A weak pelvic floor is a common occurrence with age. You are likely to struggle with fecal movement and urinary incontinence and might find the symptoms very uncomfortable. McDonough pelvic floor health specialists at Ideal Gynecology, LLC provide various pelvic floor therapies to restore function and relieve pain.
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What happens when you have pelvic dysfunction?
Your bladder control depends on your muscles working in unison when urine fills your bladder. Typically, your bladder muscles should relax and your muscles around your urethra tighten. Your pelvic floor muscles are the support structures helping keep your pelvic organs like your uterus, bladder, and rectum intact on your pelvic floor, wrapping them around the pelvic bone.
Typically, you go to the bathroom for urination or fecal movement because your pelvic floor muscles contract and relax effectively. Unfortunately, a malfunction of your pelvic muscles makes it impossible for you to correctly coordinate your pelvic floor muscles during urination or bowel movement. You will find yourself constantly tightening your pelvic muscles instead of relaxing them as you should. The tension will cause:
- Trouble with bowel movement
- Leaking stool or urine
- Incomplete bowel movement
What symptoms will you experience when you have a weak pelvic floor?
You will know your pelvic floor has a problem when you have symptoms like:
- Feeling a reduced sensation in your vagina
- Leaking urine when you run, cough, or sneeze
- Passing wind from your vagina or anus when you lift weights or bend
- A distinctive bulge on your vaginal opening
How are you likely to benefit from Kegel exercises?
Many factors will weaken your pelvic muscles. They include:
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Obesity
- Age
- Pelvic surgeryTraumatic injuries in your pelvic area
- Overusing your pelvic muscles
- Chronic constipation
- Chronic cough
- Reduced estrogen levels
Kegel exercises might not help if you experience severe urine leakage when you laugh, sneeze, or cough. Additionally, it may not be effective when you leak small amounts of urine unexpectedly because of overflow incontinence (full bladder). However, you are likely to benefit from the exercises when you have:
- Fecal incontinence (leak stool)
- Stress incontinence (leaking few urine drops during a sudden action like sneezing)
- Urinary urge incontinence (an urge to release a small amount of urine before the actual urination)
You could also benefit from kegel exercises when you are pregnant or after childbirth to minimize your symptoms.
How will your doctor help you improve your pelvic floor health?
Your doctor will recommend a variety of treatments and therapies. Unfortunately, there is no surgical procedure your doctor will suggest to correct your pelvic floor condition because the problem is usually in your muscles. Instead, the specialist would suggest you contact a pain injection expert who will identify the muscles causing you pain. After the identification, the expert will inject your tensed muscles with numbing and relaxing medication.
The non-surgical treatments your doctor is likely to recommend include:
- Biofeedback
- Prescription medications
- Pelvic floor exercises
- Relaxation techniques
Pelvic floor conditions are not fatal. Your doctor could treat them with medicine and other therapies. Contact the pelvic floor experts today for a pelvic floor evaluation to enhance your pelvic floor health.