You just returned from your 6-week follow up appointment with your medical provider and they cleared you to return to activities and sex. What are the first thoughts that go through your mind? Are you excited? Or hesitant? Maybe nervous or scared? Some moms are thrilled and get right back to it. Great! BUT the majority are on the other side...

Intra-abdominal pressure is the pressure within the abdominal cavity created by the interaction between the abdominal wall and organs. This pressure changes with breathing and the resistance from the abdominal wall. When you are lifting an object or even lifting a limb, you increase intra-abdominal pressure.

Many people who give birth are ‘cleared’ at either 6 or 8 weeks by their medical provider. However, there is often a lot of confusion about what exactly someone is cleared for at that early postpartum checkup. Many people have questions about when they can resume exercising and often interpret that 6 or 8 week checkup as the green light to start their pre-partum exercise routine.

The winter holidays are a special time of year for many. They are filled with family get-togethers, delicious treats, and heart-warming traditions. For as sweet and jolly as this time of year can be, it can also be a sneaky pelvic floor saboteur! Watch out for the following things around the holidays so you can be prepared to keep your pelvic floor happy...

As November arrives, we all know the holiday season is just around the corner, whether we are prepared for it or not! With the holidays come various stressors, late-night festivities, indulgent eating, and perhaps a bit too much drinking. All of these can leave us feeling less than our best. By implementing some straightforward practices, you can keep your gut in top shape and truly savor this special time of year!

Vaginal flatulence, queefing, or farting from your vagina. These are all the same thing and can take you by surprise when you're moving through a yoga class. So what is vaginal flatulence? Is it actually gas like what passes through your rectum? Short answer: vaginal flatulence is when air that is trapped in the vagina is released. It is not created by digestion but rather by air that gets trapped as we move through space.

How we breathe is primarily controlled by the diaphragm, along with other accessory muscles of respiration. You have probably heard of the diaphragm before. It's the muscle that has something to do with how you breathe, right? While the diaphragm is a critical part of our lives for respiratory function, it is also a critical part of our pelvic health too!

As a pelvic floor physical therapist, I have seen and treated a number of women transitioning into menopause- whether they are in their early stages of perimenopause (this can range from a couple years to ten years) or have officially gone 12 months without a period (the technical definition for entering menopause). Going through menopause can be an extremely transformational time that I find most women are not well educated on.

When it comes to disordered eating and body image, the experience is physical as well as emotional. In treatment, one explores and works to change one’s relationship with food, self, others and beyond. Treatments often utilize a team approach and can include a psychologist, social worker, dietitian or nutritionist, and medical doctors. What may not be known, however, is the relationship between eating disorders and pelvic floor dysfunction and how a pelvic floor physical therapist can help.

In the womens’ health and pelvic health worlds, there is a growing recognition of the importance of holistic approaches to address various issues, from pelvic pain and congestion to the challenges of peri/menopause and postpartum recovery. One of my favorite tools to implement for these concerns is hypopressives ("hypos" for short) and specifically the Low Pressure Fitness (LPF) movement system.