pelvic floor

Pelvic Floor Help for Women and Men Through Acupuncture

I had a wonderful opportunity to attend a continuing education class in Tampa Florida May 5-7 that focused on acupuncture for pelvic floor disorders.

Now, you may be asking what the pelvic floor is or you may be thinking, "I don’t have pelvic floor disorders." Well, chances are you do and may not know it.

The pelvic floor muscles are located between the tailbone (coccyx) and the pubic bone within the pelvis.They support the bowel and bladder (as well as the uterus and vagina in females).

Roughly one-quarter of U.S. women are affected by pelvic floor disorders. Pelvic floor dysfunctions are not just for women though, men also can suffer from this as well. Men may notice it with testicular pain, groin pain, and/or hip pain, penile pain, weak urinary stream, difficulty starting urination, erectile dysfunction, and more.

Women will experience issues such as vulvodynia, pain during sexual intercourse, a sensation of heaviness in the vagina, recurrent urinary tract infections, or recurrent thrush, scars from a cesarean, supporting the weight of the uterus during pregnancy and vaginal childbirth, which may overstretch the muscles, and lower levels of estrogen after menopause can also cause pelvic floor dysfunction.

In both men and women, you will see symptoms such as leaking urine when coughing, sneezing, laughing, or running, failing to reach the toilet in time, IBS, and lower GI issues.

Common causes of a weakened pelvic floor include hip surgery, pregnancy, childbirth, prostate cancer treatment in males, fibroids, a broken tailbone, scars from a cesarean section or c-section, hemorrhoid surgery, the pressure of obesity on the pelvic floor (65% of our body weight is in the pelvic floor), the associated straining of chronic constipation, and pelvic floor muscle tension caused by painful periods, and endometriosis.

How can acupuncture help?

Acupuncture has been shown to correct pelvic floor disorders by strengthening weak muscles by moving qi and blood to the areas that are needed and releasing trigger points in these areas as well. It has also been shown to reduce inflammation and help release fascia that is stuck and binding organs and muscles together in the pelvic floor.

Yesterday a patient told me she follows a lady on Instagram and this lady was talking about how she received acupuncture to help strengthen her pelvic floor all throughout her pregnancy and all the benefits she received from it. She was able to have her baby without pelvic floor issues during and after her pregnancy.

If you think you have pelvic floor issues, call our clinic for a consultation. We can help you achieve pelvic floor health with acupuncture.