Mobility & Flexibility

Your Pelvic Health: A Guide To Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy

For individuals experiencing pelvis pain symptoms and associated problems, can integrating pelvic floor physical therapy exercises help with treatment and prevention?

Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy

When the muscles fail to function correctly, individuals can experience symptoms like:

  1. Painful intercourse
  2. Prolapse – when an organ or tissue drops or shifts out of place.
  3. Urinary incontinence
  4. Constipation problems
  5. These conditions are common in pregnant individuals or older women.

These symptoms can be treated with pelvic floor physical therapy to alleviate discomfort. Pelvic floor physical therapy can help women and individuals with vaginas:

  • Alleviate issues like painful sex, urinary leakage, and prolapse.
  • In physical therapy, individuals work on breathing, relaxation, and lengthening and strengthening techniques to train their muscles to function optimally.

Causes of Pelvic Floor Issues

Pelvic floor dysfunction tends to happen with age, during pregnancy, or in combination with events like the postpartum period and menopause, which can lower hormone levels.

  • Individuals who are pregnant are especially prone to pelvic floor issues but might not know they have a problem.
  • The pregnancy weight of a uterus can pressure and strain the muscles.
  • Vaginal childbirth can also stretch or weaken the muscles. (Ilaria Soave, et al., 2019)

Symptoms

Symptoms can include: (Columbia Surgery. 2022)

  • Pain in the pelvis region
  • Back pain
  • Painful urination
  • Constipation
  • Urinary leakage or incontinence
  • Stool leakage or incontinence
  • Painful intercourse
  • If left untreated, these symptoms can worsen over time.

Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy

An individual will meet with a specialist to discuss symptoms and undergo a physical examination that includes:

  1. Pelvic floor exam.
  2. Evaluation of posture, mobility, and core strength.
  3. Once the initial exams and evaluation are complete, the practitioner will go over pelvic floor exercises and provide a treatment plan.
  4. Recommended exercises vary based on symptoms but focus on relaxing, stretching, and/or strengthening muscles.

Muscle Relaxation

  • To relax the muscles, a therapist may recommend breathing exercises.
  • For pregnant individuals, this means timing breaths with contractions.
  • For individuals experiencing constipation, breathing exercises can help the body relax and reduce strain.

Stretching Muscles

  • Stretching can help relieve muscle tightness and stiffness.
  • A therapist may help stretch the pelvic floor through various therapy modalities.
  • This type of physical therapy can help loosen tight muscles or help gently reset dislocated organs back into place.

Strengthening Muscles

  • After the pelvic floor is loose and relaxed, the focus typically switches to strengthening the muscles.
  • Strength work may target abdominal muscles or the pelvic floor muscles themselves.

With time, commitment, and targeted treatment, individuals can use pelvic floor physical therapy to loosen tissues, strengthen muscles, and restore function.


Spinal Decompression In Depth


References

U.S. Food and Drug Administration. (2019). Pelvic organ prolapse (pop).

Sartori, D. V. B., Kawano, P. R., Yamamoto, H. A., Guerra, R., Pajolli, P. R., & Amaro, J. L. (2021). Pelvic floor muscle strength is correlated with sexual function. Investigative and clinical urology, 62(1), 79–84. doi.org/10.4111/icu.20190248

Raizada, V., & Mittal, R. K. (2008). Pelvic floor anatomy and applied physiology. Gastroenterology clinics of North America, 37(3), 493–vii. doi.org/10.1016/j.gtc.2008.06.003

Soave, I., Scarani, S., Mallozzi, M., Nobili, F., Marci, R., & Caserta, D. (2019). Pelvic floor muscle training for prevention and treatment of urinary incontinence during pregnancy and after childbirth and its effect on urinary system and supportive structures assessed by objective measurement techniques. Archives of gynecology and obstetrics, 299(3), 609–623. doi.org/10.1007/s00404-018-5036-6

Columbia Surgery. (2022). Pelvic floor disorders: frequently asked questions.

Related Post

Professional Scope of Practice *

The information herein on "Your Pelvic Health: A Guide To Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy" is not intended to replace a one-on-one relationship with a qualified health care professional or licensed physician and is not medical advice. We encourage you to make healthcare decisions based on your research and partnership with a qualified healthcare professional.

Blog Information & Scope Discussions

Our information scope is limited to Chiropractic, musculoskeletal, physical medicines, wellness, contributing etiological viscerosomatic disturbances within clinical presentations, associated somatovisceral reflex clinical dynamics, subluxation complexes, sensitive health issues, and/or functional medicine articles, topics, and discussions.

We provide and present clinical collaboration with specialists from various disciplines. Each specialist is governed by their professional scope of practice and their jurisdiction of licensure. We use functional health & wellness protocols to treat and support care for the injuries or disorders of the musculoskeletal system.

Our videos, posts, topics, subjects, and insights cover clinical matters, issues, and topics that relate to and directly or indirectly support our clinical scope of practice.*

Our office has reasonably attempted to provide supportive citations and has identified the relevant research study or studies supporting our posts. We provide copies of supporting research studies available to regulatory boards and the public upon request.

We understand that we cover matters that require an additional explanation of how it may assist in a particular care plan or treatment protocol; therefore, to further discuss the subject matter above, please feel free to ask Dr. Alex Jimenez, DC, or contact us at 915-850-0900.

We are here to help you and your family.

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Dr. Alex Jimenez DC, MSACP, RN*, CCST, IFMCP*, CIFM*, ATN*

email: coach@elpasofunctionalmedicine.com

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Welcome-Bienvenido's to our blog. We focus on treating severe spinal disabilities and injuries. We also treat Sciatica, Neck and Back Pain, Whiplash, Headaches, Knee Injuries, Sports Injuries, Dizziness, Poor Sleep, Arthritis. We use advanced proven therapies focused on optimal mobility, health, fitness, and structural conditioning. We use Individualized Diet Plans, Specialized Chiropractic Techniques, Mobility-Agility Training, Adapted Cross-Fit Protocols, and the "PUSH System" to treat patients suffering from various injuries and health problems. If you would like to learn more about a Doctor of Chiropractic who uses advanced progressive techniques to facilitate complete physical health, please connect with me. We focus on simplicity to help restore mobility and recovery. I'd love to see you. Connect!

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