What is Pelvic Floor Physiotherapy? And How Can It Help You?
You may have noticed ads for pelvic health physiotherapy and wondered what a physiotherapist could do for you. We commonly associate physiotherapists with those who treat pain and orthopedic issues, but there are many more types of physiotherapy. Find a physiotherapist in Calgary that can offer you the best pelvic floor physiotherapy.
Defining pelvic floor physiotherapy.
Pelvic floor physiotherapy (PFPT) is a specialist field of physiotherapy that assesses and treats the pelvic floor muscles internally and externally. The pelvic organs like the colon, bladder, and uterus, are supported by these muscles positioned between the hip bones and the sacrum.
Why would you require pelvic floor physiotherapy?
If you have any form of pelvic floor dysfunction, you may benefit from pelvic floor physiotherapy. Pelvic floor dysfunction may be divided into excessively tight or too weak muscles.
A tight pelvic floor might exacerbate urinary frequency and urgency. It can also make urination uncomfortable or incomplete, causing you to wake up in the middle of the night with a desire to urinate.
Furthermore, it can cause urinary incontinence (when you can’t go to the bathroom). Constipation, straining during bowel motions, and a tight pelvic floor causes painful bowel movements.
You may experience sexual dysfunction if you have a tight, faulty pelvic floor. Discomfort with penetration, inability to have vaginal penetration, pain with or inability to orgasm, and pain with sexual stimulation are symptoms of this condition. It can also cause painful erections and premature ejaculation in males.
Stress incontinence, or leakage of urine or stool during or after activity, can be exacerbated by a weak pelvic floor. This includes leaking while participating in sports and coughing and sneezing.
Pelvic organ prolapses, which occur when one of the pelvic organs begins to slip out of position, are caused by weak pelvic floor muscles—heaviness or bulging at the vaginal or rectal orifice results from this.
These are problems that are commonly linked with women after giving birth; consequently, most women believe this is a natural occurrence and are unaware that it can be addressed. The good news is that there is an alternative to using pads and diapers.
After five to seven sessions, most patients progress with weak pelvic floor therapy. If you’re truly concerned, a pre-delivery examination and strengthening programme can help you build a strong, supportive pelvic floor while you’re still pregnant.
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What does pelvic floor physiotherapy look like?
Every therapy will be as per your specific requirements as a client. The skin, fascia, and muscles of the belly, lower back, and inner thighs will be part of the external examination. The assessment includes an interior component, performed with a digital (finger) vaginal and rectal exam.
An inside examination is not always necessary, but it is recommended to gain a complete picture of any problems you may be experiencing. It also offers valuable information to aid you to improve your treatment plan and attaining positive results in the shortest amount of time.
Things you must know about pelvic floor physiotherapy.
It is about more than Kegels.
Incontinence, prolapse, urine urgency, and frequency are common symptoms when your pelvic floor muscles are weak. If the pelvic floor is discovered to be vulnerable, Kegels, or pelvic floor strengthening exercises, can assist in alleviating the symptoms.
On the other hand, Kegels aren’t always the ideal remedy, depending on your problems. The pelvic floor muscles can become tight. If you are dealing with it, you may have pelvic discomfort, a sense of incomplete bladder or bowel emptying, a weak or hesitant stream, and pain during or after sexual intercourse.
The important thing is to have a robust pelvic floor rather than a tight pelvic floor. If your pelvic floor muscles are stiff, relaxation techniques and mild stretches might help you release them and reduce your symptoms.
Anyone can benefit from it.
Pelvic floor dysfunction may affect anybody, and physiotherapy can help. While some people are more likely to develop pelvic floor issues than others, these symptoms can affect everyone.
– Prenatal and postpartum.
This is the most prevalent reason for pelvic floor problems. Women’s bodies undergo a lot of change in a short amount of time as they grow a baby, go through labour, and recuperate afterward. People may have discomfort in their lower back, tailbone, pelvis, and hips. With sexual intercourse, they may also feel symptoms such as incontinence, heaviness, urgency, frequency, and discomfort. All of these issues can be alleviated with Pelvic floor Physiotherapy.
– Benefits for men.
While any man can develop pelvic floor symptoms, chronic pelvic discomfort, chronic prostatitis, post-surgery, and post-prostatectomy are the most prevalent causes of pelvic floor dysfunction in males. Incomplete bladder or bowel emptying, slow or weak stream, incontinence, pelvic discomfort, and erectile dysfunction are all common symptoms that men may experience. Awareness, manual treatments, and exercises can help to alleviate these problems.
– Post-menopause.
Women’s estrogen drops dramatically as they approach menopause. Estrogen plays a vital role in maintaining good pelvic floor function. As a result, symptoms such as heaviness, bulging, incontinence, increased urgency and frequency, and pelvic discomfort may occur during menopause. In conjunction with your doctor’s treatments, Pelvic Floor Physiotherapy can help alleviate these problems.
– Post-surgery.
It’s typical to have pelvic floor problems after having abdominal or pelvic surgery. This might be as a result of surgical surgery or extended catheterization. The goal of post-surgery physiotherapy is usually to reduce pain and improve scar mobilization.
The pelvic floor is part of the core.
There’s plenty more in the core than just our abdominal muscles. The term ‘core’ refers to a region that runs from the diaphragm to the pelvic floor. As a result, your abdominal muscles, low back muscles, pelvic floor muscles, and diaphragm are all part of your core. These muscles work together to support the organs of your stomach. As a result, we want all of our main components to work effectively. Physio will examine all core sections and focus on exercises to improve core function during Pelvic Floor Physiotherapy.
What is the perfect time to schedule an appointment?
The optimum time to schedule an appointment is when you first detect a problem. Unlike other muscular strains or sports injuries, pelvic dysfunction tends to worsen with time.
Correcting a small prolapse or moderate incontinence is significantly simpler than correcting a condition that has been deteriorating for years. Early treatment of chronic pelvic discomfort or sexual dysfunction is also reliable and simple.
Will pelvic floor physiotherapy be painful?
The objective of the Physiotherapist is to improve your symptoms; therefore, while some of the treatment techniques may be uncomfortable, the goal is to avoid inducing a painful reaction.
During the examination, the Physiotherapist will try to figure out what is causing the problems. For example, bending over may cause discomfort in your lower back, and the Physio in Calgary may ask to witness this action to examine how your back moves and why you’re experiencing pain with it. While certain pain symptoms may be reproduced, this should not worsen your symptoms or cause further discomfort after the session.
Some hands-on techniques may be useful during therapy sessions to relieve your problems, which may cause some slight discomfort but should not be unpleasant. The same concepts apply to the exercises and methods that your Physiotherapist will teach you at home. You may have some little discomfort during the exercises, but you should not experience any pain during or after the activities. Pelvic floor dysfunction affects men and women equally and is more frequent than you believe.
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