer treatment. She has extensive experience measuring for over-the-counter and custom compression garments and with Manual Lymphatic Drainage.

In her free time, she enjoys cooking, playing with her cat Maya, traveling and exploring the city with her husband.

She also speaks Hindi and Gujarati.

Email: [email protected]