How to Help Your Pelvic Floor

Dealing with pelvic floor issues can be frustrating, scary, and oftentimes it is very lonely because it’s not something that’s talked about often enough.

We’ve helped hundreds of people with pelvic floor issues so we know just how frustrating and scary it can be. Whether it’s affecting your workouts, your sex life, sitting at your desk, driving, or another part of your day, it can be tough to deal with.

On top of that, most medical advice is really negative and will tell you that you just have to live with it or you should just give up that exercise or activity.  Or, maybe you’ve tried medication, other physical therapy, tips from the internet, or a million other options and it feels like there’s no other answer. We’ve heard this over and over again from people we’ve helped. The good news is that you don’t have to live with it!

Everyone’s pelvic floor issue is completely different and needs a very individual approach. But, there are some general tips and answers to questions that we’ve found to be helpful to a lot of people dealing with these types of issues. Here are a few of the most common tips we give out to people we are helping;

More kegels is not always the answer

Most people think they need to strengthen their pelvic floor. So, they do a lot of kegels or other pelvic floor strengthening exercises and it doesn’t get any better. That is pretty frustrating and it makes people want to give up. What we try to do is help you figure out if you actually need more strength. A huge percentage of time, the pelvic floor muscles actually need to relax better, so more kegels might only be making the problem worse. Instead of strengthening, you might need to work on relaxing your pelvic floor instead. One of our favorite ways of doing this is what’s called diaphragmatic breathing. Here’s a video of how you can start working on your breathing.

You’re not alone

Pelvic floor symptoms are often very personal and people don’t like to talk about them like people talk about their shoulder or back pain. That means when you’re dealing with an issue, it can feel like you’re the only one. We’re here to tell you that you’re not alone! There are so many people dealing with leaking, constipation, issues with sex, pain, numbness, or any other number of issues. We have helped people with all of these and more. So, if you’re wondering whether you’re the only one, you’re not! And the best news is, since other people have recovered from them, so can you.

Consider factors outside of your pelvic floor

Way too often medical providers are hyper focused on a small area of your body and life. If you are only getting help with your pelvic floor there might be a huge piece of the puzzle that’s missing. We try to take a holistic and whole body approach when we help people. Stress, sleep, diet, exercise, and a few other areas can make a huge impact on your pelvic floor. If one of these areas are contributing and you’re not working on it, your progress is going to be pretty limited. So when you’re trying to work on your pelvic floor, don’t forget to work on anything else that might be impacting your progress.

There is so much more that can be done about your pelvic floor, but since your issue is different from every single other person’s, it needs a different approach and there is no one size fits all answer. These are some of the most common tips that we give, though. While all three probably don’t apply to you, I’m hoping that at least one is helpful.

If you learn nothing else, I hope you learn that your issue can get better and that you don’t have to live with it, let it stop you from doing what you want to do, or think that it will be a lifelong thing. It can get better!

If we can help in any other way, please feel free to reach out anytime. Our company mission is to keep people in the DC area active and exercising and to take the fear out of medical issues so if there’s a way we can help you do that, we’d love to!

If you're looking for help with your pelvic floor, we're here for you! Feel free to email us at info@districtperformancephysio.com, contact us here, or text/call us at 202-922-7331.