Why Choose Pelvic Health Therapy
Women's pelvic health therapy is dedicated to the unique musculoskeletal issues that are specific to women. It includes pelvic pain, bladder and bowel problems, osteoporosis, and pregnancy-related symptoms. During a consultation, your physical therapist will review your medical history and symptoms and perform a physical exam of your hips, spine, and pelvis. At Active Solutions Therapy, we want you to be able to live your best life, and our therapists will work to provide high-quality treatment for your pelvic floor condition.
Determine the Cause of Your Pelvic Disorder
Pelvic floor disorders are often overlooked and misdiagnosed. Women often have a hard time discussing their symptoms with their doctors, which can lead to incorrect treatment or even worsening of the condition. Physical therapy can help determine the root cause of your pelvic pain. A thorough evaluation includes a health history and examination of the spine, abdomen, pelvis, and hips to evaluate muscle strength, coordination, and movement patterns.
Your therapist may also use manual techniques such as trigger point release, visceral mobilization, and connective tissue release to relieve pain in the pelvic region and throughout the body. Electrical stimulation can be used to improve muscle weakness, pain, spasms, and inflammation by delivering a painless electrical impulse through electrodes placed on the body. The painless stimulation will stimulate the muscles to contract and relax.
Treat Bladder and Bowel Problems
Depending on your specific condition, therapy may include doing pelvic floor contraction exercises, known as Kegels, to activate and strengthen muscles that control bladder and bowel functions. Your therapist may use surface electromyography to watch how well you are contracting the muscles.
For bowel problems, your therapist will instruct you in techniques to help muscles relax. This might include breathing techniques, mindfulness sessions, and stretches. You might also benefit from manual therapy to decrease muscle guarding or spasms, as well as joint mobilization and muscle energy techniques to treat misalignments in the pelvic, thoracic, or lumbar spine. You may need to attend physical therapy several times a week to see improvements, but if you commit to regular appointments and do the exercises at home, you will probably see long-term improvement.
Strengthen Pelvic Muscles and Coordination
Symptoms caused by an overactive bladder, urinary leakage, and constipation can be relieved with specific exercise that strengthens pelvic floor muscles, improves coordination, and restores standard movement patterns. Our expert physical therapists will provide treatment that can assist in muscle reeducation and pain reduction.
Your physical therapist will teach you how to identify and contract the right muscles for pelvic floor strengthening. You will learn when to tighten and when to relax the muscles, such as during a cough or sneeze or when having a bowel movement.
Improve Pelvic and Lower Back Pain
Women should not be afraid to talk about pelvic pain and seek treatment. The conditions that result from pelvic floor dysfunction can be treatable, and physical therapy offers an array of solutions. Your therapist may use a technique called biofeedback to monitor the contraction of your pelvic muscles. External devices measure the muscle activity and display it on a computer screen for you to see.
Pelvic health therapy can relieve pain by providing treatment that releases the tension in the muscle or connective tissue, and it can restore movement to organs, such as the stomach, bladder, liver, uterus, and urethra. This helps to reduce pain and improve function.
Get Treatment for Pelvic Floor Disorders
Pelvic floor disorders can cause urinary or fecal incontinence, pelvic pain, and pelvic organ prolapse. These conditions often affect women and can occur when the muscles that support your bladder or uterus weaken from age, pregnancy, or other reasons. Your physical therapist will review your medical history and symptoms and perform a physical exam. This includes assessing your lumbar spine, sacroiliac joints, and muscles that surround or attach to the pelvic bones.
Rachel Harrison, PT, DPT, CSCS earned her Doctorate of Physical Therapy from the University of New Mexico. She has an extensive background in exercise science as a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist (NSCA-CSCS), Corrective Exercise Specialist (NASM-CES), and is a certified Kinesio Tape practitioner.