Should I Still Try Pelvic Floor Therapy If I Don't Have Urine Leakage? 

Your pelvic floor muscles do a lot of work to support you and your health and wellness, but you might not know much about them. The 26 muscles in your pelvic floor have to work together to support your internal organs, including your bladder. Without strong, well-coordinated pelvic floor muscles, you might experience urinary incontinence, sexual dysfunction, pelvic organ prolapse, or pelvic or spinal instability.

At Advanced Urogynecology of Maitland, Florida, Dr. Kristin M. Jackson provides pelvic floor therapy to support, strengthen, and retrain your pelvic floor muscles. Many patients seek out this type of treatment due to embarrassing urine leakage, but there are other reasons why pelvic floor therapy might be right for you. In this blog, Dr. Jackson discusses the different reasons why you might seek pelvic floor muscle therapy.

How pelvic floor therapy benefits your health

Pelvic floor therapy to fully restore this part of your body is a type of physical therapy, but it has some unique aspects that you might not expect. Here’s what you need to know.

Dr. Jackson reviews your medical history and examines you to understand your condition better. She makes sure that you’re comfortable with your care and fully understand your treatment. She may examine your spine, hips, pelvic bone, and internal muscles.

Your treatment sessions could include targeted exercises or stretches, manual therapy, and even biofeedback and electrical stimulation therapies. Dr. Jackson may use a sensor positioned in your vagina to stimulate your pelvic floor muscles, or may instruct you on how to perform Kegel exercises.

The goals of your treatment are highly customized, based on whether you need to strengthen, relax, or coordinate your pelvic floor muscles. Treatment improves your core strength, your internal coordination, and your sexual function. You receive treatments in-office, and also continue your exercises at home.

Risk factors for needing pelvic floor therapy

Even if you don’t have any urinary symptoms or urine leakage concerns, some risk factors should make you consider pelvic floor therapy more seriously. Most relate to types of pressure or stress that may affect your pelvic region.

Pregnancy and vaginal delivery are major risk factors for pelvic floor issues. The risk only goes up with multiple pregnancies or births. Both being pregnant and giving birth vaginally stress and dislocate your pelvic floor muscles, which may be weakened, incorrectly positioned, or uncoordinated as a result.

You also stress your pelvic area regularly if you have chronic constipation, a chronic cough, or a higher body weight. These factors may all indicate that you could benefit from pelvic floor treatment.

Your symptoms also guide the type of care you should seek. If there’s an underlying issue with your pelvic muscles, you may suffer from pelvic pain or sexual dysfunction. These aren’t everyday problems you should learn to live with, but issues that often improve with pelvic floor therapy. Left untreated, pelvic floor muscle dysfunction can create issues with your urinary and excretory capabilities, and also increases your risk of organ prolapse.

If you’re still wondering if pelvic floor therapy is right for you, contact Dr. Jackson at Advanced Urogynecology and schedule your confidential consultation appointment. Call now, or book with our online tool today.