If you've ever wondered what kind of information Pelvic Health Physiotherapists are looking for during an assessment (or should I say "feeling for"... pelvic exams are of course done "blindly" as it all has to be assessed by "feel" alone!), check out this very cool, very thorough 3D tour of the muscles of the pelvic floor. It's filled with lots of big anatomy words and phrases but is so cool to get to visualize all of the structures that your Physiotherapist is palpating and assessing during a session. I scan each of these structures for muscle tone, contractility, strength, endurance, trigger points/referred pain, and scar tissue to get a clear picture of your pelvic health, and to identify the source of your dysfunction.
Check out the 3D tour here: http://anatomyzone.com/tutorials/musculoskeletal/pelvic-floor/
And if you've never had a Pelvic Health Physiotherapy assessment, consider finding a PT in your area who can assess your pelvis for all of these tissues and help you identify any problem areas in your pelvis! Like I always say: We don't wait until we develop cavities to get a dental check-up; So don't wait until you're experiencing incontinence, prolapse or pain to have your pelvic floor assessed! Be preventative about your health and invest some time into taking care of this very important body part.
*Don't exit the video without watching the last few minutes. There's a great visual for the importance of good muscle tone for bowel movements near the end of the video. Too much muscle tone = constipation; too little muscle tone = fecal incontinence!
Follow this by watching the "squatty potty" video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYcv6odWfTM, to really understand how something as basic as toilet posture can affect our pelvic floor muscles and our ability to have completely wonderful, satisfying, healthy poops!
