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Ladies, pelvic floors need exercise too

 

BY CLAIRE MCENTEGART, PHYSIOTHERAPIST

Attention ladies (men close your eyes). Do you find yourself rushing for the toilet? Are you having accidents? Do you avoid jumping, running, coughing and sneezing for fear of leaking? Do you have a heavy feeling in your pelvis? Do you have pain during sex? Yes? Well read on.


No matter what your age, your pelvic floor health is very important. Whether you have just had a baby, are noticing things aren’t as strong as they used to be, or you have passed menopause and are noticing its harder to make it to the toilet in time, we can help.

Your pelvic floor is a muscle, just like any other, and once the muscles have been stretched, they don’t work at their optimum level. Your pelvic floor is the hammock of muscles that hold up all your pelvic organs including your bladder, bowel and uterus. The weight of these organs presses down on the pelvic floor stretching it over time, add to this pregnancy and birth which stretches it even more. These muscles don’t just bounce back – just like any other muscle they need exercises to keep them strong. 

Some of the most common issues are: 
 Stress incontinence: This occurs when you increase the pressure in your abdominals, which increases the pressure in your pelvis. If your pelvic floor is not strong enough, then some urine may leak out. Examples of this might be jumping on the trampoline, coughing, sneezing, getting up from a chair. 

 Overactive bladder: This can be either a ‘weak bladder’ resulting in frequent trips to the bathroom with only small amounts of urine passed, or sudden urges to go which can’t be ignored, and may result in an accident on the way. 

 Prolapse: This occurs when the weight of the pelvic organs becomes too much for the pelvic floor to hold up, and part of the organ slips down or forward. Symptoms of this can include a heaviness or dragging feeling in the pelvis. This may be a result of an incident like a lift or jump and can be prevented by having a strong pelvic floor. 

So what can we do? Like any muscle your pelvic floor can be strengthened through exercise. The best way to assess these muscles is through an assessment with a women’s health physio. We will then be able to explain to what the issue is, whether your muscles are in fact engaging, how strong they are, and give you an individual strengthening and exercise program to help restore strength and control to your pelvic floor. 

So who can benefit from our help? Anyone who has:
 had a baby – especially those wanting to return to exercise, sport and running.
 experienced any degree of symptoms described above.
 approached menopause or is pre menopause. 
 pelvic or back pain and is pregnant. 
 pelvic pain or pain with sex or any intimacy issues.

We now have two qualified womens health physios at Mangawhai Physiotherapy. Vicki and Clair have a special interest in this field. We are running a special for the month of March – 30% off all initial assessment, $70 for an hour through assessment and treatment. Call today to book (09) 431 4476.

 
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