PELVIC FLOOR THERAPY
Starting June 1st 2020, Love Child is open for Pelvic floor PT appointments with new safety and sanitation guidelines.
What is Pelvic Floor Therapy?
Pelvic floor PT is a specialized type of physical therapy that addresses pelvic conditions in both women and men. It is a great tool for before, during and after pregnancy and can help each individual learn more about how the deep core and pelvic floor muscles function on a daily basis. The pelvic floor consists of 3 layers of muscles in one’s pelvis; their function is to help with urination, defecation, sexual activities and giving birth. Our pelvic floor muscles function like all other muscles in the body; they can be weak, tight and can cause pain as well, leading to different types of pelvic floor dysfunction. Because bodies function is such individualistic ways, the understanding and retraining of these muscles requires more than a one size fits all approach.
General pelvic floor therapy helps people understand what and where the pelvic floor muscles are and how to use them correctly. Specialized pelvic floor therapists are trained to assess these groups of muscles, note any potential issues and help retrain them. Pelvic floor therapy can address all different types of conditions or pain including incontinence, constipation, pain in the back, hip or pelvic or vaginal region, pain with sex, endometriosis and pregnancy and post-pregnancy related issues.
How does Pelvic Floor Therapy help during pregnancy and postpartum?
Typically, during pregnancy, it is beneficial to see a pelvic floor PT to understand more about your changing body and the developments regarding the core and pelvic floor muscles. A trained specialist can help you better understand which muscles you’re using, if you’re using them correctly (eg. kegels vs. reverse kegels), and help strengthen areas of the pelvic floor to control and manage conditions such as incontinence, constipation, sciatica and sacroiliac pain. A trained specialist can offer guidance on how to prepare for labor with strengthening exercises tailored to the muscles and ligaments used during birth, with pelvic positioning exercises and by providing information on perineal massage.
No matter the type of birth (vaginal or surgical), a pelvic floor therapist can help during the postpartum period. Physical therapy after pregnancy addresses scar massage, diastasis recti assessment, pelvic floor training to improve symptoms post delivery and relief from any back, hip and pelvic pain from labor and delivery. A specialist can also help with cesarean scar recovery and other recommendations for post operative care.
Physical therapy after birth will help strengthen the deep layers of the core to ensure a strong foundation for all activities and movement during postpartum and beyond. The PT will always check the abdominal and pelvic floor muscles, posture as it related to how you are engaging your core and body mechanics. Checking the abdominal muscles will help to better understand how they are working with the rest of your core and if there is a diastasis recti, a separation of the connective tissue between the rectus abdominis. Assessing the pelvic floor muscles after birth is also important as the pelvic floor muscles endure stress during pregnancy, which can lead to weakening or tightening of the muscles. From a pelvic assessment, a PT can guide a client towards understanding how to strengthen or relax these muscles.
A pelvic floor therapist will make sure you are on the appropriate training program for your body and set you on the right path to get back to more demanding and high intensity exercise. Education is a major component to developing the right training program for you, especially after your body goes through these changes. A PT will help you learn how to stand and move with better posture while holding, lifting or carrying the baby. They’ll show you how to move and strengthen your body without worsening the diastasis, pain or pelvic floor issues. Conditions that a pelvic floor therapist can assist with include symptoms incontinence, prolapse, constipation, and various types of structural pain (pelvic, back, hip, tailbone, etc).
What does a typical appointment look like?
Each physical therapy session is 60 minutes of one-on-one care. The initial evaluation session involves discussion of your past medical history and current conditions or symptoms you may be experiencing. From there, a general assessment can include a posture screen, abdomen screen for diastasis (if postpartum) and a pelvic floor evaluation. A typical pelvic floor evaluation involves consent from the patient and an internal vaginal or rectal exam to better access the pelvic floor muscles. During the internal exam, the PT will guide you through some basic exercises specific to you to strengthen or relax these muscles. The PT will then create your individualized home exercise program and will discuss prognosis and how much PT will be useful for you. Follow-up sessions always start with an update from you, followed by a re-evaluation to assess progress/change, and the treatment. Treatment usually includes hands-on manual therapy, exercises or movement activities, and a home program to maintain gains.
How do I know I need Pelvic Floor PT?
It can be extremely helpful to work with a pelvic floor therapist at any time in your life to learn more about your deep core muscles! People who will benefit from pelvic floor therapy may experience incontinence, constipation or structural pain in the lower back, hips, pelvis and sacrum. These types of conditions can be a result of the weakening or tightening or muscles during pregnancy, postpartum or even from everyday stress.
ONLINE TELE-HEALTH CONSULTS
15 Minute Complimentary Consult:
This is offered as an opportunity to check in with the PT, to ensure a telehealth session could work for you! We will briefly discuss your symptoms and goals and I will tell you what I can do in our telehealth sessions.
30 Minute Consult: $35 - $45
This is offered for patients who feel they are not as "problematic" and just want to "check in" or this could be a great option for returning clients who want to review current exercise programs and are looking to progress those exercises. A 30 min session is ideal for follow up for newer clientele.
45 - 60 Minute Consult: $55 - $65
This is great for new clients who either have a complicated story or "multiple symptoms" or are just new to Pelvic PT. This time will allow for a lengthy discussion about your history and symptoms and what you are looking to accomplish with PT. From there, I will educate you on anything from appropriate exercises to healthy bowel, bladder and sexual habits--because all is very important for self care right now! And then we will go through some exercises to start with for your own home exercise program.
IN-PERSON APPOINTMENTS
$200 / session . $525 / 3 sessions
Thursdays and Saturdays