By Elizabeth Akincilar, MSPT, Cofounder, PHRC Merrimack Pelvic pain can significantly impact your quality of life, but there are steps you can take to decrease or minimize this discomfort. In this blog, we will discuss 10 tips that can help alleviate pelvic pain and promote overall pelvic health. Put a stool under your feet when having a bowel …
Clinical Manifestations of Endometriosis
By Jandra Mueller, DPT, MS, PHRC Encinitas Endometriosis is well known for its significant menstrual pain (dysmenorrhea), and often silent infertility. It has long been thought that this disease is a ‘women’s’ disease or menstrual disease allowing for a long history of hysterectomies and hormone suppression aimed at suppressing menstruation. Sampson’s theory of retrograde menstruation has been perpetuated …
An Unsettling Reality Exposed by “The Retrievals” Podcast
By PHRC Admin & Co-Author Cecilia Plaza, J.D Have you listened to The Retrievals podcast series? In a world where pain is subjective, women often find themselves marginalized, dismissed, and even ignored when it comes to their own experiences of pain. This issue has recently been brought to light through a thought-provoking podcast called “The Retrievals,” hosted by Susan …
Dermatomes: Let’s Get Into It
By Stephanie Prendergast, MPT, Cofounder, PHRC Los Angeles At PHRC we love anatomy! As physical therapists we have advanced training in the neuromuscular systems of our body. Knowing where things come from and where things go help make us expert diagnosticians and treatment providers! Here is insight into which nerve roots are responsible for sensation in our pelvis. As …
Understanding Chronic Pain: A Journey Through Unseen Struggles
By PHRC Admin In a world where we’re accustomed to physical discomfort being temporary, it’s hard to imagine what living with chronic pain feels like. It’s not just an ongoing ache or discomfort. It’s a complex, multifaceted experience that can seep into every aspect of life, making even the simplest tasks daunting. Explaining chronic pain to someone who hasn’t experienced …
2024: The Year of the (Pelvic Floor) Dragon
By PHRC Admin Welcome 2024, goodbye 2023! It’s been another year full of changes for Pelvic Health and Rehabilitation Center. With the start of the new year, we would like to acknowledge all of the changes that have occurred both virtually and in person. Last year….. PHRC Walnut Creek moved into a bigger, better space! PHRC Ohio opened …
Demystifying Pelvic Floor Disorders
By PHRC Admin Pelvic floor disorders are a group of medical conditions that affect millions worldwide. Despite their prevalence, these disorders often remain undiagnosed and untreated due to lack of awareness and social stigma. In this blog post, we will summarize key information from an article by Today’s Woman that our cofounder, Stephanie Prendergast was interviewed for. We …
Success Story: Exploring the Clinical Presentation of CPPS
By Lauren Rogne, PT, DPT, PHRC San Francisco The case of the mysterious pelvic pain – Exploring the clinical presentation of Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome (CPPS) Background Ben is a 35 year old with sudden onset of urinary tract-like infection symptoms, including urinary frequency, urgency, pain and burning. He visited his doctor, and his urinalysis came back negative …
Triumph Through Telehealth: Jim’s Journey Overcoming Chronic Prostatitis
By Melissa Patrick, PT, DPT, RYT , PHRC Lexington For the estimated 15% of men worldwide who suffer from pelvic pain, finding the right providers to properly diagnose and treat their pain can be a daunting task, especially when seeking local options in their community. As a result, some patients end up traveling long distances to receive care. Fortunately, …
Updated 2023 Virtual Services
By PHRC Admin Team Did you know that the Pelvic Health and Rehabilitation Center offers a variety of virtual health services? Often people do not understand their symptoms until they stumble upon our website, blog, or social media channels. Some people have a diagnosis but they do not have a pelvic floor physical therapist locally to help them. …
National Breast Cancer Month: Raising Awareness
By PHRC Admin Team October is National Breast Cancer Month, a time to raise awareness about this deadly disease that affects millions of people across the globe. Approximately one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime, making it the most common form of cancer among women in the United States . This month …
Why Everyone In Menopause Deserves Pelvic Floor PT
By Stephanie A. Prendergast, MPT, Cofounder, PHRC Los Angeles Our muscles are hormonally sensitive structures and weaken over time as we experience hormonal decline. In addition, the prevalence of pelvic floor dysfunction rises and the combination of these two scenarios can cause people a fair amount of grief. A recent study showed 95.3% of people with lumbopelvic pain also had …
Symptoms of PFD & the Genitourinary Syndrome of Menopause
By Stephanie A. Prendergast, MPT, Cofounder, PHRC Los Angeles As people age, circulating hormones decline and pelvic floor dysfunction rises. The combination of these changes can cause unnecessary suffering and distress. The unfortunate news is that most people do not realize their symptoms may be related to hormonal deficiencies & musculoskeletal issues. However, the good news is both scenarios …
PHRC is accepting new patients in Columbus, OH!
By PHRC Admin Team The Pelvic Health and Rehabilitation Center is excited to announce that we are now accepting new patients in our newest location in Columbus, Ohio! Let’s be real, pelvic floor physical therapy is needed everywhere. Since we opened in San Francisco in 2006 we have been honored to help patients from all over; which has now …
Causes of Interstitial Cystitis/Painful Bladder Syndrome
By PHRC Admin Interstitial Cystitis/ Painful Bladder Syndrome is a treatable pelvic pain syndrome affecting roughly 12 million people in the United States alone. If it affects so many, what are the causes? We’re glad you asked! There’s many! Pelvic Floor Dysfunction Multiple studies conducted in the US and abroad show that up to 92% of people with …
Symptoms of Interstitial Cystitis/ Painful Bladder Syndrome
By Stephanie A. Prendergast, MPT, Cofounder, PHRC Los Angeles Interstitial Cystitis/Painful Bladder Syndrome (IC/PBS) is considered a chronic overlapping pain condition (COPC) and it is common, affecting up to 12 million people in the United States alone. The good news is – it’s treatable! Symptoms of IC/PBS can include, but are not limited too: Urinary urgency, frequency, and …
The Evolution of Pelvic Health: A Journey Through Time
By PHRC Admin Team Pelvic health is a critical aspect of overall well-being, yet it was often overlooked in the past. Today, we recognize the importance of this specialized field of medicine and the impact it has on millions of lives. Let’s take a trip back in time to explore how the field of pelvic health came to be. …
Misconceptions About Pelvic Health And The Truth About Them
By Emily Tran, PHRC Westlake Village When it comes to overall health, there is one area that is often overlooked or under-discussed: pelvic health. Unfortunately, many people are unaware of the importance of taking care of their pelvic floor muscles, and they pay little attention to the myriad of issues that can arise from poor pelvic health. To help …
Success Story: How Stacey Recovered from Leaking and UTIs at PHRC
By Emily Eckmann, DPT, PHRC West Los Angeles Stacy’s History Stacy is a woman in her 60s who came to PHRC seeking help for her urinary incontinence that had progressively gotten worse over the last five years. She was eight years into menopause and had seen several gynecologists who did not find ‘anything wrong with her bladder.’ She …
Dyspareunia: Symptoms and Associated Conditions
By Stephanie A. Prendergast, MPT, Cofounder, PHRC Los Angeles What is dyspareunia? A high number of people with a vagina suffer from painful versus pleasurable sex, including before, during or after sexual encounters. Superficial dyspareunia refers to pain at the opening of the vagina, whereas deep dyspareunia refers to feelings like something is being ‘hot’ or painful, deeper inside. …
Biomechanical Evaluation for Pelvic Floor Dysfunction & PF Functions
By Stephanie A. Prendergast, MPT, Cofounder, PHRC Los Angeles To start, there are various functions we can thank our pelvic floor, but let’s get into the MAIN functions: Part of core muscles The pelvic floor supports your core muscles: transversus abdominis, rectus abdominis, and the external oblique muscles. The PFM tends to act reflexively when we’re using our core …