By Elizabeth Akincilar, MPT, Cofounder, PHRC Merrimack In May 2015 a Delaware jury ordered Boston Scientific, a medical device company, to pay a woman $100 million for pain complications following vaginal mesh placement for treatment of pelvic organ prolapse. A few months prior to that a Texas woman was awarded $73 million for similar complications. Some think that …
What is GYROTONIC®?
What is GYROTONIC®? When I first heard a colleague talk about gyrotonic about 4 years ago, I was like “GYRO WHAT? To me it sounded like some form of geriatric exercise, so I asked her more about this type of exercise and she gave me the low down. ‘Gyro’ in greek actually means spiral or circle, and tonic …
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 …
Postpartum Pelvic Pain: Be Like Sarah and Get PT 1st
In mid-April, Fox News Health wrote an article on why postpartum moms need physical and occupational therapy. (To see the article click here.) As pointed out in the article, France, Netherlands, and Australia automatically provide postpartum moms with 6-12 pelvic physical and occupational therapy treatments. Meanwhile, here in the US postpartum moms are rarely told by their OB/GYNs to …
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 …
Slippery When Wet: Is your lubricant causing pelvic pain, infections, or fertility problems?
Lube is great! It adds moisture and decreases friction, but how do you pick from the multitude of different personal lubes on the market? Which one is the safest? Goop recently asked the same questions in response to watching an episode of Grace and Frankie in which Frankie makes her own lube.
Physical and Occupational Therapy for Male Pelvic Pain: Don’t Let the Penis Come Between Us
By Stephanie Prendergast, MPT, Cofounder, PHRC Los Angeles The Situation Room: Why do men have to see Women’s Health Physical and Occupational Therapistss? The facts: 15% of adult men worldwide suffer from pelvic pain. 1 8.2% of men will experience prostatitis-like symptoms at some point in their lives, and greater than 90% of those men will …
Scrotal Recall: A Case of Male Pelvic Pain
By Melinda Fontaine The physical and occupational therapistss at PHRC work as a team to help each other figure out the most efficient ways to help our patients. One way we share information is through weekly case studies, where one of our physical and occupational therapistss describes a patient’s case, why they chose to evaluate the structures they did, how …
Hormones: Your Body’s Frenemies
Hormones drive me crazy. As a woman, my biological clock seems to be more like an overactive alarm clock lately. For example, on a certain day I may see a baby and feel an intense urge to procreate. It is as if my uterus wants nothing more than for me to have 18 babies right now and then star in …
How Physical Therapy Supports Anal Cancer Treatment
At PHRC we treat a wide variety of patient populations. One population that we’re beginning to see more often is patients undergoing treatment for anal cancer. Recent research has shown that the incidence of anal cancer, which is linked to the human papillomavirus (HPV), is on the rise, especially among men and women under the age of 45. Although we’re …
Male Pelvic Pain Explained: Steve’s Success Story
By Elizabeth Akincilar-Rummer I am happy to say that in March we celebrated our one year anniversary in our Boston area office!! It has been a crazy year, but I’ve truly enjoyed getting to know new colleagues and being another resource for the many people suffering from pelvic pain in New England. During the past year there has been …
Sit yo’ a** down! The importance of sitting on the toilet
Sitting on the toilet!! Actually sitting, skin to porcelain. No more hovering! Even in public restrooms. I know, it’s going to be a tough paradigm shift since this issue is ubiquitous; one study, done in the UK, surveyed 528 women at a gynecology clinic and found that 85% reported that they crouched over public toilets while …
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 …
Treatment Solutions for Endometriosis
By Stephanie Prendergast, MPT, Cofounder, PHRC Los Angeles Did you know that severe menstrual pain is not normal? If you experience severe pain during your period it is possible you are suffering from a very underdiagnosed disease called Endometriosis. Endometrial tissue lines the uterus. In response to hormonal influences, the endometrium of a healthy uterus thickens and then sheds …
What’s The Best Position for Giving Birth?
Some things about childbirth are easy to plan: where to deliver, at a hospital or at home; who to have by our side, an obstetrician or a midwife; what to call the new baby once he or she is born. However, there are plenty of complications that we can’t predict, such as perineal tears, pelvic organ prolapse, onset of …
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 …
Understanding Breech Babies
This week, our guest writer and award winning prenatal chiropractor Dr. Elliot Berlin, takes us through a hot button topic: breeched babies. By Elliot Berlin | DC Early in pregnancy, your baby has plenty of room to move, as you’re probably well aware. My patients often share that it’s not unusual for them to feel a sharp elbow jabbing …
“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 …