We are so excited that pelvic floor physical therapy has become more popular over the past couple of years, however we find people have misconceptions about pelvic floor PT. We wanted to clear up the top 10 things we hear and set the facts straight.
- Only women that had babies need to see a pelvic floor PT – Although we strongly believe that all women that have deliveries should see a pelvic floor PT for a postpartum screening, we see tons of women and men that have never had children. The conditions that we commonly treat that include bladder or bowel leakage, pelvic pain are not seen in only women that have delivered. Don’t let this misconception stop you from seeing if pelvic floor PT can help you!
- Pelvic Floor PT is not for Men – We see all genders of patients here at legacy physical therapy. While it is true that we see more men than women, we certainly see plenty of men with conditions like post-prostate surgery rehab, bladder or bowel leakage or urgency, constipation.
- I Have bladder leakage and I’ve already tried kegels and they didn’t work, so what can Pelvic PT do? Bladder leakage can be a result of several factors including muscle weakness (that kegels may be appropriate for), excessive muscle tension, poor coordination with your brain and pelvic floor muscles or other factors such as core weakness. Based on your full evaluation, we provide a variety of techniques to help you stop your bladder leakage issues and rarely is the solution just kegels!
- Kegels is the only exercise that can help the pelvic floor – This is highly dependent on your body and the state of your pelvic floor, sometimes kegels can do a lot more harm than good. We find our patients that come in with very tight irritated pelvic floors need to first work on relaxing their pelvic floor before jumping into doing kegels.
- I was told the only thing that can help my prolapse is surgery – Here at legacy physical therapy we strongly believe that even if you are planning on having surgery or have already had surgery, the pelvic floor muscles need to be strong and fully functional regardless of surgery or not! Since every individual’s pelvic floor is different, and based on their level of prolapse, research shows that pelvic floor PT can be very effective in treating this without needing surgery.
- Pelvic Floor Physical Therapists do not know how to do vaginal or rectal exams – After undergoing Physical Therapy School, Pelvic Floor PTs go through additional training that includes training in how to perform internal vaginal and rectal examinations. Based on your symptoms, we thoroughly go through the examination process with each patient and ask consent throughout the exam. A vaginal and/or rectal exam is the gold standard in assessing the pelvic floor muscles.
- Bladder leakage is a normal part of aging so why do PT – Bladder leakage in the elderly is COMMON but should NOT be considered normal. We treat patients from young teens to people into their 90s and help them with their bladder complaints.
- Painful sex is normal and there is nothing that can be done- We hate to hear this! Sex should not be painful and there is plenty that can be done! There is often a muscle or nerve component to their symptoms that can be treated via pelvic floor PT!
If you find yourself dealing with any pelvic floor issues and previously felt that you weren’t appropriate for pelvic floor PT, you may be surprised that we can help! Schedule a free discovery visit to talk to one of our therapists and we can dive into your specific issues.
