What is pelvic health physical therapy?

Pain in your lower back? Problems going to the bathroom? Feeling like you need to go to the bathroom more often? Painful intercourse? Recovering from birth? Pain during pregnancy? A problem with your pelvic floor can lead to these symptoms and many more. 

The pelvic floor is a group of muscles that help support and control organs like the bladder and rectum. These muscles are also considered to be core muscles. Problems with the pelvic floor are collectively called pelvic floor dysfunction (PFD). It’s estimated that about 24% of adult women in the U.S. have at least one PFD. Pelvic health physical therapy is a type of therapeutic care that can help treat many forms of PFD. 

What issues can pelvic health physical therapy treat?

Pelvic health physical therapy is also called pelvic rehab, and it can be used to treat a wide variety of issues. Most problems that pelvic rehab is used to treat are centered around structures in the pelvis. However, they can help treat symptoms in areas like the lower back as well. 

A few of the issues that therapists use pelvic rehab to address include:

• Constipation
• Urinary incontinence and increased frequency
• Post-pregnancy pelvic pain
• Unspecified lower back pain
• Pain in pregnancy
• Pain with intercourse

What is involved in a pelvic health physical therapy plan?

Pelvic rehab plans are often trying to help patients reach several specific goals. One common goal is to decrease pelvic pain. Another is to improve the patient’s ability to go to the bathroom normally. 

To meet these and other goals, your physical therapist can incorporate multiple therapy methods in your pelvic rehab plan. A few of the techniques they could include are: 

• Manual therapy that can mobilize soft tissue in and around the pelvis 

• Therapeutic exercises intended to stretch and strengthen pelvic floor muscles 

• Neuromuscular reeducation exercises for retraining core and pelvic floor muscles

• Biofeedback for visual cues during pelvic floor muscle retraining for both strengthening and relaxing 

Find effective pelvic health physical therapy at Armor Physical Therapy

Not sure where to turn for top-notch pelvic rehab? Our Armor Physical Therapy team has specialists who can help you treat many pelvic problems. We’ll start by performing a physical evaluation on you that can help us learn the root cause of your issue. Then, our physical therapists will build you a personalized therapy plan designed to reduce pelvic pain and other PFD symptoms. Even better, we can help you get the therapy you need if you don’t have a doctor’s referral.

Contact us today for more information about our pelvic rehab services or to schedule an initial appointment.