Welcome to the A Bit of Sunshine PT blog where we will discuss all things related to pelvic floor and orthopedic physical therapy.
Let’s start with the basics:
The pelvic floor refers to a group of muscles, connective tissue, and fascia at the bottom of the pelvis that form a bowl at the bottom of the pelvis and they attach from the pubic bone to the
tailbone.
The muscles have five main functions:
- Support-they help support our internal organs and a growing uterus during pregnancy.
- Sphincteric-they help to close off and open our sphincters. If you have weakness in your pelvic floor muscles you may have leakage. And if you have tension in your pelvic floor muscles you may have constipation or difficulty emptying your bladder.
- Stability-they work with the diaphragm, abdominals and low back muscles as part of our “core” and provide our pelvis and lumbar spine with stability during daily activities such as lifting your car seat out of the car, standing on one leg, jumping, and squatting.
- Sexual-a strong pelvic floor leads to better orgasms and a tense pelvic floor can cause painful intercourse.
- Sump-pump-they help to pump blood back to the heart These muscles are pretty cool right? You can see that if you have pelvic floor dysfunction in any
of these five categories, it can make life challenging for you.
As a pelvic floor physical therapist, I assess the pelvic floor muscles for their strength, flexibility, coordination, and endurance, and look at how they are functioning in your system. But the tricky part about the pelvic floor is that the muscles are on the inside of your body, so they can be hard to visualize. Nothing in the human body works in isolation, so it is important to look at the whole body to determine how they are functioning in your system. So, if someone once told you that doing a bunch of kegels is going to stop your urinary leakage, but you aren’t noticing much of a change in your symptoms, it may be time to consult with a pelvic floor PT to see if PT is the right fit for you.
Book a free 15 min discovery call with me
stacie@vzcelm.vzcelm.abitofsunshinept.com
(562)294-1429