Your path to becoming a pelvic health OT
There's no single right way into this field. But there is an order that works, and it's the one I wish had existed when I started.
Everything below is built for OTs, taught by an OT, and designed to be taken in sequence — each step assuming what came before it, so you're never trying to learn theory, practice skills and build confidence all at once.
Where are you right now?
Free CEU Classes
Who it's for: Any OT or OTA curious about pelvic health. No prerequisites, no cost.
Two one-hour classes, each worth 0.1 AOTA CEUs. Take either, or both.
The OT Practitioner's Role in Pelvic Health
Where pelvic health sits in OT scope of practice, what pelvic floor dysfunction looks like in the clients already on your caseload, and simple interventions you can use tomorrow.
Free · 1 hour · 0.1 AOTA CEU
Sign up for freeThe OT's Guide to Pelvic Health Practice Settings
Nine settings where OTs are already doing this work, from hospitals and SNFs to living rooms and L&D units. No private practice required.
Free · 1 hour · 0.1 AOTA CEU
Sign up for free"What was appealing for me is it was taught by an OT, as opposed to a physical therapist... this is an area that I could also set my feet in as well."
OT Pioneers: Introduction to Pelvic Floor Therapy
Who it's for: OTs ready to learn the fundamentals properly, at their own pace, before committing to anything bigger.
What you'll learn: Pelvic floor anatomy and function. The common diagnoses you'll meet. How to master a client intake. Gender-affirming care. A detailed, step-by-step demonstration of an internal and external exam on a live model.
What you get: 12 chapters, 80+ video lessons, 20+ downloadable forms and resources, the Diagnosis Deep Dive Library, my 8-week pelvic floor exercise protocol, and two months in Pelvic OTPs United, my off-social-media community.
Self-paced · 1.2 AOTA CEUs · Lifetime access · 30-day guarantee
Your tuition is credited toward Level 1. So if you later decide to go further, you aren't paying twice.
Optional: add OT Elevate
Who it's for: Anyone with introductory pelvic health training who wants the other half of the pelvic floor.
Colorectal is 50% of pelvic health, and most introductory courses skip it entirely. OT Elevate is the biopsychosocial approach to colorectal conditions: 8 chapters, over 11 hours, and more than 30 treatment tools to mix and match into a plan.
Self-paced · 1.2 AOTA CEUs · Tuition credited toward Level 1
Already included in Level 1. Take it now if you want colorectal skills sooner, or get it as part of the Level 1 curriculum.
"I signed up for Lindsey's course after taking several other pelvic floor courses, and I really wish I would've had access to this first. It's super easy to access and a non-scary way to see if this is a field that you're going to get into."
Level 1 Functional Pelvic Health Practitioner™
Who it's for: OTs who want to stop reading about pelvic health and start confidently treating clients.
This is the flagship, and the step most people get stuck on. Learning pelvic health is already like drinking from a firehose. Trying to master the knowledge, translate it into practice, and build hands-on skills all at once is what leaves people feeling like they have two left hands on Monday.
Level 1 gives you time: to learn, to implement, to practice, and to get feedback.
What's included:
4.5 months · 5.1 AOTA CEUs · Cohorts open twice a year
Save My Spot for the Next CohortDon't want to wait for the next cohort? Start OT Pioneers today — your tuition counts toward Level 1, and you'll arrive already through the foundations.
"I have been an OT for 8 years and have always worked in pediatrics... I joined the Level 1 Functional Pelvic Health Practitioner program and I am a changed OT."
Level 2: Trauma-Informed Pelvic Health Certification
Who it's for: Practitioners who've had introductory training and are now meeting trauma in their sessions — because it always surfaces.
The prerequisite is OT Pioneers or an equivalent foundational course, plus the opportunity to practice hands-on. You do not need Level 1.
The first and only certification that teaches you exactly what to do when trauma surfaces during pelvic health treatment. You'll learn nervous system regulation, somatic practices, how to respond to disclosures, graded exposure, and how to hold your own equilibrium while holding space for someone else's.
What's included: 9 online modules, twice-monthly live mentoring calls (all recorded), guest experts, and a case study rather than an exam. Co-taught with Lara Desrosiers.
3.5 months · 3.2 AOTA CEUs · 50 spots per cohort · Opens twice a year
"At first I was concerned that I was too new to pelvic health to delve into a specialty, but I feel like I came home as a therapist after taking this course."
STEP FIVE
Become a Certified Functional Pelvic Health Practitioner™
Who it's for: Experienced practitioners ready to validate the expertise they've already built.
This is the only pelvic health certification for OTs aligned to over 200 knowledge, skills, and abilities in our OT Practice Framework. Every other credential available to us was designed for another profession and then opened up to OTs. This one was built on our framework, for our scope, by OTs.
What it takes: Completing the Level 2 Trauma-Informed Pelvic Health Certification is the only training prerequisite. Alongside that, you'll need 3,000 hours of pelvic health activity over the last five years and at least three years of licensure.
How you're assessed: A case-based, competency-driven exam rather than a knowledge test.
One thing worth saying plainly: you do not need to be certified to practice in pelvic health. I recommend working for a few years first, because our clients are our best teachers. Certification validates expertise you've built — it isn't how you acquire it.
And then you specialize
Once you have Level 1 knowledge — real foundational understanding plus hands-on competence — you're ready to go deep in whatever population draws you.
There are excellent courses in every one of these, taught by people I'd happily send you to. Just know that nearly all of them assume you already have Level 1 knowledge. Take a specialty course without that foundation and you'll spend it trying to keep up rather than going deep.
So that’s why order matters. Not because there’s one right path, but because specialty courses are built on a foundation you need to already have.
Learn with me for free
OTs in Pelvic Health Podcast
150+ episodes on treatment ideas, imposter syndrome, landing your first pelvic health job, and opening your own practice.
Listen NowArticles
Written guides on scope of practice, getting hired, what the work actually pays, and treating specific populations.
Read the ArticlesOTs for Pelvic Health Community
Join 8,800+ OTs in our free Facebook group to ask questions, share resources, and connect with others on the same path.
Join the GroupNot sure where to start?
Everyone starts in the same place: one free hour, one AOTA CEU, and an honest look at where OTs fit in this field.
Sign up for freeFree · 1 hour · 0.1 AOTA CEU · No prerequisites
