By Stephanie A. Prendergast, DPT, MPT, Cofounder, PHRC Los Angeles What is a pelvic floor spasm? It is the presence of contracted, painful muscles on palpation and elevated resting pressures by vaginal manometry. If the contraction is painful, this is usually described as a cramp. Pelvic floor myalgia (a symptom) may be present without a change in pelvic floor muscle …
Q&A Bowel Dysfunction
By Stephanie A. Prendergast, DPT, MPT, Cofounder, PHRC Los Angeles A few weeks ago we published a blog about How Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy Helps Bowel Dysfunction. In it we discussed how one might develop a bowel dysfunction, symptoms, associated diagnoses and how pelvic floor PT can help in recovery. This week, we asked our social media audience to submit …
Integrative Health and Nutrition: Michaels’ Success Story
By Jandra Mueller, DPT, MS, PHRC Encinitas Here is the story of a 21 year old male with many GI complaints and pelvic pain, who eagerly wanted to get back to normalcy and achieved that, although still ongoing, through the services offered at PHRC. We will refer to him as “Michael” so that his identity remains anonymous. Michael …
New Perspectives on Endo: Gut-Immune Link & IG Live w/ Dr. Orbuch
By Jandra Mueller, DPT, MS, PHRC Encinitas March is Endometriosis Awareness Month, AND National Nutrition Month – what a great time to talk about how optimal gut health and nutrition impacts endometriosis. Optimal gut health and nutrition play a crucial role in one’s endometriosis journey because having a healthy gut means improving our mental health, optimizing our immune system, …
Nutrition Awareness Month: Integrative Health & Nutrition Services
By Jandra Mueller, DPT, MS, PHRC Encinitas March is Nutrition Awareness Month and we’d love to share the services we offer here at PHRC and talk about why nutrition is so important, especially for those with pelvic health conditions. What is Integrative Health and Nutrition? In contrast to conventional medicine, which places emphasis on treating a disease, …
Q&A For Pelvic Pain/Tightness Causes
By Stephanie Prendergast, PHRC Cofounder, Los Angeles If you have been a long time follower of As the Pelvic Turns, then you might remember the Q&A we did years ago about Pelvic Floor Drops, Weak and Tight Muscles, Tilted Pelvis and More. As the years go by, new research, information and overall growth in the field occurs. With this, we …
EmBODYment
By Maryssa Steffen, DPT, PHRC Berkeley Have you ever noticed the relationship between your feelings and your bodily sensations? For example, have you ever noticed that gut-wrenching feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when you know something is wrong, or you just got bad news? Or your heart rate suddenly increases when you get scared or nervous? …
Treating the Whole Person: Trauma-Informed Care Part 2
By Jillian Giannini, DPT, PHRC Westlake Village Just like it was discussed in our previous post it is not within the scope of practice for a physical therapist to treat trauma; however, educating yourself on ways to implement trauma-informed care can help you to provide a safe and conducive environment for a patient’s path to healing. In a 2018 …
Treating the Whole Person: Trauma-Informed Care Part 1
By Jillian Giannini, DPT, PHRC Westlake Village Whether you are a clinician, a patient, or someone who wants to learn more about the concept of trauma, learning more about trauma can be beneficial for your life and for others that you encounter in your life. Trauma often plays a role in our lives, even if we are not fully aware …
Foreskin or No Skin? Let’s Talk About Circumcision
By Rachel Gelman In my previous post I talked about the anatomy of the male pelvic floor. The blog stirred up a lot of conversation among readers, with many requesting a part two. So here we are! This time, we’ll take a look at a small part of the male anatomy that comes with a large amount of controversy: The foreskin. …
The Ultimate Solution To Help Mothers Reconnect With Their Bodies And Rebuild Post-Baby Foundations
By Wendy Powell, Postpartum Exercise Expert, Founder + CEO of MuTu System This information relates to every woman who is having, has had, or will ever have a baby, who wants to regain full use and look of her beautiful pre-baby body (who doesn’t?). Whether she has just had a baby, has teenage children, or if she is about to give …
Off the Press! The Pink Pill and Other News
By Stephanie Prendergast It has been an eventful few weeks in pelvic health news! We’ve summarized the top stories and included our commentary. “Pelvic pain may be common among reproductive-age women, NIH study finds.” From the National Institute of Health Article summary: Pain reports were highest for women with endometriosis, however ⅓ of those without any pelvic condition also reported …
Pelvic Pain Explained: A Sneak Peak!
Earlier this year Liz and I completed our manuscript for our book, Pelvic Pain Explained. Writing it was a challenging process, to say the least. We are hopeful that this book will raise awareness about and help to demystify pelvic pain. By sharing our combined clinical experience we want to help people with pelvic pain and their providers …
8 Pregnancy Tips from a Pelvic Health Physical Therapist /Mom
By Melinda Fontaine, DPT, PHRC Walnut Creek I recall being eight months pregnant treating other pregnant women or new moms. I would always hear, “How are you still working full time on your feet?” I still think the most honest answer is, “Pure luck”. Every pregnancy is different, and there are a lot of things that are out of …
Dairy and Pelvic Pain
By guest blogger Jordan Hoffman Stephanie here: In the late summer and early fall of last year I began experiencing increasingly painful periods. I was bleeding very heavily, taking up to 12 Advil per day without relief, and was very concerned about what was happening in my reproductive tract. Our LA clinic opened in May and therefore I didn’t have a …
PHRC’s Boston Office is Opening March 16th!
We’re thrilled to announce that PHRC is opening its Boston-area clinic next month with patient care starting March 16th! Liz, who will be re-relocating to the East Coast, will be spearheading the running of the clinic, the exact location of which is 303 Wyman St., Ste. 369, Waltham, Massachusetts. The clinic is in the greater Boston area, west and slightly …
Our FAVE Pelvic Health Resources, Products!
By Gabriella Chavarin Our FAVE Pelvic Health Resources, Products! It’s that time of year when we all make “New Year’s resolutions.” If you’re anything like us, you’ve probably resolved to sleep longer, be more active, and eat healthier. But what about your pelvic health? One of the questions I’m asked most often at PHRC is: “Do you have any recommendations …
Pelvic Floor-Friendly Exercise, Diet Advice for the New Year
Like so many of you, my new year’s resolutions include exercising more and eating healthy. As I embarked on my plan for doing both, I got to wondering where my pelvic floor health fell into the mix. “Shouldn’t my exercise plan take my pelvic floor issues into consideration?” I wondered. I certainly didn’t want to start a fitness routine that would …