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A Polyvagal Map to Pelvic Health

In Pelvic Health by pelv_admin5 Comments

By Maryssa Steffen, DPT, PHRC Berkeley “It doesn’t matter how much you drive around, you will never get to where you want to go if you don’t have the right map.” – Stanley Rosenberg During this unprecedented time to slow down, shelter at home, and physical distance, I have taken the opportunity to dive deeper into embodied practices. In other …

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Movement for the Movement: Pelvic Floor Release and Fundraising

In Pelvic Health by pelv_adminLeave a Comment

By Karah Charettte, DPT, PHRC Berkeley On Saturday July 25th 2020 at 11:00 am PST, the Pelvic Health and Rehabilitation Center is hosting a virtual fundraiser via Zoom combining two things we care deeply about: pelvic health and racial justice.  Doctor of Physical Therapy and yoga instructor Karah Charette of PHRC Berkeley will be teaching a 60 minute movement workshop entitled …

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No-Equipment Workout for a Happy Pelvis and Strong Core

In Pelvic Health by pelv_admin2 Comments

By Courtney Edgecomb, DPT, PHRC Los Angeles Even before gyms and group fitness classes closed for COVID-19, I was a big fan of at-home workouts. Don’t get me wrong, I love the community, atmosphere, and variety of equipment available from gyms and classes, but the price can get high and I run like the wolves to avoid traffic or parking …

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Pregnancy Hormones 101

In Pregnancy and Postpartum Pelvic Health by pelv_admin4 Comments

Pregnancy is wild. Someone is walking around growing a human being. It blows my mind every time I see a pregnant person and here at The Pelvic Health & Rehabilitation Center, we get to see a lot of pregnant people!  Now a lot of things happen during pregnancy, and hormones are a big key player in the process. You may …

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Thinking Beyond the Dilators: How Vicki Beat Vaginismus

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By Morgan Conner, DPT, PHRC Los Gatos Sadly, the starting point of this success story is not novel to me as a pelvic floor physical therapist or for many who struggle with primary vaginismus. However, this story has a happy ending (pun very much intended!) as well as an interesting middle. When Vicki (not her real name) married her husband …

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Summary from IPPS 2019: Chronic Pain in Endometriosis

In Endometriosis by pelv_admin2 Comments

By: Morgan Conner, DPT, PHRC Los Gatos In October I had the pleasure of attending the International Pelvic Pain Society’s Scientific Meeting with a number of my colleagues here at PHRC. On the second day of the main conference, Catherine Allaire MDCM, FRCSC gave the James E. Carter keynote lecture titled Endometriosis: Towards Prevention of Chronic Pain. There were two …

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Why Do We Dance? For Pelvic Health!

In Pelvic Health by pelv_admin6 Comments

By Maryssa Steffen, DPT, PHRC Berkeley I am a physical therapist, but my other life is a dancer. I have danced for almost 33 years and I have no doubt that it fully connects me to myself and strengthens my empathy towards others. After working with patients and delving into the research that supports dance therapy, I wanted to share …

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Enjoying Sex While Healing From Pelvic Pain

In Female Pelvic Pain by pelv_admin13 Comments

This week, long-time colleague Lorraine Faehnedrich guest blogs for PHRC. Lorraine’s bio and information on her courses can be found at the end of the post. On April 2 Lorraine will be interviewing our own Katie Hunter about how pelvic floor physical therapy can help women recover from painful sex. Stay tuned to our social media for more details! From …

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Battle of The Sexes: Do Gender and Sex influence Pain?

In Pelvic Pain by pelv_admin3 Comments

At PHRC, our therapists treat both men and women with pelvic pain conditions. Many of my patients are surprised to hear that men and women have almost the same pelvic floor muscles (with some minor variations).   If you were to ask me if I thought there was a big difference between treating women with pelvic pain vs men with …

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IPPS 2019: Sexual Health and Sexual Pain Across Cultures

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By: Nina Chou This year’s IPPS meeting was held in Toronto, Canada, which is one of the most diverse cities in North America. In fact, the official motto of the city is “Diversity is our Strength.” Today, I want to recap a lecture on the impact of culture on sexuality by Beatrice “Bean” Robinson, PhD. Dr. Robinson is a licensed …

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PHRC is BUSY this fall!

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A lot is going on this quarter and frankly, every quarter here at PHRC. Here is what you need to know! New faces! PHRC welcomes administrative assistant Emily Schwerdtfeger to Westlake Village and pelvic floor physical therapist Karah Charette to Walnut Creek and Berkeley. Jandra Mueller, pelvic floor specialist will also rejoin the team. New office! Speaking of Jandra, on …

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How to Tackle Pelvic Pain, Joseph’s Success Story

In Male Pelvic Pain by pelv_admin1 Comment

As physical therapists, we often refer to our patients’ last day with us as Graduation Day. I always enjoy Graduation Day because it means the patient has accomplished their goals; their symptoms have reduced, they are able to function without limitations, and they are leaving as happier, healthier individuals. To put it plainly, they don’t need me anymore. It is …

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Foam Rolling for Pelvic Pain Relief

In Pelvic Pain by pelv_admin3 Comments

By: Courtney Edgecomb, DPT, PHRC Los Angeles The very first time I came across a foam roller was in high school when I went to physical therapy for back pain. At that time, the main product was simply a long, circular white piece of soft foam. It wasn’t special but it certainly helped me continue playing soccer without pain. Fast …

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How Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy Helped Me Recover From Vaginismus

In Female Pelvic Pain, Vaginismus by pelv_adminLeave a Comment

Last month, Sigourney shared Martha’s Success Story, told from her perspective as Martha’s pelvic floor physical therapist. This week, Martha was kid enough to share her experience, in her own words. We hope her story provides hope for the many, many other women suffering from primary vaginismus or other causes of painful sex. We are sharing many success stories this …

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Young Men Get Pelvic Floor Dysfunction. Here’s How Chris Recovered with Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy!

In Male Interstitial Cystitis / Nonbacterial Chronic Prostatitis / Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome, Male Pelvic Pain by pelv_admin3 Comments

By: Rachel Daof, DPT   People often ask me what symptoms men present with that land them in pelvic floor physical therapy.  The truth is, men suffer from similar issues as women when it involves their pelvic floor: bowel, bladder, sexual dysfunction, and/or pain in the pelvic region. Furthermore, it’s not only the elder male population that can experience these …

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Michelle’s Postpartum Pelvic Health Struggles…and Success!

In Pregnancy and Postpartum Pelvic Health by pelv_adminLeave a Comment

By: Rachel Gelman, DPT Michelle is a 30 year old female referred by her gynecologist to us for pelvic floor physical therapy following the birth of her first child. Michelle had her son via vaginal delivery and she was roughly five months postpartum at the time of her evaluation with me.  She reports she had a second degree tear with …

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Why Does the Area Between My Balls and My Butt Hurt? Tyler’s Male Pelvic Pain Success Story

In Male Interstitial Cystitis / Nonbacterial Chronic Prostatitis / Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome, Male Pelvic Pain, Male Pudendal Neuralgia by pelv_admin5 Comments

When I first discussed sharing Tyler’s story on this blog, we talked about why men are not aware of pelvic floor PT. We talked about how most websites list  “chronic prostatitis” or “male pelvic pain syndrome” to define his symptoms. He shared with me what men are most likely typing into Google when looking for treatment for symptoms similar to …