What is the Pelvic Floor?
The pelvic floor is a supportive network of muscles, tendons, and ligaments that form a hammock inside the pelvis that slings from the tailbone to both sides of the sit bones and right behind the pubic bone. These muscles help support the inner organs such as the bladder, uterus and bowels. These muscles play an important role in controlling the passage of urine and stool as well as helping maintain a healthy sex life.
How Pelvic Health Physical Therapy Can Help You
Pelvic health physical therapy is a specialty that allows more specific treatment for many different pelvis related diagnosis by focusing on muscle weakness and joint alignment issues. Pelvic health therapy can help with variety of conditions related to pelvic organ prolapse, urinary incontinence and bladder control, postpartum chronic constipation, and sexual dysfunction after pregnancy.
Pelvic floor treatment options can include trigger point massage, myofascial release, and pelvic floor exercises depending on the problem and diagnosis. Our experienced pelvic health therapists will work with you closely to find the best option for your specific needs to achieve a pain-free life. At Rebalance PT, reducing pain and improving overall well-being of our patients with holistic treatments is our top priority.
What will a Pelvic Floor Evaluation and Treatment Entail? What is Done During Pelvic Floor Therapy in Philadelphia?
Our pelvic floor therapy services and treatment options include:
Initial Pelvic Floor Evaluation
Pelvic floor evaluations are approximately 60 minutes long. In more complicated cases the examination may be over 2 sessions. A thorough musculoskeletal evaluation of all relevant joints will take place in addition to a vaginal and/or rectal exam of the pelvic floor muscles for tenderness/trigger points, strength, flexibility and coordination. Rest assured that we will make this part of the examination as comfortable as possible. In severe cases we may defer a full examination of this area until you are less symptomatic. Following your first visit and initial evaluation, our experienced team of pelvic health physical therapists will tailor a customized treatment plan for your individual needs.
Biofeedback Evaluation
We may also perform a biofeedback evaluation (a computerized technique) that gives information about how your pelvic floor muscles are functioning.
What are the Symptoms of Pelvic Floor Dysfunction?
Pelvic floor muscles just like any other muscles can become weak, tight or a combination/mix of both.
Common symptoms associated with a weak pelvic floor are:
- Urinary urgency
- Urinary incontinence
- Bowel control & incontinence problems
- Pelvic organ prolapse (typically looks like tissue or an organ has dropped into the vaginal canal or interfering with having a bowel movement)
- Premature Ejaculation in men
Give us a call at 267-282-1301 to schedule an appointment today.
Common Symptoms associated with a tight or mixed pelvic floor are those of pelvic pain syndromes
Pelvic Pain is generally described by many medical providers as pain around the lower abdominal region. Pelvic pain can cause many different signs and symptoms including:
- Upper/lower abdominal pain
- Pain in buttocks, back, hip, groin, pelvis, suprapubic, sacroiliac joint region
- Burning, sharp, shooting, stabbing pain in the Vagina, labia, prostate, testicle, penis or perineum
- Pain with sitting (but eases when sitting on a toilet)
- Pain with prolonged standing
- Vagina, labial, scrotal, penile, anal itching
- Vaginal pressure (feeling of an object like a golf ball in the vagina)
- Tailbone/Coccyx pain
- Urinary frequency/urgency/burning
- Urinary hesitation and pain
- Bladder pain
- Difficulty starting your urine stream
- Urethral spasm/pain
- Stress incontinence(urinary leakage with coughing, sneezing)
- Pain before, during and after menstruation
- Pain with penetration or tampon insertion
- Pain with Intercourse
- Lower abdominal discomfort with intercourse
- Throbbing ache after intercourse
- Pain with gynecologic exams
- Erectile or ejaculatory dysfunction and pain
- Clothing intolerance
- Pain during and after a bowel movement
- Constipation
- Irritable bowel symptoms.
- Rectal pain and pressure (feeling of an object like a golf ball in the rectum)
- Testicular/Penile/Scrotal pain and heaviness
- Premature Ejaculation
- Hard flaccid syndrome (where the penis on trying to maintain an erection can feel short, hard and not achieve full erection)
Diagnoses associated with pelvic pain and pelvic floor dysfunction can include:
- Vulvadynia/Vulvar Vestibulitis
- Hypertonic Pelvic Floor Syndrome
- Interstitial Cystitis
- Endometriosis
- Coccydynia
- Pudendal Neuralgia
- Proctagia Fugax
- Levator Ani Syndrome
- Constipation
- Non-Bacterial Prostatitis
- Epididymitis
- Persistent Genital Arousal Disorder (PGAD)
- Vestibulodynia- pain at the entry of the vagina
- Vulvadynia
- Vaginismus
- Pudendal Neuralgia
- Levator Ani Syndrome
We specialize in both pelvic floor therapy for pregnant or postpartum women and male pelvic pain.
Pelvic Floor Therapy FAQs
Why am I being referred to a physical therapist?
Your doctor or nurse is suspecting that you may have a problem with the muscles of the pelvic floor. A physical therapist specializes in treating muscles and the pelvic floor is just another group of muscles that are located inside the pelvis. A physical therapist that specializes in pelvic floor disorders and dysfunction can evaluate these muscles further to determine why you might be having a problem and if treatment can help.
How long will pelvic floor physical therapy take?
Duration of treatment can vary significantly from person to person. Many factors can contribute to why someone has a pelvic floor dysfunction. However after a thorough evaluation our therapists will be able to give you a better idea of how long treatment may take. Treatments typically are weekly for 55 minutes until you are at least 75% improved.
Is pelvic floor physical therapy at Rebalance covered under insurance?
Due to the holistic and extensive hands on nature of our treatment, we are considered out of network with all insurances.
The reason for this is being in network with insurances does not allow us to practice in a manner that is BEST for our patients. Insurance companies often dictate what can and cannot be done during treatments. They also do not cover things such as dry needling and other modalities that are often time essential for our clients to get better. Our goal is to put the client first so we can get you results fast.
What type of doctor helps with pelvic floor therapy?
Because we have been one of the first private pelvic floor physical therapy practice in Philadelphia, we have connections with some of the best medical practitioners that also understand pelvic floor pain and dysfunction in the area. Oftentimes medical practitioners can be urologists, gynecologists, urogynecologists, colorectal doctors, nurse practitioners, interventional radiologists, physical medicine and rehabilitations doctors, functional medicine practitioners and pain management doctors. Depending on what is going on with you specifically, there is a right team combination out there.
Is a pelvic floor therapist worth it?
Absolutely! The pelvic floor is considered part of your core and your core governs how the rest of your body functions. Without good core balance, coordination, strength and function you could end up with a whole host of orthopedic and other pelvic problems in due time. So the earlier you treat pelvic floor issues the better!
