Long Zoom calls. Poor posture. No childcare. Scary news. Stress. It’s hard not to be exhaustipated about most things these days with all that's going on in the world. But if constipation is on the list of issues plaguing you, it’s time to talk to a pelvic floor physical therapist. Your gut & pelvic health is a sign of your overall health. How we fuel our bodies, how we sit, how we breathe, how we move, and how [...]
There is a wide range of “normal” when it comes to emptying your bowels or bladder. Some people poop three times a day, and some, three times a week. Roughly 6-7 visits a day to pee is average; generally, every three to four hours is what we’d expect in a healthy, well-hydrated person. But a range of 4-10 times a day is alright, assuming you aren’t bothered by other symptoms. It’s when you’re going [...]
Per the CDC, 12% of US women struggle to get pregnant. For couples that want to conceive, it sometimes feels like everyone is trying to sell you on a gimmick to bring a baby into the world. Time for some evidence-based science! A ten-year study published in 2015 looked at how manual (meaning hands-on) physical therapy helped treat female infertility issues in almost 1,400 women. It probably won't come as a surprise to you [...]
Whether you're coughing from a cold or sneezing from allergies, leakage isn't anyone's idea of a great way to pass the time. Sometimes that incontinence happens because the small muscles around the urethra (where we pee from) were injured or weakened during delivery. Sometimes it's because the muscles are too tight, and when your bladder is full, those muscles can't tighten anymore when suddenly loaded from above with a sneeze, cough, or a jump. [...]
8 weeks after delivery, ab separation won't change unless you do something about it. Your diastasis recti - the ab separation that 100% of women have by 35 weeks of pregnancy - can improve on its own. But without any intervention (specialized exercises, taping, hands-on techniques to actively reduce the gap), where you're at 8 weeks postpartum is where you'll be at one year postpartum and beyond. Why does this matter? Significant [...]
You Pamper Your Baby A Lot - Now It's Your Turn Discuss and address sensitive topics in the privacy and comfort of your own home. Eliminate the stress of getting out the door to make an appointment on time. Schedule around nap time so you don’t need to get childcare. Take time to pump or feed baby if you need to. Home visit treatment plans WORK because they’re tailored to your specific [...]
1 in 3 women has bowel bladder or sexual issues after delivery 1 in 3 new moms report bowel and bladder issues after giving birth, and about half of all new moms have pelvic pain in the months after they’ve delivered. These problems don’t just go away on their own, and many women just suffer in silence, assuming this is “the new normal.” It doesn't have to be. Your body can heal... [...]
Welcome! Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy for Every Body Our job is to help bodies. All bodies. Every body. This is a safe space where healing can happen and you can start to feel great in your body again. So however you identify, wherever you're coming from, just know you'll be warmly welcomed at The Pelvic PT. We're here to help, we have the training to do it right, and we're darn happy [...]
GESTATION: the process of carrying the young in the womb between conception to delivery. Cool. You probably knew that already. But so much more happens on the inside to a woman's body during this time! Where do the organs go? Why might you feel short of breath, especially during that third trimester? Check out this great video from the Museum of Science & Industry in Chicago (super cool place, btw) -- it'll show you [...]
PSEUDOCYESIS. Yup, it's Word of the Day Wednesday again! Today's word means "false pregnancy." Yes. The morning sickness, the tender breasts, the weight gain, the abdominal distension, in some cases even labor pains -- they are all expected to some degree or another with pregnancy. But these are also present with pseudocyesis... except there is no growing fetus in there. Crazy, right?! The first written account of this was in 300B.C. by our ol' buddy [...]
Time for Word of the Day Wednesday. Well, it's a phrase today, and one of my favorites: POSTPRANDIAL SOMNOLENCE. It's the itis. The food coma. That sleepy, lethargic feeling as you undo your belt buckle a few notches after feasting on Thanksgiving dinner. Oh, by the way - happy belated Turkey Day! So, why does postprandial somnolence happen? Well, for one, after we've eaten, the body recognizes there is food in our digestive system, [...]
Here's a Fun Fact Friday that might rock your world. Did you know that the position in which most women deliver in Western hospitals (lithotomy: on your back, legs elevated and spread) puts you at the most risk of a grade III or IV tear - which means tearing down to the anal sphincter - and this is especially seen in women who have had multiple deliveries? (Elvander et al 2015, n>113,000). The theory [...]
On this Momma Care Monday, I want you all to pinky swear me that from now on you will not be "Wilting Flowers." What do I mean? Head hanging down, chin tilting towards the chest... Whether you're on your phone, scrolling through Instagram, or crooning at your little ones while you feed them, that poor posture is the main culprit when it comes to head, neck, upper & mid back pain. Wondering how to [...]
Let's wrap up the week with a Fun Fact Friday, shall we? Is it a tulip? Is it a wishbone? No! It's a CLITORIS! Did you know the clitoris is WAY LARGER than just that little nub at the top of the ladyparts? It's part of a larger system of erectile tissue: there are two shafts (crura) that are about 10cm (4in) long that are under the labia (inner and outer lips of the [...]
Today's Word of the day Wednesday is... DYSPAREUNIA. No, it's not some type of exotic flower. It means painful sexual intercourse. It can happen to anyone, though women are disproportionally affected (8-21% in a 2006 global study - but keep in mind self-report is notoriously poor for these sorts of personal conditions). And there are *SO MANY* reasons why sex can be painful. Once things like infection or malignancies are ruled out or addressed, [...]
Women Spend $750 a Year Out of Pocket to Manage Their Incontinence Leak when you sneeze? Dribble when you jump? Another Momma Care Monday is upon us, and I'm here to lay some cold hard truth on you: urinary incontinence (UI) affects approximately 20 million people in the United States. Among women, the prevalence ranges from 26–46%, depending on the study you read (Wilson et al 2001). But just because it's common doesn't mean [...]
A study in a European ob-gyn journal: it found women who get EARLY postpartum physical therapy (as soon as the first month after delivery) when they sustained 3rd or 4th degree tears (into their anal sphincter regions) recover better and faster in resolving incontinence (which includes unexpectedly passing gas!) than those who wait until after the six week follow up to start. SO DON’T WAIT. Don’t let your MD dismiss your pain or your concerns. [...]
Another Word of the Day Wednesday is upon us. Also, Happy November! Today's word is NOCTURIA. It means waking up a lot at night in order to pee. Normally, the body produces less urine at night, so you can have some restful, uninterrupted sleep for 6+ hours. But if you're an older adult, you produce less of the antidiuretic hormone that helps you decrease urine production and retain fluid. The pelvic floor muscles that hold [...]
A 2008 study (Coldron et al) looked at diastasis recti abdominis (DRA), the separation of your ab muscles that can occur with pregnancy and with obesity (see photo, right side). The study found that in the first eight weeks after delivery, the distance will decrease markedly -- but without any other intervention, like physical therapy or (the right!) exercise training, there was no more closure in the gap after the first year postpartum. It's [...]
Did you know that tight pelvic floor muscles can mimic the symptoms of a UTI? That frequent and urgent need to pee, that stinging discomfort -- sound familiar? When we're in pain "down there," it's not uncommon for muscles to tighten up reflexively. But you need a culture (test for bacteria) to show that you actually have an infection -- otherwise, you're just taking antibiotics unnecessarily. And antibiotics can upset the vaginal environment, so [...]
Today’s word is MITTELSCHMERZ. It’s said exactly how it looks, and no, it’s not some weird cousin of German bratwurst. It actually means “middle pain” in German, and it’s that lower abdominal pain some of you ladies get when you’re ovulating (in that *middle* time between cycles, get it?). For some women, there may be a small amount of bleeding or discharge, a sharp discomfort, and even nausea if it’s particularly uncomfortable. Mostly, though, [...]
Should You Be Concerned About Pregnancy-associated Osteoporosis (PAO)? I’m willing to bet that one of the last things on your mind as a mama (or soon-to-be mama) is bone mineral density. Not the sexiest topic, I know. But pregnancy-associated osteoporosis (PAO) is a real concern, and for those if you due soon or currently breastfeeding, *please* consider speaking to your physical therapist or physician if you are experiencing severe back, hip or leg pain, [...]
Pomegranates Support Estrogen Balance and Fertility For centuries, pomegranates have been used to support estrogen balance and fertility. Why? Pomegranate is a selective estrogen receptor modulator. According to studies (Sreeja, et al., 2012, Sreekumar, et al., 2014), it can contribute to the prevention of estrogen-dependent breast cancers, and there is evidence it also provides some protection against endometrial, ovarian, and cervical cancers. It also supports bone health by reducing your osteoporosis risk and is [...]