My journey with pain began when I was 13 years old and suffered an injury as a Ballet dancer resulting in me building a long term relationship with my Physiotherapist. Unfortunately this correlated with the cessation of my two passions at the time, dance and swimming.
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Entering University very young I chose a broad double degree of Science/Arts and soon became obsessed with the human body and mind through the fields of Anatomy, Physiology and Psychology.
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After majoring in Neurophysiology I exited out of the double degree and pursued my passion of Physiotherapy through post-graduate studies at Sydney University.
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Studying the human body seemed incomplete without further exploration of the mind so I resumed my Bachelor of Arts majoring in Psychology whilst finding my way in the world of Physiotherapy and graduated some years later.
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This lateral entry into Physiotherapy, coupled with my love for studying the human mind and my own experience with chronic pain as a young person built my interest in the area of complex and chronic pain presentations very early on my in career.
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To Ghana and back, not without Malaria and some serious rehabilitation and repercussions of my own.
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It's been a wild ride so far... ​
Rachael Sheat
Director and Founder
APA Titled Pain Physiotherapist
Pain Coach
​I have been very fortunate to have worked alongside and mentored by some of Melbourne's leading Pain Physicians and Australia's leading pain minds (well, let's be honest, Australia's leading pain minds are the World's leading pain minds. We are so lucky!). My colleagues and teachers continue to deepen and broaden my passion within the ever-growing world of the pain sciences and together we are just touching the surface of what is possible.
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In addition to my private practice work, I'm energised and grateful to be a member of the faculty of the Neuro Orthopeadic Institute (www.noigroup.com) teaching, and learning from other incredibly inspiring health and medical professionals.
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I'm enjoying dipping my toe into the research world through my current and ongoing involvement as a treating Physiotherapist for the NHMRC granted MEMOIR (CRPS) and EPIPHA-KNEE (Knee OA) clinical trials.
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Most importantly to my current (as well as past and future) patients. You inspire me to be better, think harder and read more, question everything and never give up. Tears of despair evolving into tears of joy and becoming whole again is an achievement we aim to celebrate. Thank you all for sharing your journey with me. ​
Special areas of interest:
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CRPS
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Child and adolescent pain
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LGBTQIA+ Pain
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Hypermobility spectrum
Meet Rach!
TESTIMONIALS
"Working with Rachael/Evolving Pain has been life-changing for me. To learn that I didn't have to accept the level of pain I was in, and that there was hope for a better quality of life, was amazing. Through coaching I was able to learn about pain, ways to manage it more effectively and not have it control my life anymore. I learnt about myself too! Rachael's knowledge, empathy, passion and professional connections make her a wonderful practitioner. I would recommend Evolving Pain to anyone struggling with their pain journey as an adjunct to traditional, manual therapy."
Beth
"We were very lucky to have our son referred to Evolving Pain through his pain specialist for physiotherapy and pain management. At the time our son was in a wheelchair and in, pretty much, constant pain. Through working with Rachael, our son was able to learn how to work within his limitations whilst at the same time empowering him to continue to extend those limits. Rachael’s approach is quite different to most physiotherapists we had previously been to and she really individualises her approach to each patient. Rachael has wide connections in the pain management community and these helped us to link in with other professionals that helped continue our sons recovery. Our son is now off all pain medication and back at school full time (although currently online). Rachael was an absolute integral part of his recovery."
Elissa