Pelvic Floor Health

At Therapy Solutions, we like to tackle the issues that most people are afraid to even talk about with their friends, let alone their medical providers. This includes, but not limited too, the pelvic floor. Before we talk about how our staff can help you with pelvic floor dysfunction, let’s first talk about anatomy.

The pelvic girdle is formed by multiple bones: the hip bones (ilium, ischium, and pubis), the sacrum, the pubic symphysis, and the coccyx. These bones are connected by 72 muscles and 3 ligaments creating a complex system. The pelvic girdle is located in the center of your body and acts as a force transfer between the upper and lower halves. In essence, everything is connected from head to toe due to the pelvic girdle.

At the bottom of the pelvic girdle, there are a group of muscles called the pelvic floor. There are three layers to the pelvic floor:

  • Superficial perineal layer
    • Bulbocavernosus
    • Ischiocavernosus
    • Superficial transverse perineal
    • External anal sphincter
    • This layer controls bowel, bladder, and sexual function
  • Deep urogenital diaphragm layer
    • Compressor urethra
    • Uterovaginal sphincter
    • Deep transverse perineal
    • This layer controls bladder function
  • Pelvic diaphragm
    • Levator ani
    • Coccygeous
    • Piriformis
    • Obturator internus
    • This layer supports internal organs and attaches to other hip structures

Since there is so much going on in this area, dysfunction can occur that affects your everyday life. This dysfunction is not gender or age specific; meaning this can happen to anyone. Symptoms that can be addressed by assessing and treating the pelvic floor include, but not limited too:

  • General pain inside the pelvic floor that can also radiate into the hips, low back, inner thighs, and abdomen
  • Urinary and/or fecal incontinence
  • Pelvic organ prolapse
  • Pain with intercourse
  • Constipation
  • Incomplete emptying of urine and stool
  • Prenatal and postpartum specific issues
  • Impotence
  • Swelling

Having symptoms that are listed above can bring on feelings of shame, embarrassment, and guilt, therefore, we have been trained how to navigate this process with you. At Therapy Solutions, we believe in informed consent which gives you the keys to be the driver of your own personalized care.

*All pictures used with permission and is from https://www.bartleby.com/107/