Interview with Ryanne Glasper, Physical Therapist at Beyond Basics PT

Fiona McMahon, DPT
At Beyond Basics, we are lucky to have a great crew of Physical Therapists, who come from diverse training backgrounds and experiences. It is some of these different experiences that betters our practice and allows us to grow as clinicians. We took some time out from our wonderful patients, to sit down with physical therapist, Ryanne Glasper, to find out what sets her apart as a physical therapist.

What sets your orthopedic approach apart from approaches seen in other orthopedic clinics?

I can tell you that I love biomechanics. I’m obsessed with how the body moves. I’d consider myself a movement scientist. Moving is such a joy to me that I not only want to facilitate my patients recovery, but also help them better understand their bodies and efficient movements. I want them to leave my office and feel empowered. Like most therapists, I create individualized programs for my patients, but I make it a point to individualize every aspect, including the manual techniques I choose, even the language I use. I try to figure out what works for them, meet them there, and then challenge them to expand, whether that be in knowledge, strength, flexibility, clarity of mind, et cetera. I

Tell us about your background and what type of conditions you saw before coming to BBPT

Before BBPT I worked at PhysioArts Physical Therapy for nearly 10 years. I worked first as a physical therapy aide while in school, and then as a therapist. I worked with a remarkable group of therapists. When I started, I was the youngest and least experienced. I worked with therapists that had ten-plus years of experience and I was incredibly lucky to be mentored by them, especially my boss Jen Green.
At PhysioArts we worked with the performing arts community, professional dancers, actors, singers …. all of Broadway basically. I think I’ve worked on every joint in the body, from the foot to the cranium! From the usual ACL reconstructions, hip replacements, rotator cuff tears to the lesser known cuboid sprains and rib torsions.

How do you integrate that experience into your role as a PT at BBPT?

While at PhysioArts I actually coordinated care with a therapist at BBPT Dustienne Miller (now in Boston Area, Mass). We shared a few patients. I loved the team effort. You don’t learn much about the internal aspect of the pelvis in PT school, so her work was always kind of a mystery to me. But she helped people in a way that I couldn’t! Working with Dustienne gave me even more of an appreciation for the body. Joining BBPT just expanded my tool box! I’m not sure that I integrated my past experiences into BBPT, I’m the same therapist. I just know what’s going on inside now!