Hemorrhoids. About 75% of us will have one at some point in our lives,1 and half of us will have had one before the age of 50.2 Surprised? It’s not the kind of thing we like to discuss with our friends – until you actually have one, that is. Then you find out your buddy has had one too. Americans …
Tech-ual Arousal: The Future of Technology and Sexual Health
We live in a different time. I remember when chat rooms and meeting people from the internet was the plot line for a Lifetime movie. Now, we get in cars driven by strangers and fall in love via sophisticated algorithms and profile pictures. What a time to be alive! It is pretty apparent that technology plays a huge role in …
Oh coccyx, my coccyx!
By Admin If you don’t know what or where your coccyx is, count yourself lucky. This little bone can make quite a ruckus when it’s not happy, often called coccydynia. The coccyx, or tailbone, is our little vestigial tail, after eons of evolution. It is often ignored and forgotten by most, but to me, it’s one of the …
Is your internal thermometer working correctly? Persisting pain and your thyroid
As a physical and occupational therapists specializing in pelvic floor disorders, specifically pelvic pain, I have noticed a strong correlation between chronic pain, the thyroid, and the endocrine system. I wanted to explore what hormonal imbalances can do to chronic pain. I won’t go into too much detail about persistent pain here, instead please refer to the blog post Pain …
Calling Bull*!@# on Science
By Elizabeth Akincilar-Rummer How many times have you heard a journalist say something like, “Researchers report a significant breakthrough…”, “Groundbreaking research shows… “, or “According to a new scientific study…”? The news constantly bombards us with “research” or “studies” to provoke an emotional response, whether it’s fear, excitement, or surprise. The point is, to catch your attention. Here …
The Blunt Truth About Medicinal Marijuana and Pelvic Pain
By Shannon Pacella, DPT, PHRC Lexington Medical marijuana. You’ve probably heard of it. You’ve maybe even used it. But what you might not know about is the tug-of-war going on between researchers and lawmakers, and how this impacts the ability of this stigmatized substance to be studied – potentially missing out on an alternative treatment option for a multitude …
Chew on This: Diet and Your Pelvic Floor
When I was younger, the phrase “You are what you eat,” totally confused me. Doughnuts are so delicious and sweet, therefore if I eat a half dozen of glazed old fashioned doesn’t that mean that I would also be sweet and highly desirable? Obviously, I now know that my logic as a kid was inaccurate, otherwise I would still be …
Ketamine May Offer Rapid Relief from Persistent Pelvic Pain
By Allison Wells, MD Chronic pelvic pain is at a difficult intersection of anatomical pain generators and mood disorders like depression and anxiety that are coincident with or caused by the pain itself. To effectively relieve chronic pelvic pain you need a treatment that addresses the pain and the mood disorder issues. Ketamine infusions do both. Ketamine …
Letter To The Senator about Medicare
Here at PHRC we are not Medicare providers, for good reasons; you may remember that PHRC published a blog post about them. Still, we receive calls almost daily from Medicare patients enquiring about treatment from us, and unfortunately we have to turn them down: the law says, oddly, that we cannot provide treatment to Medicare patients even if they are …
Pain as the Ultimate Protector
By Admin I recently attended a course with pain researcher and clinical neuroscientist, Lorimer Moseley. He, along with his colleague David Butler, have changed the face of pain science and helped many clinicians and patients understand how pain works. If you want to see Lorimer in action, and explain pain better than I ever could, check out his TED …
Meditation for Pelvic Pain Relief
Help!!! My pants are on FIRE!! Wait, what? Well, at least that’s what it feels like to a lot of people with pelvic pain. Because nerve pain can feel just like that – burning, tingling, like fire ants in your pants. In this post we are going to talk about how mediation can help. Why is this sensation so …
PHRC Pelvic Health Career Opportunity!
By: Stephanie Prendergast Physical and Occupational Therapists Wanted for PHRC Los Angeles! Do you want to become a leader in the field of pelvic floor physical and occupational therapy? Do you enjoy working with this patient population but are having a hard time finding mentorship? Do you want a collaborative supportive work environment vs being ‘alone on an …
MAY you rub? Yes, you may! Let’s Celebrate Masturbation Month
May is Masturbation Month! Now everyone knows that this is the time of year when the Masturbation Fairy delivers sex toys to all the good men and women of the world! It’s a time for giving to yourself instead of to others. A time for goodwill and cheer for your genitals. Well, maybe not, but the month of May has …
Exercises for Short /Tight Pelvic Floor Muscles
By Admin Disclaimer: I’m a PT and a Pilates instructor. Often, patients ask if Pilates is the answer for their pelvic floor dysfunction. You know that old saying, “Kegel-ing all day, keeps the urine at bay.” Well, unfortunately, this is not always true. At times Kegel-ing can make actually make your symptoms worse, be it urinary urgency, frequency, incontinence or …
Pelvic Myths: True or False?
By Melinda Fontaine Have you heard these common pelvic rumors? Can you guess which ones are true or false? As a pelvic floor physical and occupational therapists, I’ve heard quite a few old wives tales about the pelvis. Test your Pelvic IQ with these 16 true or false statements! T/F Drinking water will make me have to pee …
What is Get PT 1st?
By Stephanie Prendergast Last fall, I began seeing the logo you see above, appear in my Twitter feed and on Facebook. As a physical and occupational therapists, I was happy to see an organization committing to improving awareness about our field. It’s safe to say that most of the world has no idea what a pelvic floor physical and …
“How Hernias Can Cause Pelvic Pain”
This week, our guest writer Dr. Shirin Towfigh will discuss Inguinal Hernia’s and how they may be related to pelvic pain. Hi all. This is Dr. Shirin Towfigh. I am a Board Certified General Surgeon who specializes exclusively in all things hernia, with specialty in hernias among women and complications related to hernia repair. Inguinal hernias are a common …
What’s The ‘Right’ Way To Poop?
From NPR1 to Men’s Health 2, the right way to poop has become an increasingly hot topic for discussion. In fact “Put Your Constipation Woes Behind You,” is consistently our highest ranking blog every week. Oh, and if you haven’t seen the knight and unicorn bestowing the benefits of the squatty potty3, go watch it now! So, why is poop such …
The Role of Emotions in Relieving Pelvic Pain
This week guest blogger Lorraine Faehndrich talks about the role emotional awareness plays in the healing process. Here’s what she has to say: By Lorraine Faehndrich Persistent pelvic pain can, and often does, have an emotional component. The pelvis is a part of the body that for many reasons tends to hold emotion, and when that emotional component is addressed alongside …
Why Get PT 1st? Here are the facts
By Stephanie Prendergast Vaginal pain. Burning with urination. Post-ejaculatory pain. Constipation. Genital pain following bowel movements. Pelvic pain that prevents sitting, exercising, wearing pants and having pleasurable intercourse. When a person develops these symptoms, physical and occupational therapy is not the first avenue of treatment they turn to for help. In fact, physical and occupational therapistss are not even …
Taking a Closer Look at IPPS 2015
By Gabriella Chavarin As you may have noticed, IPPS is a pretty big deal around here. Every year, our PHRC physical and occupational therapistss attend the International Pelvic Pain Society’s annual scientific conference. Additionally, Stephanie Prendergast has been on the IPPS Board of Directors since 2003, and was the first physical and occupational therapists to serve as president in …