Pelvic floor therapy in Lakeshire, MO. Pelvic floor dysfunction doesn’t just cause pain; it can affect your self-esteem and independence. If pelvic floor dysfunction is keeping you from dominating on the grass, starting a family, or just navigating a day with the same assurance and ease as before, pelvic floor physical therapy could be what you need to feel like your best you again. With evidence-backed treatment plans, pelvic floor therapy in Lakeshire, MO can help you with:
- Improved bladder and bowel control
- Reduced pain and inflammation
- Enhanced sexual performance and pleasure
- Increased self-assurance and well-being
Axes Physical Therapy in Lakeshire, MO specializes in designing personalized treatment plans that gets pelvic floor patients back to the pastimes they love most safely and effectively. If you are curious in learning more about pelvic floor therapy or want to book an appointment with one of our specialists, please contact us online today or reach out to the Axes location nearest you. We’re here to help you restore control and assurance in your pelvic health.
Understanding the Pelvic Floor
The pelvic floor is the soft tissues and joints that create a supportive hammock-like structure at the bottom of the pelvis. It acts like a “floor” or a foundation for the organs in your pelvis, including the bladder, uterus, urethra, and rectum. The pelvic floor shields organs and your spine from outside pressure while helping control several important functions.
The pelvic floor has several functions and roles:
- Helps manage your bladder and bowels by providing you authority over the contraction and relaxing of muscles
- Supports organs in the pelvis and prevents them from prolapsing
- Resists belly pressure from lifting, coughing, or other activities
- Supports optimal sexual function
- Provides support and alignment to the core and back
- During pregnancy, stretches to accommodate a growing fetus and assists in childbirth
- Assists in blood and lymphatic circulation, helping to maintain healthy tissue
Pelvic Floor Anatomy
The pelvic floor muscles stretch from the tailbone at the back to the pubic bone at the front, while also linking to the hip bones on each side. These muscles have openings or canals for the urethra (through which urine is passed), the vagina, and the anus (through which stool is passed).
Picture the pelvic floor as a woven network of muscles and tissues that constructs a strong base, supporting the pelvic organs in place and avoiding them from sagging. It works like a supportive sling to preserve the position and function of pelvic organs.
The main muscles of the pelvic floor are called the levator ani and the coccygeus. The levator ani has three parts: one that wraps around the rectum and assists you to hold in your poo (puborectalis), one that connects the front and back bones of your pelvis and maintains the urethra and rectum (pubococcygeus), and one that connects the side and back bones of your pelvis and supports the organs inside your abdomen (iliococcygeus). The coccygeus connects the side and back bones of your pelvis and helps to maintain your pelvis stable.
The pelvic floor muscles have crucial roles. They aid in regulating the release of urine and stool by tightening and relaxing at the correct times and contribute in sexual function and pleasure by supporting the organs involved in sexual activity. When the pelvic floor is weakened or becomes too tense, it results in pelvic floor dysfunction.
Causes, Signs, and Symptoms of Pelvic Floor Dysfunction
Pelvic floor dysfunction is a condition where you have difficulty unwinding and aligning your pelvic floor muscles for optimal function.
Signs and Symptoms
- Difficulty urinating or having bowel movements
- Feeling like your bowel movements are not fully finished
- Leakage of urine or feces
- Often feeling the need to use the bathroom
- Feeling like you need to strain urine or feces
- Pelvic discomfort
- Pain during sex
- Erectile dysfunction and difficulty ejaculating
- Organ prolapse
Potential Causes
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Pelvic surgery or trauma
- Obesity
- Aging
- Menopause
- Chronic constipation or straining
- Chronic coughing or sneezing
- Heavy lifting or high-impact exercise
- Psychological factors like stress or emotional trauma
- Nerve damage
- Surgery
Pelvic floor dysfunction doesn’t just affect people of a single certain age, gender or physical ability. While it can affect anyone deeply, there is hope with professional physical therapy in Lakeshire, MO. At Axes, we offer an entire team devoted to assisting you regain the joy of engaging in the pursuits you cherish most in life.
How Physical Therapy Can Help With Pelvic Floor Dysfunction
If you are suffering from pelvic floor dysfunction, you may feel disappointed, embarrassed, or hopeless. But a diagnosis is not the same thing as a permanent condition. With pragmatic treatment plans customized for you by your Lakeshire, MO physical therapist, you can regain control over your life and experience a comfortable life.
Pelvic floor therapy involves exercises that can strengthen, improve flexibility of, or coordinate the pelvic muscles. The advantages of physical therapy for pelvic floor dysfunction in Lakeshire, MO include:
- Improved pelvic floor muscle strength — Strengthening pelvic floor muscles can help improving bladder and bowel control, reduce symptoms of urinary and fecal incontinence, and provide better support for the pelvic organs.
- Improved pelvic floor muscle coordination — Enhancing coordination supports essential functioning, such as the ability to relax and contract the muscles during urination, bowel movements, and sexual activity.
- Pain management — By targeting weaker or stiffer muscles and addressing painful spots, physical therapy can support in lessening or eradicating the pain you endure caused by pelvic floor dysfunction.
- Pre- and postpartum care — Pelvic floor therapy is frequently advised for expecting mothers and those who have just given birth. It can aid in preparing the pelvic floor for labor, reducing the chance of after childbirth pelvic floor dysfunction, and promoting healing from changes and trauma to the pelvic floor associated with giving birth.
- Sexual health improvement — By targeting particular muscles and dealing with any subsurface issues, therapy can improve sexual excitement, orgasm, and general sexual gratification.
- Education and self-management — Your personalized pelvic floor therapy plan will not solely consist of guided exercises. By offering information and guiding you in methods you can practice at home, your Axes physical therapist helps you engage actively in your own care and empowers you to sustain a way of life that fosters pelvic floor health.
At Axes Physical Therapy, we have a team of skilled pelvic floor therapists in Lakeshire, MO who can assist you in enhancing your pelvic well-being and function. Although some cases of pelvic floor dysfunction might necessitate surgical treatment, the majority of patients in Lakeshire, MO will find sustained and substantial improvement through minimally invasive physical therapy approaches.
What Lakeshire, MO Pelvic Floor Therapy Involves
Your initial pelvic floor therapy session in Lakeshire, MO will include an assessment of your current pelvic floor health. The remaining sessions will emphasize implementing your customized treatment plan.
Assessment and Evaluation
The journey of pelvic floor therapy begins with an initial evaluation. In this appointment, your Lakeshire, MO physical therapist will take the time to familiarize themselves with you and your symptoms. They will ask about your medical history, lifestyle, and goals. Additionally, they will conduct a physical examination and musculoskeletal assessment of your trunk and pelvis to evaluate your current condition. With your approval, a pre-pelvic floor therapy assessment in Lakeshire, MO may additionally involve an internal examination to further determine the strength level. Alternatively, biofeedback sensors can be utilized instead of an internal examination.
The assessment and evaluation conducted by your physical therapist will aid in determining the potential causes of your pelvic floor dysfunction and enable the creation of an optimal treatment plan to assist you in resuming the activities you enjoy.
Pelvic Floor Therapy Treatments and Exercises
Upon reviewing the findings from your assessment and evaluation, your pelvic floor therapist in Lakeshire, MO will develop a personalized treatment plan specific to your needs. This plan will incorporate specific goals, exercises, and expected results to guide your therapy.
Exercises for Pelvic Floor Therapy
Improving muscle strength and coordination is vital for any pelvic floor therapy plan. Exercises that may be included in your physical therapy treatment plan in Lakeshire, MO include:
- Kegel exercises to relax and tighten the pelvic floor muscles
- Diaphragmatic breathing to harmonize your breath with your pelvic floor motion
- Flexibility exercises to loosen tight muscles
- Resistance exercises to strengthen weak muscles
- Functional training to integrate new muscle patterns into daily activities
The exercises your Lakeshire, MO physical therapist prescribes for your pelvic floor dysfunction will vary based on your particular needs, but will all be aimed at rehabilitating your body and muscles for optimal health. Depending on your present health and level of pelvic floor dysfunction, exercises may initially start with you lying down on your back and evolve to seated and upright positions.
Manual Therapy
Manual therapy, such as instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization, is a hands-on technique that involves your physical therapist applying pressure or manipulating specific areas of your pelvis. It may include trigger point therapy (releasing tight knots in your muscles), nerve release (freeing up compressed nerves), joint mobilization (improving the mobility of your joints), deep tissue massage (relaxing tense muscles), or skin rolling (lifting and rolling the skin to reduce adhesions).
Biofeedback Training
Biofeedback training employs a device to measure and display the activity of your pelvic floor muscles on a screen. It help you understand how to regulate and align your pelvic floor muscles by giving you real-time feedback on how they engage and release. This feedback helps you better understand understand how to contract and relax the muscles properly, optimizing your muscle integration and control.
Behavioral and Lifestyle Modifications
Physical therapy isn’t just a list of exercises to cross off – it also provides you with entry to skilled, research-supported insights that improve your everyday life. Your physical therapist may suggest you with:
- Adjustments to your diet
- Liquid control
- Appropriate body alignment and safe lifting methods
- Tactics for managing constipation
- Additional recommendations for a healthier day-to-day life and lifestyle
Augmenting the exercises and techniques used in pelvic floor therapy with these adjustments fosters enhanced pelvic floor function and general well-being.
Other pelvic floor therapy techniques may include therapeutic ultrasound, electrical stimulation, vaginal dilators, weighted cones, medications, and additional alternatives.
Axes Physical Therapy’s Approach to Pelvic Floor Therapy in Lakeshire, MO
At Axes Physical Therapy, we firmly believe in delivering individualized and empathetic treatment to our patients. Owned and operated by a devoted physical therapist in Lakeshire, MO, our practice is focused on the client and getting favorable patient results. We understand that pelvic floor dysfunction can pose as a delicate and demanding issue. That’s why we approach every patient with the highest respect, compassion, and personalized attention.
We also subscribe to the belief in delivering evidence-based and comprehensive care to our patients. We make use of up-to-date research and cutting-edge technology to inform our treatment plans and methodologies. In addition, we offer a range of other physical therapy services that can supplement your pelvic floor therapy, including:
- Orthopedic rehab
- Sports physical therapy
- Neurological physical therapy
- Geriatric physical therapy
- Pre- or post-surgery rehab
If you are interested in trying pelvic floor therapy in Lakeshire, MO, trust in Axes. We have several convenient physical therapy locations in the Lakeshire, MO area, all committed to achieving your optimal pelvic health.
Call Axes Physical Therapy for Your Lakeshire, MO Pelvic Floor Therapy Today
Don’t let pelvic floor dysfunction to keep you from being the best version of yourself. At Axes, our dedicated physio and occupational therapists in Lakeshire, MO have a singular mission: returning you to the activities you value the most. Whether pelvic floor dysfunction is preventing your participation in your favorite sport or making it demanding to get through your day, we will personalize our physical therapy treatment plan specifically to you and your goals. Request an appointment through our website or reach out to the most convenient location to you to start your recovery with Axes Physical Therapy in Lakeshire, MO today.
