About Us | Emily Firn

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Emily is a mom, passionate pediatric occupational therapist, and yoga devotee, who lives in Philadelphia with her husband, toddler, and bun in the oven. While she always considered the practice of occupational therapy and yoga as always natural complements, it has been her experience as a mom that now makes her feel uniquely motivated and primed to help other mothers and babies on their new, personal wellness journey together.

Emily has worked as an occupational therapist, specializing in pediatrics, for over 11 years, including 3 years focusing on newborns and young infants. During her time in a Level III neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), she specialized in assessment and support of infant’s development, including motor, feeding, sensory, and visual skills in the greater context of supporting the wellness of the newly formed family unit. She quickly became passionate about the complex but critical task of helping young babies learn how to feed, and helping families navigate and overcome early feeding challenges. The remainder of her career has been spent amongst 3 major urban academic children’s hospitals, which has provided her with a comprehensive background with children of all ages and challenges, including neurological, orthopedic, developmental, and psychiatric diagnoses. Emily’s additional areas of professional interest and specialization include hand therapy and rehabilitation, pain management, and mental health care and promotion. This includes helping with common new-mama ailments such as carpal tunnel, DeQuervain’s tendonitis, and upper body muscle & joint pain, as well as mental health challenges such as anxiety and depression. She is currently pursuing her certification as an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC).

Throughout her career she has enjoyed sharing knowledge learned through teaching other occupational therapists and students through conferences, student experiences, international volunteer work, and participating in novel research and improvement measures whenever possible.

Emily began her own personal journey with yoga over 10 years ago, growing into the integral foundation of her own physical and mental wellness that it is today. Originally drawn to yoga in her younger years for the physical work out, she quickly learned that yoga provided her with so much more than other types of physical activity. Through her yoga practice, Emily has learned to focus on positive attributes a

Curriculum Vitae/Resume

Emily Firn Scott MS, OTR/L, IBCLC, NTMTC

Emily is a mom, passionate occupational therapist, lactation consultant, and yoga devotee, who lives in Philadelphia with her husband and two young sons. Emily believes her career and personal experiences have naturally led her on a path towards a mix of unique skills meant to serve the many wellness needs of mom & baby.

Areas of advanced clinical skills & training include:

Preterm, newborn, and infant neurodevelopment
Neonatal massage & manual therapies
Infant & child feeding skills (breast/ bottle/combo)
Lactation support
Postpartum physical recovery
Postpartum mood & anxiety challenges
Hand & arm musculoskeletal disorders
Pain management
Therapeutic group facilitation
Therapeutic pre & postpartum yoga

After graduating from Boston University with her Masters in Occupational Therapy in 2008, Emily’s primary passion as an occupational therapist has been supporting infant & young child development. She has honed her specialization through work at 4 nationally leading children’s hospitals, including the NICU and postpartum units. She quickly became passionate about the complex, but critical task of helping young babies learn how to feed, and helping families navigate and overcome early feeding challenges. She specializes in lactation support, having completed her board certification as an IBCLC (International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant) in fall 2020. Her own personal challenges with her baby's bottle and breastfeeding only strengthened her resolve to best support new moms and babies through help with feeding.

Emily has also spent many years specializing in treatment of musculoskeletal disorders of the hand and arm, including new mama ailments such as Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and De Quervain’s tendonitis & advanced bracing & splinting skills. She has spent time working with individuals with mental health disorders, including depression, anxiety, and post-partum disorders. Lastly, Emily is skilled in performing functional assessments of adults experiencing new cognitive challenges in order to help them identify challenges & solutions to maximize daily functioning.

Emily is committed to furthering understanding and support of OT’s role in maternal, postpartum, and infant health through active participation in national professional organizations and professional development initiatives. She is continuing education junkie who is dedicated to sharing knowledge & mentoring others through a history of teaching & collaborating with university OT students.

Emily believes her passion & commitment to practicing and sharing yoga are the perfect match for working with mothers and their babies. Emily began her own personal journey with yoga over 12 years ago, growing into an integral tool for her own physical and mental wellness that it is today. Through her yoga practice, Emily has learned how to focus on the positive attributes and strengths of her own body, particularly before and after the birth of her children. Physically it has provided her the means to manage her own musculoskeletal pain throughout the years including scoliosis, neck, knee, foot, and back injuries, as well as pregnancy-related pain and post partum recovery. Mentally, her yoga practice has also taught her how to recognize and take steps to control her own internal thoughts and worries, and remains critical in helping her battle the stress that comes with the busy life of a full time working mom in today’s world. She has completed her 200-hour yoga teacher training, followed by specialized training in yoga to support infant development and postpartum recovery. She has found that utilizing yoga during her OT interventions with clients best supports their progress towards their individual goals.

Emily is excited to support you and your baby’s health and wellness through her variety of OT and yoga services offered- please reach out with any questions or more information!

Jacayia Austin Cuartas OTD, CLC

Jacayia is a pediatric Occupational Therapist and certified lactation counselor that has a passion to support the breastfeeding dyad as well as supporting the developmental needs of the children in her community. She has a passion to educate the community about preventative health topics that should be common knowledge and addressing the many disparities in health that are seen today. Jacayia has experience as an outpatient pediatric therapist and group leader for a prenatal breastfeeding class. She believes in Mama and Me OT's mission to provide affordable services to the mom and baby.

Kylin Levy BA, OTS

Kylin is a graduating doctoral occupational therapy student at Boston University. Her most recent work in the field has been in an outpatient pediatric clinic supporting children ages birth-18 years old and their parents as well as working as a mental health aide at a dual-diagnosis treatment center. Throughout her time at Boston University, she has focused her studies on maternal and infant health whenever possible. As she heads into this next phase of her career journey, she brings a strong interest and advocacy for maternal health and the intersection between the mother-infant dyad in improving both mama and baby's overall well-being. When not at work, she is likely at home crocheting one-too-many blankets for friends.