Time to practice what I preach!
A few weeks ago we invited Tanya Goodrich, PT, DPT, founder and owner of Healthy Pelvis Physical Therapy to speak to our mamas during a weekly playgroup (Wednesdays at 10:30AM at the Cuesta Park playground). The Health Pelvis PT is a specialty clinic with locations in Belmont and Los Altos (I visited this one), dedicated to treating women's health and pelvic floor issues
Tanya talked to us about incontinence, ab seperation (DRA), and other postpartum issues that many women experience after pregnancy that often go untreated for years.
So on Friday I FINALLY did it!
I went and saw Tanya. Her office has lots of parking and is a really nice setting. She made me feel safe and comfortable the entire time. My first appointment was an hour and I left with a strong sense of understanding what's going on, knowing exactly how to solve these issues with a short list of PT "homework", and a 30 minute follow up appointment in a few weeks.
Am I glad I went? Absolutely! Do I wish I had gone years ago? So much!!
Here are the basic issues that Tanya and the Healthy Pelvis can help you with:
Urinary issues
Stress incontinence: Leaking with impact. Stress incontinence may occur from weakened pelvic muscles that support the bladder.
Urinary urgency: A sudden, compelling urge to urinate even when the bladder is not full. Urinary urgency can caused by overly tight pelvic muscles.
Urinary hesitancy: Difficulty starting the flow of urine. Also typically due to overly tight pelvic muscles.
Bowel incontinence: Difficulty controlling gas and/or bowel movements, often the result of injury during the birthing process. Manual therapy together with neuromuscular re-education can be highly effective.
Diastasis Recti: The separation of the linea alba, which connect the two sides of the abdominal muscles. Physical therapy can be highly effective in non-severe cases.
Perineal pain: Pain in the area between vagina and rectum, can last post childbirth even after wounds have healed. Perineal pain can be the result of a tear, episiotomy, or tight muscles in the region. The perineum plays an essential function during vaginal childbirth, making it prone to injury.
Pain with intercourse: Many women experience pain during sex (dyspareunia) for months or even years after childbirth. This is typically caused by muscle injury during the birthing process and can be effectively treated with physical therapy intervention.
Pubic symphysis, or pubic pain: The pubic bones can become misaligned during pregnancy or childbirth. Sometimes women will even hear a pop when the pubis comes out of alignment (pubic symphysis diastasis), which can create pain with sitting, standing, and other functional movement, and can be very debilitating. PT helps align the bones/joints and create dynamic stability with muscle support.
Pelvic organ prolapse (POP): Pelvic organ prolapse (POP) can occur when the muscles and ligaments supporting a woman's pelvic organs weaken, and the pelvic organs slip out of place (prolapse). This doesn’t usually happen immediately after childbirth but symptoms can arise down the road.
Pelvic floor physical therapy can help with all of the above pre/post partum pelvic symptoms. For issues related to weak muscles (e.g., stress incontinence, prolapse), PTs can provide neuromuscular rehabilitation, which involves re-teaching your vaginal muscles to properly contract and relax on command. For overly tight pelvic floor muscles, physical therapists can perform manual therapy to release trigger points and break up any impairments. With Healthy Pelvis PT, you will get hands-on care by a doctor of physical therapy without the use of an assistant or machines, providing you with highest quality of care.
Want to learn more? Find more info about Tanya and the Healthy Pelvis at https://tanyagoodrich.com or on Instagram.