Your Pelvic Floor: What It Is And Why It Matters?
The pelvic floor is a group of muscles and tissues located at the bottom of your pelvis. Despite being essential to your health and well-being, the pelvic floor is often overlooked and women are given limited guidance on its influence in their complaints. In this blog post, we'll explore what the pelvic floor is, why it matters, and how to keep it healthy.
What Is the Pelvic Floor?
The pelvic floor is a complex network of muscles, ligaments, and connective tissues that form a sling at the bottom of the pelvis. It has many important functions that include
supporting the organs that sit in the pelvic cavity
sexual health
bowel and bladder health
helps manage pressure
helps with stability
contributes to respiratory and postural functions
how does it work
Your pelvic floor is like a trampoline. It expands down and lifts us as we move, breath and lift. It works as part of a system, which all needs to work together to make sure it functions optimally and there is no extra stress placed on structures. Parts of the system include: all of your abdominal muscles, your diaphragm and then you pelvic floor.
The other very important component of your pelvic floor works with your nervous system and your brain which helps control the sphincters at your urethra and your anus to signal when they should relax for you to pass urine and/or a bowel movement.
Disruptions in these systems can create issues with your pelvic floor.
Common signs and symptoms of pelvic floor dysfunction
pelvic pain
pain with sex
low back pain
leaking with activity or with coughing/sneezing/laughing
going to the bathroom multiple times a day
hip pain
diastasis recti
having a flat booty
lower abdominal pooch
pelvic organ prolapse
What can you do to keep your pelvic floor healthy?
There are many things to be aware of to make sure you are maintaining good pelvic floor health, and kegels are not high on that list.
Maintain good bowel and bladder health
Use a squatty potty to help position your pelvic floor optimally to pass a bowel movement
Do not strain or hold your breath when going to the bathroom
Avoid being constipated
Learn how to perform 360 breathing
This is where when you take a breathe in the air equally expands throughout all of your torso and then some into your pelvic floor. This maintains good flexibility within your pelvic floor which allows it to react appropriately
Do not hold your breath!
Pay attention to your posture
How you position yourself either when still or when doing daily activities or even working out can help improve the function of your pelvic floor
Keeping your rib cage stacked over a neutral pelvis helps
Maintain good hip and spinal mobility
Making sure your spine and your hips move well helps your pelvis, diaphragm, rib cage and pelvic floor work well together!
If you are currently experiencing any pelvic floor related issues or are unsure if you are please reach out to us either through social media @empowerptandwellness, email: Hello@WeEmpowerPT.com or give us a call or a text at 678-413-5587. You are not alone in what you are experiencing and we would love to help guide you to achieve everything you want!
