Did you know that the proportion of women who reported at least one pelvic floor disorder increased with age? Age is a common factor in pelvic floor issues, but it is not the only cause.
If you are experiencing pain relief, a physiotherapist can help you navigate that pain. Pelvic floor physiotherapy can increase muscle strength while decreasing pain.
Not sure if this treatment is right for you? Keep reading to learn more about it and its benefits.
What Is Pelvic Floor Physiotherapy?
Pelvic floor physiotherapy, or pelvic physiotherapy, assesses and treats various conditions that affect the pelvic floor in women and men.
The pelvic floor is a group of muscles, ligaments, fascia, and nerves located at the bottom of the pelvis. These muscles play an important role in supporting the body, especially the uterus and bladder.
When the muscles aren’t functioning properly, pain and incontinence can occur.
What Is Pelvic Floor Dysfunction?
The main benefit of pelvic floor physiotherapy is that it can aid in pelvic floor dysfunction.
Weak muscles (hypotonicity) and tight muscles (hypertonicity) can contribute to problems with your pelvic floor muscles.
Pelvic floor problems occur when someone is unable to coordinate and relax the pelvic muscles to have a bowel movement or urinate. Some of the causes of pelvic floor dysfunction include:
- Traumatic pelvic injuries
- Overuse of pelvic muscles
- Pregnancy
- Pelvic surgery
- Being overweight
- Aging
Physiotherapy in Brampton can help with these common types of pelvic floor dysfunction.
Stress Urinary Incontinence
Stress urinary incontinence involves losing urine. This can help during any type of activity such as laughing, sneezing, or coughing.
Fecal incontinence can also occur and refers to the inability to control bowel movements.
Urge Urinary Incontinence or Overactive Bladder
If you go to the bathroom every 15 to 60 minutes, you may struggle with this pelvic floor dysfunction. Frequently going to the bathroom with a great amount of urgency occurs.
However, although it felt urgent, you cannot produce a large amount of urine because of the frequency of using the bathroom.
Pelvic Pain
If you have pain in the hips, groin, perineal/pelvic region, or the lower abdominal region, physiotherapists in Brampton can help. This pain is likely to occur while sitting or during sexual activity.
Similarly, pelvic organ prolapse can cause pelvic floor dysfunction. This is when organs within the pelvis descend into lower positions. The organs might be the uterus, bowel, or bladder.
Peripartum or Postpartum Pelvic Floor Problems
Before, during, and after giving birth you might experience any of pelvic floor issues.
Noticing any of these issues is indicative of pelvic floor dysfunction.
Benefits of Pelvic Floor Physiotherapy
Pelvic physio can treat common pelvic floor dysfunctions and conditions. Along with the above issues, treatment for the following conditions is beneficial:
- Post-partum pain
- Pudendal neuralgia
- Interstitial cystitis
- Bladder pain syndrome
- Dyspareunia
- Vulvodynia
- Coccydynia
Those looking to maintain continence, stabilize and support the lower body, and/or support sexual sensation, should consider Brampton Pelvic Physiotherapy.
Evaluation
Those experiencing pelvic floor pain or other issues will benefit from an individualized evaluation and care plan.
During the first appointment with a physiotherapist, you’ll answer questions about your diet, fluid intake, and sexual activity. The comprehensive evaluation could take about an hour and includes discussing your symptoms.
Physiotherapists will then evaluate movement, and gait patterns, and assess the strength and mobility of your lower body and core. Common areas of dysfunction include the mid-back and hips.
Physiotherapists will use the information from this evaluation and assessment to guide you on how to use your breath to enhance pelvic floor movement.
Tailored Treatment Plan
Your tailored treatment plan will benefit you better than it could for anyone else. Plans include education on your diagnosis, dysfunction, and manual therapy.
For treatments like myofascial and trigger point release therapy, the physiotherapist focuses on massaging stiff pelvic floor tissues. This can help loosen restricted movement and help with pain reduction.
You’ll be given pelvic floor exercises that you can do at home and during your in-office therapy time. Kegel exercises may be prescribed, but other pelvic floor treatment techniques include:
- Diaphragmatic or belly breathing techniques
- Biofeedback sensors with low electrical currents
Exercises address the individual needs and goals and may involve mobility, stretching, and other training methods to help with flexibility.
Good Pelvic Function
If all goes well from your first appointment to your tailored treatment plan, you should benefit from good pelvic function.
Understanding normal pelvic function is not always easy for those with a history of pain and pelvic problems. Learning about it will help you gauge whether or not your treatment plan is working.
These are key indicators of good pelvic health to know:
- Normal bladder emptying (6-8 times per day)
- One bowel movement per day without needing to strain or push
- No amount of pelvic pain even during sexual activity
- No urinary leakage
Using the bathroom once or less a night is also an indication of good pelvic health and function.
The results of physiotherapy for pelvic floor dysfunction depend on the concerns of the individual. If you still to your treatment plan well, you’ll be able to benefit from strengthening muscles and relieving yourself of symptoms.
Should You Visit a Pelvic Floor Physiotherapist?
The pelvic floor is a group of muscles you use as support for a lot of everyday activities. Pelvic dysfunction or pain disturbs these functions but visiting a physiotherapist can help.
Pelvic floor physiotherapy has many benefits, most notably relieving symptoms of pelvic floor dysfunction with a tailored plan fit to your needs.
With evaluation and a tailored treatment plan, you can experience good pelvic health once again.
For an experienced pelvic health physiotherapist, contact us today to make your first appointment.