Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy for Menopause Can Help Genitourinary Syndrome of Menopause, Pelvic Organ Prolapse, Bladder Problems, Vaginal Atrophy, Pelvic Pain and Intimacy Challenges
The bothersome menopause symptoms involving your vagina, pelvis, pelvic floor, pelvic organ support, pelvis, back & hips and the quality of your intimate life are caused by more than simply reducing hormones! Genitourinary syndrome of menopause, bladder problems, pelvic pain, pelvic organ prolapse, dyspareunia (painful intimacy) have many contributing factors that pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause can successfully address. These include muscle tightness and weakness, reduced blood flow, nerve irritation, improper movement patterns, stiffness in the low back, hips, thighs and pelvic floor, impairments in the deep core muscles and overactivity of the bladder. Often our patients are curious what is involved with pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause, so read on to learn. Our staff members are here to answer your questions, explain more and determine if we can help you. Call (616) 516-4334 or ask us a question here and we will be in touch.
Purple Mountain Physical Therapy in Grand Rapids, Michigan, is a specialty pelvic health, spine and TMJ clinic devoted to providing personalized pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause.
Our PTs have post-doctoral training and experience helping women overcome perimenopause and menopause related genitourinary syndrome of menopause, vaginal atrophy, pelvic pain, dyspareunia, pelvic floor dysfunction, pelvic organ prolapse, urinary and fecal incontinence, overactive bladder, back & neck pain, balance, posture and bone health challenges. By working with you, our goal is to deliver relief from perimenopause and menopause related pelvic health, hip and spine conditions. High quality pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause can set you up for feeling better and healthier, more confident again. If you are curious if we can help you, reach out to us at (616) 516-4334 inquiry here
Are you baffled by your perimenopause or menopause related pelvic floor issues, bladder control problems, painful intimacy, genitourinary syndrome of menopause or pelvic organ prolapse? Our pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause can help!
Curious if we can help you? Interested in learning more about working with our specialist Doctors of Physical Therapy in Pelvic Floor PT, Back Pain, Hip Disorders, TMJ Syndrome and Neck Pain? Call us at (616) 516-4334 reach out to us here
Symptoms of Menopause in the Pelvis While menopause affects each woman differently, several problems commonly emerge that impact the pelvic region and can be improved when working with our specialist doctors of physical therapy. These may include things like urinary urgency & frequency, recurrent urinary tract infections, loss of urinary control, fecal smearing, weakness of postural muscles, genitourinary syndrome of menopause, vaginismus, low back pain, pelvic organ prolapse, osteopenia and osteoporosis, atrophy of the pelvic floor, loss of whole body muscle strength and more. In contrast to other options, our PTs use a holistic whole body framework to effectively evaluate and naturally treat your varied symptoms and customize your care to your needs and findings. We do not limit our treatment to one body part, such as your pelvic floor muscles, because this is incomplete and does not address nor improve the other conditions you may have that are contributing to that problem. Interested to learn more about our personalized approach for providing pelvic floor physical therapy to address menopause and perimenopause symptoms? Call us at (616) 516-4334 question here.
You’ve found the only pelvic floor physical therapy speciality clinic in Grand Rapids, Michigan exclusively devoted to pelvic health, spine problems and TMJ disorders. Our specialist physical therapists have post-doctoral education in providing effective pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause, including genitourinary syndrome of menopause. When working with our licensed physical therapists, you can expect personalized care, delivered in a private appointment with the undivided attention of your Doctor of Physical Therapy.
What Does Pelvic Floor Therapy For Menopause Involve? Our PTs customize your treatment and provide you one-on-one, 55 minute appointments. Your personalized treatment plan may include:
Rehabilitative Ultrasound Imaging for Pelvic floor, Abdominal and Low Back Muscle Training to Address Menopause Symptoms
Many of the women who come to us are mothers and fondly recall ultrasounds when they were pregnant. Well, that technology has been customized for our pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause. Rehabilitative ultrasound imaging (RUSI) used by our physical therapists in pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause is specifically for helping you retrain your pelvic floor muscles, abdominal muscles and low back.
If you have problems with incomplete emptying of your bladder, bladder urgency & frequency, bladder incontinence, recurrent urinary tract infections, anal fissues, chronic hemorrhoids, chronic constipation or fecal incontinence, rehabilitative ultrasound imaging is a game-changer with our pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause.
RUSI is a comfortable and effective biofeedback and evaluation tool and we are the only pelvic floor, spine and TMJ physical therapy specialty clinic in Grand Rapids that has invested in this technology. Our ultrasound probe is placed either externally on your lower abdomen or externally on your perineum and Voila! In contrast to something like an MRI, which cannot assess muscle activation, does not allow you to move your muscles while imaging and has been shown to not be directly associated with pain generation, rehabilitative ultrasound imaging in pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause is low cost, non-invasive and gives you the immediate opportunity to learn how to recalibrate and retrain your pelvic floor muscle and core muscle support and coordination. Interested to learn more, reach out to us at (616) 516-4334 question here
Using the RUSI improves your pelvic floor awareness, pelvic floor muscle function, coordination, timing and organ support by helping your brain and body regain function and control of these muscles.
For example, our evaluation and treatment for pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause may use the RUSI and ask you to cough. Often we see the muscles failing to respond to the cough, leading to bladder descent, a risk for pelvic organ prolapse and urinary leakage. If you see this, it is very impactful, showing you what is going wrong and then we guide you in how to correct this. With our licensed physical therapists, we help train your pelvic floor and other core muscles to function better, while you watch the ultrasound image to ensure accuracy. We are here for you, when you are ready, call us at (616) 516-4334 reach out online here
Rehabilitative ultrasound imaging has been used to assess and treat a variety of menopause related pelvic health conditions. Our pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause uses RUSI to:
Allow you to see your pelvic floor muscles, abdominal muscles, bladder position, bladder emptying, constipation and anal sphincter (important for people experiencing chronic constipation, fecal smearing or flatulence incontinence).Our physical therapists direct you in a variety of pelvic floor training exercises, while you watch the ultrasound image. The RUSI allows us to assess muscle performance and teach muscle contraction, relaxation and coordination with the rest of your core muscles. You will learn to relax and contract these muscles effectively, while properly pairing the pelvic floor muscles with your abdominals and breathing.RUSI can identify lack of pelvic organ support. Our PTs can use RUSI, in conjuction with our other menopause therapies, to improve prolapse and pelvic organ support deficiences. With specific and personalized retraining of your pelvic floor muscles you will improve your intra-abdominal pressure control, habits of pushing down on your pelvic organs and enhance pelvic floor muscle performance. We pair this with other corrective exercises to optimize your movement patterns, flexibility, breathing, posture and corrordination and optimize your breathing and posture to reduce prolapse.Our patients tell us that the RUSI visual feedback helps something “click” in their brain and body, improving their understanding of the muscle function and impairment and enhancing their motivation and ability to retrain the muscles, thus reducing pelvic floor symptoms of menopause.We also can use the RUSI on your spine to help you retrain your lower back muscles, which is a huge benefit, because research has found these muscles are impaired during & after an episode of low back pain AND research has found the low back muscles work in coordination with your pelvic floor muscles and abdominals, so training the entire system is important for pelvic floor physical therapy results for menopause and genitourinary syndrome of menopause.
RUSI has been used with pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause (and other times in our lifespan) to help with stress urinary incontinence , hypermobile urethra, fecal incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse , constipation , dyssynergic defecation , anal sphincter injuries, urinary retention, urinary urgency and frequency , urge incontinence , painful intercourse, vaginismus, pelvic pain, pelvic pressure, pelvic nerve pain (such as pudendal neuralgia, sciatica, posterior femoral cutaneous nerve, genitofemoral nerve or other nerve), pelvic floor spasms, abdominal wall laxity, abdominal wall weakness, diastasis recti abdominis (split abdominals), lower back pain, low back muscle spasm, low back stiffness and tension, herniated discs, non-optimal posture & core alignment and more.
Are you curious about pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause or rehabilitative ultrasound imaging for your pelvic floor? This technology, like everything we do, is included in your pelvic floor physical therapy treatment plan for menopause. To talk with one of our knowledgable staff members, call us at (616) 516-4334 contact us here .
Our Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy for Menopause Also Includes Therapeutic Exercises Including Movement Pattern Training, Core Strength, Postural Improvement and Balance Training. These are Personalized to You to Restore the Automatic Responsiveness of Your Pelvic Floor Muscles, Low Back Muscles and Deep Core. This is a Crucial Component of Your Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy for Menopause. Did you know that your pelvic floor muscles are located both inside your pelvis, surrounding your vagina AND more superficially in the vulva, externally? Our therapeutic exercises for pelvic floor therapy for menopause go beyond training the muscles with Rehabilitative Ultrasound Imaging. We get you standing, balancing and moving, while we teach you how to better engage the proper muscles and movement patterns and improve your balance. Fall risk is a real issue for women as we age and our hope is to include balance training into your physical therapy program, to reduce risk for falls and also because it helps your pelvic floor muscles and deep core. Our PTs will also advise you on which exercises to avoid during menopause. You will be provided a do-able and complete workout routine, customized to your abilities and interests, that you can continue with indefinitely following your physical therapy for menopause with us. If you are interested in learning more, reach out to us at (616) 516-4334 contact us here .
Vaginal atrophy and genitourinary changes associated with menopause lead to pelvic floor muscle atrophy, stiffness, dysfunction and lack of flexibility and responsiveness.To compensate for these problems, we develop altered posture, movement patterns and tension in the pelvic floor muscles as well as other muscles.
This is why our pelvic floor physical therapy muscle training for menopause and perimenopause symptoms includes movement training in our gym. Our PTs never leave your side and will help you effectively move your hips, without straining your low back.
Our licensed, doctors of physical therapy customize treatments to rehabilitate your hips, glutes and thighs to better support your pelvic floor muscles and pelvic organs. We teach you about safety for bone health and proper movement patterns to reduce risk of osteoporotic spine fractures and how to build bone health. Our comprehensive therapeutic exercises will leave you feeling stronger, more flexible and having great awareness of and control over your pelvic floor and back muscles. If you would like the specialized guidance of our licensed physical therapists, call us at (616) 516-4334 online inquiry here
Your pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause and perimenopause symptoms will include exercises that are progressively more challenging, based on your progress and ability. Our PTs include movement and coordination of your entire body. This is because the pelvic floor muscles function in coordination with your legs, hips, SI joint, low back, abdomen, diaphragm, ribcage, speaking (vocal cords) and neck.
Your appointment is entirely one-on-one with your PT who remains by your side the entire time, guiding you in the proper neuromotor coordination, movement patterns and muscle recruitment. Our exercises are much more beneficial and effective than typical kegels. One reason: most women don’t know how to perform a kegel correctly, so we will teach you. Another reason: Kegels performed by themselves do not mimic the day-to-day demands of life that the pelvic floor muscles need to respond to. Our specialist PTs will develop a great pelvic floor training program for you that includes deep core training, movement pattern instruction, postural correction, pelvic floor activation and more. And we make it fun along the way! Need help with your pelvic floor strength? Call us at (616) 516-4334 here.
Manual Therapy : Our specialist pelvic health physical therapists are trained in a variety of specific manual therapies, such as myofascial mobilization, joint mobilization, nerve calming techniques, trigger point release, visceral mobilization and other healing therapies designed to enhance blood flow, reduce muscle & joint tension, improve tissue flexibility, restore posture and enhance muscle performance and pelvic organ support.These manual therapies are very helpful for your goals of reducing menopause symptoms, such as urinary urgency and frequency, dyspareunia and vaginismus, pelvic floor muscle tension, pelvic organ prolapse and bladder or bowel symptoms. We work privately with you, using our whole body approach, to identify where you have myofascial restrictions or reductions in blood flow impairing nerves or muscles and our manual therapies are directed to these areas and beyond. Although symptoms may primarily be located in the pelvis, we treat everything from your jaw and neck to your toes, to allow for better muscle, fascia and joint aligment, blood flow and performance. To learn more about our manual therapies that are used to help with menopause symptoms, you can talk to one of our team members at (616) 516-4334 us here.
Vaginal Dilators can be helpful for pelvic symptoms associated with painful intimacy, vaginismus, pelvic floor spasms. Our PTs can teach you how to safely and effectively use these. Sometimes the vagina opening is very tight and you experience spasms and pain either throughout the day or during vaginal exams or intimacy. For some women, vaginal dilators can be a gentle and useful tool at home to help gradually stretch the pelvic floor and vaginal opening, reducing your pain and discomfort, allowing for penetrative intercourse and less pain during each day. Our PTs can instruct you in the safe and effective use of vaginal dilators and can augment the benefit you gain from the dilators with manual therapy and corrective exercises.
Education and Counseling regarding what is going on with your pelvic floor, pelvic organ support and deep core and how you can help yourself. Often our patients who experience vaginal atrophy and genital or urinary symptoms of menopause find it all very confusing. Our pelvic PTs will help you understand what is going on with your body and what you can do to improve your symptoms and age strong, fit and feeling good. We provide information on bladder and bowel habits, eating and nutrition, proper hygiene, lubrication options, vulvar tissue health & how to monitor it yourself at home and lifestyle changes that can alleviate symptoms. Patients tell us that they learn more about their body with us than anywhere else. Using the ultrasound imaging is just one example of how we can teach you and help you rehabilitate a problem area.
Balance Training: Preserving and improving your balance is crucial for fall prevention. Research has found when women enter their 50s and beyond, their balance precipitously declines.Whether you realize it or not, as we head into new decades of life, our balance becomes impaired. But, if you train this, you can improve! And, the beautiful thing is that working on your balance will help your pelvic floor and deep core muscles to restore their automatic activity that should be happening. Our PTs will be by your side as we assess and challenge your balance.
We are known for using our whole body vibration machine to stimulate balance, deep core and pelvic floor training.
Patients feel great after using this machine and it is a fun, engaging way to rehabilitate. We also may use plyometrics, single leg activities and other exercises to enhance your balance, posture and motor control. As your body wobbles and figures out your balance, you are also working on your pelvic floor, hip and deep core training, because all of these muscles are firing and trying to help with your balance. Fall prevention is near and dear to our heart, as we know that falling, in advanced age, is associated with death. It is very important to be proactive addressing our balance and motor control. Our pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause includes this as a standard of care. To work with our PTs, you just need to call us at (616) 516-4334 here.
Our PTs find that women who experience pelvic symptoms of menopause, including urinary incontinence, urinary urgency, & pelvic organ prolapse, have complex and, often, longstanding pelvic floor dysfunction.
Our PT’s clinical experience has taught us, and research supports, that pelvic floor dysfunction for many women goes back decades.
Research has supported that female adolescent athletes who run, cut and jump (think basketball, volleyball, soccer) have stress urinary incontinence and pelvic floor dysfunction.
In the childbearing years, many women sustain pelvic floor injuries and experience pelvic floor dysfunction. For some women, because estrogen levels are higher during reproductive years, they can function with little to no symptoms, perhaps just the occasional leakage of urine with a big laugh.
As estradiol levels lower during perimenopause and through menopause, we lose some of our pelvic floor function and bladder control.
It turns out that estradiol is helpful for overall pelvic health and, as it diminishes, we incur a higher risk for urinary tract infections and loss of pelvic organ support, including reduction in ability of the pelvic floor muscles to hold in our urine. We can find ourselves in a cycle of urinary tract infections and pelvic pain that can be arrested by pairing proper medical treatment for the infections, potentially vaginal estrogen cream and pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause. If this sounds familiar to you, we are here to help. Call us at (616) 516-4334 here
All women, age regardless, can improve pelvic floor muscle strength & function, thereby improving bladder control, intimacy pleasure and reducing pelvic organ prolapse.
Pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause is a pathway towards taking back control of your health and restoring pelvic floor muscle function. Given that urinary incontinence is a risk factor for a woman needing to move into a nursing home, we cannot overstate the importance of taking care of your pelvic health and bladder and bowel control. Our specialist PTs will guide you every step of the way. You can have all your questions answered by speaking with one of our knowledgable team members at (616) 516-4334 here.
Improving and maintaining a strong pelvic floor, bladder & bowel control and low back, hip and abdominal muscle core integrity is crucial for us to be healthy, fit and strong.
Helping women correct the problem of pelvic floor weakness, bladder and bowel control challenges is what we have devoted our careers to. We love to celebrate your wins with you and see you gain confidence and control! To learn more about our specialist pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause and perimenopause and the treatment programs we offer reach out to us at (616) 516-4334.
If you are experiencing pelvic symptoms of menopause, such as urinary incontinence, recurrent urinary tract infections, urinary urgency and frequency, painful intimacy, balance & strength deficits, slouched posture, or pelvic organ prolapse, there is hope! To chat with one of our knowledgeable team members, call (616) 516-4334 ask us a question here.
When working with our pelvic floor physical therapists for menopause and perimenopause, we can guide you to strengthen your whole body and regain pelvic floor and core support. This includes improving your posture, balance, pelvic floor muscle automatically working, hip strength and mobility and deep core and abdominal support. All of these areas are affected by menopause and benefit from the skilled guidance of our PTs. The vaginal and pelvic floor tissues lose flexibility and blood flow and our PT can enhance the dry and brittle natura of those tissues to improve nerve and muscle firing and enhance sexual function. Our team of PTs are women and we know the special needs of women’s health, we are here for you. Reach out to us at (616) 516-4334 here.
You are not alone! High Quality Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy Can Provide Relief of Symptoms of Menopause, Including Bladder Leakage, Pelvic Organ Prolapse, Pelvic Pain, Painful Intimacy, Back Pain, Vaginismus, Genitourinary syndrome of menopause, Osteopenia & Osteoporosis, Altered Posture, Diminished Balance and Muscle Weakness or Tightness. Menopause is a transformative phase of life that greatly affects a women’s pelvic health. Understanding how it impacts the pelvic region is essential for proactive management of symptoms and maintaining overall well-being. By recognizing the symptoms, knowing treatment options, and seeking support when needed, women can navigate menopause with confidence and resilience, ensuring a healthy and fulfilling postmenopausal life. We hope this has given you some insights into what is included in our pelvic floor physical therapy for menopause and perimenopause here at Purple Mountain Physical Therapy. Reach out if you are ready to get started!
Peace,
Dr. Maureen O’Keefe, DPT
Founder of Purple Mountain PT. Pelvic Health, Spine and TMJ Specialist PT for over 25 years. Dedicated to providing compassionate and meaningful care so you can feel great again. Our team of physical therapists are all trained and mentored by me. Everything we offer is curated for your needs in mind, so you experience results.
You may be interested in these other articles:
How Physical Therapy Can Naturally Help Menopause
Tips to Fix Incontinence Naturally
Physical Therapy for Lichen Sclerosus
5 Tips To Ease Pelvic Pain that Won’t Go Away!
Do I Have Pelvic Floor Dysfunction?
What To Expect With Your Pelvic PT Evaluation
