What is the pelvic floor?

The pelvic floor refers to the muscles that support your reproductive, colorectal, and urinary tracts,- including your bladder, uterus (female), prostate (male), and rectum. These muscles attach to your pelvic bones and wrap around the urethra and rectum to provide support. In addition to providing support, they also help you control your bladder and bowel function. When these muscles aren’t working as they should, they can cause pain and other symptoms that interfere with daily functioning. Physical therapy can help ease pain and associated symptoms, getting you back to normal functioning.

What is pelvic floor physical therapy?

Pelvic floor physical therapy is a treatment to help address dysfunction in the pelvic floor muscles. The type of therapy prescribed will depend upon the symptoms you’re experiencing. Some will require relaxing and lengthening of the muscles, while others may require strengthening the muscles. Some conditions that can be improved with pelvic floor physical therapy are:

• Urinary problems: leakage, frequency, urgency, and/or painful
• Interstitial cystitis (IC)
• Difficulty stopping or starting urinating, difficulty fully emptying the bladder
• Sexual dysfunction, pelvic organ prolapse
• Bowel problems: fecal leakage, fecal urgency, straining, constipation or painful bowel movements
• Pelvic pain: pain in the genital and/or rectum, lower abdominal pain, pain during pregnancy or postpartum, postoperative care
• Pediatric incontinence or constipation
• Orthopedic hip/back pain

What should I expect for my treatment?

Evaluation is individualized and specific to each patient’s condition and concerns. When you have your appointment, your pelvic floor physical therapist will explain in detail the assessment and treatment options to get your input and consent. Your therapist will also spend time educating you on the anatomy, the condition, how the assessment will proceed, the treatment intervention and answer your questions. Treatment for pelvic floor dysfunction may be hands on, which may include internal and/or external therapy. Physical therapy techniques may include but are not limited to:

• Completing and reviewing a bladder diary
• Education on your condition and how the pelvic floor/bladder/bowel system works
• Manual therapy
• Vaginal or rectal trigger point releases*
• Strengthening exercises such as Kegels/pelvic floor muscle coordination training
• Abdominal and core strengthening
• Postural awareness and safe body mechanics with daily activities
• Electrical stimulation
• Biofeedback or surface electromyography (EMG)
• Self-care and management strategies

*Therapists are sensitive to the needs of every individual and will not perform vaginal/rectal physical therapy unless given consent. The first visit will be education and externally based unless you prefer otherwise.

Call 320-312-2128 to schedule an appointment for Pelvic Floor Therapy.