What Is Pelvic Floor Physiotherapy?
Pelvic floor physiotherapy is a specialized area of physiotherapy that deals with treating muscles of the pelvic floor. This involves assessment/treatment of the muscles internally and externally.
Examples Of The Conditions Treated by a Trained Pelvic Floor Physiotherapist Are:
- Diastasis Recti
- Pelvic Organ Prolapse
- Urinary Incontinence
- Prenatal and postnatal pelvic pain
Yoga Mamas has a team of specially trained pelvic floor physiotherapists that can work with you to prepare the pelvic floor for labour and delivery and also to rehabilitate these muscles following birth. Each appointment takes place in a private room in our wellness centre. Your first appointment involves both an initial assessment and treatment and is 60 mins in length. During this time our pelvic floor physiotherapist will discuss your pelvic floor health, what your goals are, and then put together a treatment plan that works for you. There will be plenty of time for you to ask questions. Sometimes pregnant mamas or new mamas only need to come in for an initial assessment and treatment, some times follow up treatments are required. Each follow up treatment is 30 mins in length.
I’m pregnant, when should I see a Physiotherapist?
Prenatal pelvic floor physiotherapy focuses on preparing the pelvic floor for delivery of the baby while preventing or limiting the damage. We recommend mamas in pregnancy come for their initial assessment and treatment after 12 weeks of pregnancy.
Prior to delivery of the baby you can imagine that the weight placed on the pelvic floor continues to increase through the pregnancy. Our trained pelvic floor physiotherapist can help you strengthen the pelvic floor to prevent common issues during pregnancy which can include:
- Urinary incontinence
- Low back pain
- Increased pelvic pressure and more.
As the end of your pregnancy approaches our physiotherapist will begin to bring the focus to stretching of the pelvic floor muscles by working on perineal massage. She will also provide education on optimal labour and delivery positions, hands on maneuvers to help alleviate discomfort during labour and also how to push when baby is ready to arrive.
I just had my baby, when should I see a Physiotherapist?
6 weeks postpartum most women are given the “all clear” signal from their doctor to resume regular activities. However, without proper rehabilitation of the muscles, new mamas can have trouble getting back to their usual routines.
Our pelvic floor physiotherapist will work with you to strengthen your pelvic floor and guide you back to regular activities and exercise. They will also look for a diastasis (separation of the abdominal muscles) and help restore the core. Finally, a very common issue postpartum is pain with intercourse. This often occurs as a result of scar tissue and hypersensitivity of the muscles following tearing and/or stretching. Our specially trained pelvic floor physiotherapist will help soften the scar tissue and desensitize any hypersensitive areas to help resume pain-free intercourse.
Have more questions? A member of our Front Desk Team would be happy to assist you. Please contact us at [email protected] or 416 406 0116.
