More female patients seeking care for pelvic floor problems

North Little Rock, Arkansas – A specialist treatment for issues pertaining to the pelvic floor is pelvic floor therapy. It’s a collection of muscles that support vital body processes and stabilize your core.

“Its responsibility is for bowel and bladder function and sexual function, but it’s also a primary part of your core,” said Erin Musgrave, who specializes in women’s health at Baptist Health Therapy Center in North Little Rock.

A pelvic floor issue affects around one in four women, according to the National Institutes of Health. Many have issues for the first time both during and after pregnancy and labor.

Incontinence, activity restriction, and pelvic pain can all be caused by weak pelvic muscles.

“You know women are so often told, ‘hey…you’ve had a baby. It’s so normal to leak’,” said Musgraves. “It’s very common, but it’s not normal and that can be taken care of.”

For over three months, Kiura Burt has been undergoing pelvic floor physical therapy. She has had excruciating hip and back pain and is expecting her second kid.

“There were days I would go home and just start crying because of how bad the pain was, and I was like…’I can’t do the whole pregnancy like this. There’s no way I’m going to be able to make it’,” Burt said.

Correct technique is crucial, according to Musgrave.

“We started out working on let’s get that back pain resolved, so we’ve been able to work through that and work through the hip pain,” she said. “You know, work on postures and positions and different techniques for her day to day right now.”

For Burt, things are getting better and seem more promising.

“We’ll do pelvic floor exercises where she’s actually teaching me how to contract and relax during those contractions and bear down when it’s actually time to give birth,” she said. “So, now I feel like I can actually go forward with the pregnancy.”

Postpartum problems will also benefit from all of this.

Physical therapists are eager to spread the word about this little-known treatment, which has already helped countless women live better lives.

“There’s so much that we can address and so much that we can do to help,” Musgrave said. “We want to be there for you. We don’t want you to suffer.”

See the pamphlet below for more details about pelvic floor treatment, including what to expect on your first session.