What is pelvic floor therapy? As you may have experienced with chiropractic care, it can encompass a variety of approaches depending on individual needs! First and foremost, it focuses on whole-person care. Your “pelvic floor” (which is much more dynamic than a “floor”—think of it as more like a trampoline, and it’s sometimes referred to as the pelvic bowl) consists of the group of muscles at the base of your spine, sacrum, and tailbone within your pelvis.
There are three layers in the pelvic floor that do many crucial things. Including providing postural support, supporting your internal organs, contributing to core strength, facilitating hip movement, and acting as a sphincter to control urine and bowel movements until the appropriate time. These muscles also allow for penetration and sexual climax, and they lengthen and contract to help fluids (like blood and lymph) flow from your legs back up to your torso. The pelvic muscles have fascial connections to your internal organs, jaw, tongue, and even the arches of your feet! The pelvic muscles work dynamically with your diaphragm and breath. This is why, in a physical therapy session, we start by assessing your movement patterns (like walking and squatting) and breathing. This helps us understand how your nervous system is defaulting, and points to particular muscle usage and to which areas of the body may also need attention for optimal results.
We assess the pelvic muscles both externally and internally. If there is pain, tightness, weakness, incoordination, trauma, scar tissue, or injury, the functions and purpose of the pelvic floor may be affected. This can lead to issues such as low back pain, pelvic pain (including discomfort in the perineum, hips, and glutes), tailbone pain, pain or discomfort during intimacy, incontinence (leaking urine), urgency (frequent urges to urinate), and bowel or bladder dysregulation (like IBS), among others.
Pelvic floor therapy can be beneficial not just in cases of pain but also and particularly during pregnancy and postpartum. During pregnancy, we perform both external and internal assessments of the ligaments of the uterus, providing balance and optimizing uterine positioning to facilitate the baby’s positioning in preparation for labor and delivery. We also assist with diastasis recti management during pregnancy and support healing postpartum.
Another unique offering I provide is “labor prep” sessions. These sessions integrate techniques from birthing classes and assess how your pelvic floor responds, connecting to the ability to lengthen without holding your breath, as well as exploring positions that facilitate the opening of the pelvic inlet and outlet. Mothers have found these sessions valuable for smoother labors and consider them the first step toward their postpartum reconnection. Postpartum pelvic floor care can also facilitate healing from any scar tissue, recalibrating muscle activation and breath, as well as provide guidance on pacing healing and return to activity for the lifestyle you desire!
Have additional questions, check out my website or follow me on Instagram.
