Pelvic Floor and Life

Learn about the effects that menstruation, pregnancy, sports, sex, and more have on your pelvic floor and how to avoid any future dysfunctions.

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How to talk to your partner about your Prolapse

Some women are completely unaware of their prolapse and/or their prolapse poses no problems when it comes to being intimate. In contrast, others with POP (Pelvic organ prolapse) can experience a significant impact on intimate relationships with a partner or potential partner...

Pelvic Floor and Posture

What does the pelvic floor have to do with posture? Well it may sound strange, but a lot! The pelvic floor (muscles and fascia) span the bottom of your pelvis, acting like a hammock to hold up the pelvic organs in place. Another way to imagine the pelvic floor is the base of a cylinder or can - with the lid of the can being the diaphragm, and the walls being the...

Pelvic Floor and Age: What you need to know

Just because you may be young and healthy now, doesn't mean that you're exempt from the risk factors. There are major disorders that can result from not taking care of your pelvic floor. Like so many other health issues, they're often only talked about after they've become a problem. How many doctors are talking about preventative care and being proactive? Not enough that's for sure...

Menopause and Your Pelvic Floor

Menopause is defined as the last menstrual period a woman has, which is confirmed after there has been 12 months without any period (or when ovaries are removed in surgery). In those who have not had surgery or damage to their ovaries, Menopause usually occurs between the ages of 40 and 58 years. Perimenopause is the transition time leading up...

Pelvic Floor and Your Sex Life

Sexual wellbeing is an important aspect of quality of life. As the pelvic floor muscles support the vagina and pelvic organs, evidence has found that increased strength and healthy tone of pelvic floor muscles is associated with improved sexual function. If the pelvic floor muscles have lower tone, or decreased strength, there can be a sense of decreased pleasure and...

Pelvic Floor and Sports

When we walk, run, jump or play sports, our pelvic floor is working to support our pelvic organs. The muscles and fascia of the pelvic floor sit like a hammock at the base of our pelvis that holds our organs in place. The pelvic floor counters the forces of gravity and abdominal pressure created when we exercise. Having a strong and healthy pelvic floor provides...

Pelvic Floor and Your Sex Life During Pregnancy

The hormonal changes that occur during pregnancy have an effect on all the tissues in your body, including muscles and ligaments. This means that the muscles and connective tissues that need to work well for good pelvic floor function are affected, and can become more relaxed. This is a normal and important change during pregnancy, as it acts...

Taking care of your pelvic floor postpartum

Life with a newborn can be a wonderful, stressful, exciting, and sleepless time! On top of the demands of new parenthood, Mothers need to also consider their own health and recovery, especially of the pelvic floor...

Pelvic Floor, Sports, & Pregnancy

Exercise generally has great benefits for both mother and baby during pregnancy, but should always be done under the advice of your obstetrician and medical team, as some high-risk pregnancy conditions mean that exercise isn’t safe and needs to be avoided. For uncomplicated pregnancies, regular exercise is important for the health of mother and baby...

Pelvic Floor and Menstruation

Did you know hormonal changes during the menstrual cycle can affect your pelvic floor muscles? Your menstrual bleed or period occurs as a result of a drop in hormones estrogen and progesterone at the end of the menstrual cycle. These hormones have a large effect on your reproductive system during your cycle...

Pelvic Floor Exercises for Postpartum Recovery

One of the most beautiful, complex, miraculous journeys of a woman’s or birthing person’s life can be pregnancy. Over 9 months, our bodies experience so many amazing changes. In addition to our bellies growing, our hearts expand forever to welcome our new babies...

How to Treat Stress Incontinence

Stress incontinence, or leaking urine with activities such as laughing, coughing, or sneezing, affects so many women. Nearly 1 in 3 in the US report leaking urine (Cameron & Haraway, 2011). However, just because it’s so common and so many women experience it, it should not be considered “normal” or something you have to live with...

Treat an Overactive Bladder

Being diagnosed with “overactive bladder” is common, and it’s a condition that affects millions of women worldwide. Even though this is usually thought of to only affect older women, it can also be quite prevalent in younger women also! Studies show that 9-43% (1) of women have OAB symptoms...

Prevent Pelvic Floor Disorders

Enhance your Intimate Wellbeing

It's obvious that the way we feel about ourselves, our partners, and our intimate relationships have a profound impact on our moods. The bonds we create with those around us are so important and play such a big role in our lives, that in fact one study (that lasted over 40 years!) showed that intimacy and how we feel about being intimate is a key player for overall general health...

Prevent and Reduce Prolapse

Our pelvic organs are supported in our pelvic bowl by fascia, connective tissue, muscles, and ligaments. When those structures lose some of their support, due to many factors (birth and pregnancy can be one), the organs may sit a bit lower in the pelvic bowl and push on the walls of the vagina...

5 things you need to know to understand how bladder control works

Bladder control is something we often overlook until we reach a point where we’re leaking urine when we laugh or sneeze. There are several underlying reasons why we often lose bladder control, with a weak pelvic floor being the biggest reason. A few reasons contributing to weakened pelvic floor function, include: Holding on to your...

10 signs you might have a prolapse

Just as our skin is vulnerable to the effects of gravity and time, so are the pelvic organs and the structures that support them. 'Pelvic organ prolapse' is the all-encompassing term for the descent of one of the pelvic organs from their normal positions. This happens when the muscles and tissues that hold all these organs in their proper...

I leak when I laugh or cough: is it normal?

First things first, if you’re leaking when you cough or sneeze or jump, whatever it may be, it’s important to know that you’re not alone! Approximately 17% of women will experience some form of incontinence in their life. But while this may be common, leaking urine while coughing or laughing is often a source of embarrassment. In some instances, it may...

7 ways to prevent prolapse

As the saying goes, "prevention is the best medicine." Although there is no definite way to prevent uterine prolapse, there are certainly ways to lower the risk. Firstly, uterine prolapse is rare in people who do not bear children but can occur if a person is overweight or has a condition that strains the pelvic floor, such as a chronic cough or constipation. Among those who give birth...

What are the symptoms of prolapse and how to treat it?

Pelvic organ prolapse is often categorized as a condition affecting older people. However, due to the variable factors that contribute to developing prolapse, it can be noted among younger people as well. Based on symptoms reported, pelvic organ prolapse has a prevalence of about 3 to 6%. This prevalence increases drastically, to about 50%...

How to talk to your children about pelvic floor health

When we think about pelvic health, we often think of pregnancy and post-natal pelvic floor care. But pelvic health is important for all people, at all life stages - even children! In early life, children’s pelvic floor dysfunction can present with incontinence, bed-wetting, constipation or as a result of trauma. In adolescence, pain or dysfunction can occur in athletes...

How to talk to friends about incontinence

Urinary Tract Infections and the Pelvic Floor

Urinary Tract Infections (UTI) are relatively frequent, but pinpointing an exact cause is often difficult. Since UTIs are commonplace, we may often observe ourselves overlooking the insidious signs indicating a more serious underlying cause, such as pelvic floor dysfunction. A urinary tract infection (UTI) is an infection to any part of the urinary system. This can include...