What is the pelvic floor?
The pelvic floor is a group of muscles whose job it is to
aid in urinary and bowel continence and to support the contents of your pelvis,
such as the bladder and uterus. Most people are unaware that they even have
these muscles because they function pretty much independently, doing
their job without you having to think about it. It is when something starts to
go wrong with the pelvic floor muscles that people find out that they have them
and they are not functioning properly.
In its simplest form, pelvic floor
dysfunction – aka, when something goes wrong- can usually be broken down into
two categories.
1: pelvic floor muscle weakness
2: pelvic floor muscle tension.
1: pelvic floor muscle weakness
2: pelvic floor muscle tension.
With weakness, typically this will show up as incontinence
or leakage of urine or bowels.
Tension of pelvic floor muscles may present as constipation,
pain with sitting, tailbone pain or pain with intercourse.
Pelvic floor dysfunction is kind of an umbrella term that
covers many diagnoses. If you have issues
with your pelvic floor, talk to your doctor about physical therapy as an option
for treatment.
To find a physical
therapist near you who specializes in pelvic floor dysfunction, please refer to
the following websites:
American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) Section on
Women’s Health:
Herman and Wallace Pelvic Rehabilitation Institute
Come back next week when I will be diving in to more
specific diagnoses related to the pelvic floor!
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