Can Pelvic Floor Dysfunction Be Cured?
What is Pelvic Floor Dysfunction?
Pelvic floor dysfunction means that you’re not able to control your pelvic floor muscles properly. Your pelvic floor muscles help support some of your internal organs like your bladder, reproductive organs, and rectum, but also help to support your low back and hips.
When your pelvic floor muscles aren’t functioning well, you’ll likely feel some uncomfortable symptoms such as:
- Bladder or bowel leakage during specific activities or even when you’re on a test
- Having problems making it to the bathroom in time
- Sudden and frequent urgency to go to the bathroom
- Pain with intercourse
- Pain in your pelvic area, low back, or hips
- Abdominal separation (after pregnancy)
- Having issues with erectile dysfunction
If any of these symptoms sound familiar to you, then you could have pelvic floor dysfunction.
I Think I Have Pelvic Floor Dysfunction…Now What?
Experiencing any of these symptoms could definitely impact your quality of life and lead to pain, discomfort, and a decreased quality of life.
Pelvic floor physiotherapy has been proven to be an effective method to treat your symptoms of pelvic floor dysfunction.
What is Pelvic Floor Physiotherapy?
Pelvic Floor Physiotherapy is a specialized kind of physiotherapy that involves the assessment and treatment of pelvic floor conditions.
This is conducted by a Pelvic Floor Physiotherapist, who is a professional that is trained to improve the function, coordination, strength, and pain of your Pelvic Floor structures.
Pelvic Floor Physiotherapists see and treat individuals with all sorts of Pelvic Floor conditions. Learn more about pelvic health physiotherapy and how to connect with your pelvic floor.
Top 10 Common Conditions Related to Your Pelvic Floor
…that can all be treated with Pelvic Floor Physiotherapy!
1. Urinary Incontinence
Urinary incontinence is when you leak urine and is a common but not normal condition. There are two types of this condition: stress urinary incontinence and urge incontinence.
Stress incontinence is when you involuntarily leak urine with different activities such as coughing, sneezing, bending over, laughing, running, or lifting.
This can happen because your pelvic floor muscles are other structures that are involved with the release of urine weaken due to a variety of different factors.
Urge incontinence is when you have problems making it to the bathroom in time due to an overactive bladder.
If you have urge incontinence, you may feel a sudden and overwhelming urge to urinate that’s triggered by some factors like the sound of running water, drinking a small amount of water, or it can be completely random.
Not to worry though, physiotherapy can help treat your urinary incontinence.
You can also check out these Pelvic Health Physiotherapist approved exercises you can try yourself if you’ve been experiencing urinary leakage with squatting and jumping postpartum.
2. Pain with Intercourse
Pain with intercourse can stem and worsen by many different reasons, including tight or tensioned pelvic floor muscles, injury or irritation to nerves in the area, a history of trauma, various pelvic floor related diseases, and more.
A trained Pelvic Floor Physiotherapist can help determine the cause of your pain and help you return to enjoyable and pain-free sexual activities.
3. Pelvic Pain
This condition has widespread causes and can result in emotional or physical pain and can further lead to feelings of isolation and frustration.
Pelvic health physiotherapy can treat and address the root of your problem so you can manage your pain and get back to activities that are important to you.
4. Fecal Incontinence
Fecal incontinence is when you have an involuntary passing of bowel movements and affects about 0.25-6% of the population.
This condition is commonly due to weakness of muscles around your anus and pelvic floor or other factors like pain, anxiety, surgery, and pregnancy.
Pelvic floor physiotherapy can strengthen relevant muscles and address your limitations to help reduce your fecal incontinence issues.
5. Diastasis Recti (Abdominal Separation)
Have you noticed a bulge in your stomach after pregnancy that wasn’t there before? You could have a condition called diastasis recti…or in more simple terms, a separation in your abdominal muscles.
This is commonly seen after pregnancy but can also happen in men and in people who aren’t performing abdominal exercises correctly or due to other factors as well.
Diastasis recti is due to your abs being stretched and separated, which can also be paired with symptoms such as low back pain, bloating, and poor posture.
A Pelvic Health Physiotherapist can assess if you have diastasis recti and guide you through exercises and other treatment to help reduce your symptoms.
Check out this Instagram post to learn more about how a pelvic health physiotherapist may assess your diastasis recti.
6. Low Back Pain
Low back pain is a very common condition that affects 70-80% of people in their lifetime, but did you know that your low back pain can be closely linked to pelvic floor issues?
The low back and pelvic floor work together to help stabilize your torso and are also involved with breathing. Dysfunction of one system may affect the other which can lead to pain and issues with their functioning.
A Pelvic Floor Physiotherapist is trained in assessing and treating the low back and pelvic floor to help you manage your low back pain and get you back to doing the things you love…pain free.
Check out this newsletter to learn more about your back pain and how physiotherapy can help.
7. Erectile Dysfunction
Erectile dysfunction is when you have issues with getting or keeping an erection during sexual activities. This is a common problem that affects up to 30 million men and can be the result of a combination of physical or psychological factors.
A study found that pelvic exercises were effective in helping 40% of men regaining their normal erectile function and helped another 33.5% improve their erectile function – that’s a staggering 73.5% of men showing improvement with pelvic exercise!
A Pelvic Floor Physiotherapist can guide you in finding the most effective exercise plan for your erectile dysfunction.
8. Pelvic Organ Prolapse
Did you know that pelvic organ prolapse is a common issue that affects 1 in 3 women who have given birth?
This condition occurs when one or more of your pelvic organs prolapse or “droop” into or out of the vagina due to weakened structures in your pelvic floor such as your pelvic muscles and ligaments.
Pelvic health physiotherapy helps to improve your prolapse symptoms by helping the structures at fault function more optimally which results in decreased symptoms and pain.
Other common conditions related to the pelvic floor include bloating and abdominal pressure, prostatitis, postpartum pain, and more.
No matter which pelvic floor related condition you may have, pelvic floor physiotherapy can be the solution for you.
What Are My Next Steps?
Your pelvic floor symptoms can be treated so that you can feel better and even prevent them from coming back or getting worse in the future!
Find relief today by requesting an appointment with us or contacting us here.
You can also learn more about our licensed Pelvic Health Physiotherapists Michelle and Lauren who are both trained to help you with your urinary incontinence.
We’d be happy to help you in your journey to find relief and recovery from your pelvic floor issues!
This blog was written by Anna Zhang, a Physiotherapy student at the University of Toronto
FAQ
Do I Need a Doctor’s Referral to See a Pelvic Floor Physiotherapist?
You do not require a doctor’s referral to see a Pelvic Floor Physiotherapist! However, some insurance companies require a doctor’s referral in order for your pelvic floor physiotherapy session to be covered by your insurance.
Please contact your insurance provider to confirm the details. If you have any additional questions, you can contact our office manager at (437) 747-9236.
How Do I Find a Pelvic Floor Physiotherapist?
At PhysioPlus Health Group, our trained Pelvic Floor Physiotherapists would be pleased to help you and guide you with your Pelvic Floor issue. Request an appointment with us to treat your Pelvic Floor issue today.
Not sure if our services will help you with your Pelvic floor issue? Try a FREE 20-minute phone consultation (tel:4377476326) with one of our physiotherapists today to discuss your pelvic floor concerns and review your treatment options. We look forward to speaking with you!
What Should I Wear to My Pelvic Floor Physiotherapy Appointment?
Please wear comfortable clothes that allow for access to your areas of concern by the Pelvic Floor Physiotherapist. Loose-fitting athletic clothes with comfortable shoes would be appropriate attire for your physical examination and treatment.