10 Years Stronger: Celebrating a Decade of Raising the Baseline for Women’s Health

Ten years ago, we opened the doors to a physiotherapy clinic with a big belief: women’s health deserved better. Ten years later, we're celebrating something we never quite expected to build: a community.

On Saturday 12 September, we celebrated a pretty big milestone: Ivoryrose turned 10.

We opened our doors for our 10th Birthday Open Day and invited the women who have been part of our story — past and present clients, members, friends, team members and our wider community — to come together and celebrate.

There were complimentary small-group classes across the Studio and Gym, coffee, plenty of conversations, some serious movement, lots of laughs and, importantly, time to simply be together.

Because while a 10th birthday is a milestone worth celebrating, we've never really thought of Ivoryrose as being about a number.

It's about the women behind it. The women who've trusted us with their stories. The women who've asked the questions they were once too embarrassed to ask. The women who've come back to movement after birth, injury or illness. The women who've learnt to understand their bodies a little better. The women who've found strength, confidence and, sometimes, lifelong friendships along the way.

This is what 10 years of community looks like

Take a little look back at the women, movement and memories that made our 10th birthday so special.

10 years ago, women's health looked a little different

When Kat opened the doors to Ivoryrose in 2016, there was already plenty of great healthcare happening. But, there were also conversations that weren't happening loudly enough.

Pelvic floor problems were often brushed off as something women simply had to put up with. Pain was normalised. Menopause wasn't always talked about openly. As a whole, women were often expected to accept changes to their bodies without being given the information, support or care they deserved.

And the phrase “it's just part of being a woman” was doing far too much heavy lifting. Over the past decade, we've watched that conversation change.

For one, we’ve stopped whispering

About pelvic floors, prolapse, menopause, and leakage. The conversations that once felt awkward or embarrassing are increasingly happening out loud. And that's important, because women can't advocate for better care if they don't feel comfortable talking about what they're experiencing.

We've challenged the idea that women should simply “put up with it”

Just because something is common doesn't automatically mean it’s normal. And experiencing something doesn't mean you have to accept it as your forever. We've seen more women ask questions, seek information and become active participants in decisions about their own health, which is certainly a shift worth celebrating.

We've changed what strength can look like

Strength isn't just about how much you can lift. Sometimes it's returning to something you love after having a baby, or taking your first pain-free walk. Sometimes it's sneezing without crossing your legs, or finally feeling confident enough to ask for help. And sometimes it's simply trusting your body again.

We've celebrated the wins that don't make headlines

The quiet ones, such as the first class back. The first run after birth. The first night of better sleep. The first time someone says, “I finally feel like myself again.”

These moments might not look revolutionary from the outside, but we know better. They're often the moments that change someone's everyday life.

And somewhere along the way, something else happened

Clients became members. Members became familiar faces. Familiar faces became friends. And friends became community. That's something we couldn't have planned for in 2016.

It has been built slowly, over thousands of appointments, classes, conversations, coffees, high fives, hard days, good days and everything in between. And it's probably the thing we're most proud of.

Because healthcare should be about more than what happens inside an appointment. It's about creating a place where women feel heard. Where questions are welcome, bodies aren't something to be ashamed of, movement isn't punishment and looking after yourself isn't selfish.

And where you can walk through the door exactly as you are.

So, what's next?

Ten years is a milestone. But we're certainly not treating it like a finish line.

If anything, it feels like the beginning of the next chapter.

We're still asking questions.
We're still challenging the status quo.
We're still having the conversations that need to be had.
And we're still working towards a better baseline for women's health.

Because women deserve better healthcare. Not just when something goes wrong, but throughout every season of life. From pregnancy and postnatal recovery to pelvic health, strength, movement, menopause and beyond — we're committed to continuing to educate, support and empower women to understand their bodies and prioritise their health.

A little thank you

To every woman who's walked through our doors over the past ten years:

Thank you. Thank you for trusting us, asking questions, sharing your stories, and for showing up. Thank you for challenging us to keep learning and evolving. And thank you for helping Ivoryrose become something much bigger than a clinic. We couldn't have done it without you. Here's to the next decade of raising the baseline for women's health.

Ivoryrose x