What is Pelvic Health?
Pelvic Health Physical Therapy specifically focuses care around your pelvic floor. What is the pelvic floor you ask? To put it bluntly, it’s those muscles between your legs. Yeah, those muscles/area that doesn’t see the sun? Yup! That’s what we are talking about here! Now that we have that established, I can explain that Pelvic Health therapy goes beyond the pelvic floor and can go into care for your hips, low back, core muscles, mid-back, even down to your feet! The body is a chain of reactions – if one part of the chain is “broken” the rest of the chain will adapt. These adaptions can look abnormal, hiding the true cause of the symptoms you are experiencing. That’s where we, as Pelvic Health Therapists, come in to assess your situation/symptoms and become a detective in our own field.
Do you have to do internal examinations?
Short answer: No. Long answer: To get the best assessment for how your pelvic floor is functioning, an internal exam may be best suited based on external findings. Everything is completed at the comfort and pace the patient prefers. No, an internal examination does not need to be completed on day one; however, at some point in your care it may be necessary, especially if you are postpartum. There are muscles within your body that are better accessed via a canal opening. To paint a picture of what an internal exam may look like, let me explain. To help keep the patient relaxed we may prop pillows, have a blanket, and talk through the entire process. The therapists assures the patient that at any time throughout the examination if the patient wishes to stop, they have that right. The therapist will promptly stop the examination as quickly and safely as possible. Consent is asked throughout the entire examination.
I'm intrigued. How do my feet affect my pelvic floor?
As mentioned earlier, the body is a chain of reactions. Your foot is the foundation for your body. It takes impact throughout the day of walking, running, chasing after kids, you name it – your feet are more than likely involved. Because of this, if your foot alignment is off, this can cause a chain reaction, up the chain into your knees, hips and ultimately into your pelvic floor and low back. Having a foot assessment at some point in your care is probably a given.
What happens as my symptoms improve?
As you progress through your care, we will continue to work on function as it relates to your life and lifestyle. Our goal is not only to fix your problem now, it’s to help maintain your symptom-free lifestyle. We will work on day-to-day tasks/movement that use to exacerbate your symptoms and come up with strategies to improve.
Don’t let the thought of pelvic health deter you from receiving the care you need. Set yourself as a priority and schedule your appointment. We as pelvic health therapists see the pelvic floor as no different than a shoulder or hip joint, meaning it’s not scary to us and it shouldn’t be to you!