Over the course of your pregnancy, you might hear a lot about the importance of pelvic health and how crucial it is to look after your pelvic floor during pregnancy and postpartum. While the pelvic floor is often talked about, it is often difficult to know what exactly you need to do to “care” for it during pregnancy, or even how to use your pelvic floor in the right way! Here are some reasons you might see a pelvic health physio for an assessment during your pregnancy.
Management of pelvic health conditions
If you are experiencing pelvic health conditions, whether you’ve experienced them since prior to pregnancy or they started during your pregnancy, it is highly recommended to see a pelvic health physiotherapist for assessment and management of your condition.
Common pelvic health conditions include:
Urinary incontinence
Faecal or anal incontinence
Constipation
Prolapse
Pelvic pain conditions, such as endometriosis or dyspareunia
Often, these pelvic health conditions can have implications for your labour, birth and postpartum recovery. A pelvic health physiotherapist can help you to understand more about your condition, your pelvic floor function, as well as any other contributing factors. They can then also help you prepare you, your body and your pelvic floor for birth and postpartum.
Birth preparation and proactive pelvic floor care
Even if you aren’t experiencing a pelvic health condition or symptoms, a pelvic floor assessment can be just as important to check your pelvic floor function, and prepare for birth.
Regardless of whether you are planning a vaginal or caesarean section delivery, your pelvic floor should be just as functional. Over the course of the journey of pregnancy, your pelvic floor requires a baseline level of strength to help support your body as well as the additional load it is required to support throughout your pregnancy. Your pelvic floor also needs to be able to relax and lengthen well so that you are able to give birth if you are giving birth vaginally!
Having your pelvic floor assessed during pregnancy can provide you with a lot of information about your pelvic floor function, including:
Ability to squeeze and “lift” your pelvic floor
Pelvic floor endurance and coordination
Ability to relax and lengthen your pelvic floor
How well you are able to “push” if giving birth vaginally
Whether you have any tight spots/increased tone
How does a pelvic health physiotherapist assess your pelvic floor, and what might be involved in treatment?
There are a few ways that your pelvic floor can be assessed by a pelvic health physio, such as:
Internal pelvic floor examination: an internal pelvic floor examination is considered the “gold standard” of pelvic floor assessments, as it allows a full assessment of the pelvic floor (with your consent, of course). We can assess your:
Pelvic floor strength and endurance and coordination
Ability of your pelvic floor to relax
Quality of movement of your pelvic floor
How well your pelvic floor responds to a cough, bearing down or pushing
Pelvic floor tone
Pelvic organ
Visual examination: helps us understand basic information such as whether your pelvic floor can contract and relax, as well as responses to coughing, bearing down and pushing.
Ultrasound: can help us understand how well your pelvic floor contracts and relaxes, as well responses to a cough, bearing down or pushing.
Treatment may include:
Specific exercises and mobility to strengthen, relax and lengthen your pelvic floor during your pregnancy
Learn how to PUSH
Perineal massage in the later stages of your pregnancy
Learn how to breathe - your diaphragm (your breathing muscle) has a close relationship with your pelvic floor
Manual therapy as required
If you would like your pelvic floor assessed during pregnancy, one of our pelvic health physiotherapists are able to help. Book in here!