Guest post by Dr. Ashley Rawlins, PT, DPT, physical therapist at Origin
Pelvic floor physical therapy can help with painful sex, infertility, endometriosis, PCOS, and more. Learn more below!
From sexual health, to maternity, to menopause, physical therapy for your pelvic floor can help you take care of your body — and feel your best — through every stage of life.
If you’re pregnant, pelvic floor physical therapy can help prepare your body for childbirth and lead to a shorter labor with reduced chance of injury. It can also keep you moving. Exercising safely throughout pregnancy is linked to fewer cesarean deliveries, reduced maternal weight gain, and lower risk of gestational diabetes, hypertension, and depression. It’s also associated with appropriate infant birth weights, improved ability to self-quiet as a newborn, and long-term health benefits and disease prevention for your baby. If you are interested in pelvic floor physical therapy, you can ask your OBGYN for more information.
Postpartum, pelvic floor physical therapy can help you to improve the health of your pelvic floor. This prevents or improves symptoms related to prolapse (bulging of the bladder, rectum, or uterus into the vagina) and incontinence (bladder and bowel leakage). It also helps you return safely to comfortable sex and exercise, when you’re ready.
Beyond your reproductive years, menopause may be associated with incontinence, prolapse, and changes in sexual function. Many of these symptoms can not only be treated by pelvic floor physical therapy, they can also be prevented. So, the earlier you see a physical therapist (PT) for menopause, the better.
The pelvic floor is a bowl-shaped group of muscles, nerves, and connective tissues at the base of your pelvis. It’s responsible for:
Like any other muscle, pelvic floor muscles can become overly tight or loose. They can be strained or injured. In pregnancy, they are put to the test by supporting you and the baby throughout your pregnancy, and stretch and lengthen to assist during birth. If you have a traumatic experience involving your pelvic area, these muscles can become overprotective and trigger pain signals even when no injury is present.
Problems with ovulation are the most common causes of infertility in women, but sometimes, a physical obstruction can prevent the sperm and egg from meeting. This ‘mechanical infertility’ is often the result of scar tissue that has formed in the abdomen or reproductive organs after surgery or from disease. It may also be due to inflammation and lymphatic blockage within the pelvis. This inhibits blood flow to and away from the reproductive organs. When sex is difficult or impossible due to painful intercourse, that’s also considered a form of mechanical infertility.
Pelvic floor physical therapy has been shown to help reduce mechanical infertility. Hands-on therapies that improve scar tissue mobility, reduce adhesion restrictions, and promote pelvic blood flow and lymphatic drainage, allow your reproductive organs and hormones to function more effectively. Some treatment plans may also include diaphragmatic breathing exercises and the use of vaginal dilators to improve tolerance to intercourse.
While physical therapy cannot prevent or treat endometriosis or PCOS, it can help reduce the chronic, uncomfortable symptoms that can occur with these conditions. For example, pelvic floor physical therapy can help reduce pain associated with endometrial adhesions, and bowel and bladder dysfunctions that can be seen in some women with PCOS. Plus, physical therapists are experts at getting you moving. They can help in reducing obesity and other comorbidities common in PCOS.
There are pelvic floor physical therapists (PTs) who specialize in treating a host of sexual and reproductive health issues. These issues include: vaginismus (painful sex), dysmenorrha (painful periods), and vulvodynia (pain in the vulva). Symptoms associated with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) and endometriosis can also be improved with pelvic floor physical therapy.
Pelvic floor physical therapy treatment is highly individualized, so you can expect your first visit to involve a lot of detailed conversation. Your therapist will want to hear how you’re feeling, exactly what’s been happening in your body, if you have any pain, and what your goals are. They’ll also ask about your overall health and medical history. Provided you feel safe and comfortable, it’s important not to hold back — the more information they have, the better they can help you.
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Ashley Rawlins is a doctor of physical therapy (DPT) with advanced certification in the treatment of Pelvic Health and Obstetric Health (CAPP-Pelvic, CAPP-OB). She practices at Origin Physical Therapy for Women & Mothers, where she specializes in treatment of pelvic floor muscle dysfunctions including pelvic pain, sexual dysfunction, pregnancy related pain, postpartum recovery, and bowel and bladder dysfunction.
Origin is a safe, judgment-free space where your individual needs are prioritized. Book an in-person or virtual visit here, or schedule a free phone consultation here. Read more about pelvic floor physical therapy on the Origin blog.
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Sources:
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