When you hear the words pelvic health, you might think of pregnancy, postpartum recovery, maybe bladder leak and a whole lot of TMI. But the truth is, pelvic health and your pelvic floor is much more than that. Pelvic health matters throughout a woman's entire life and it has more to do with long-term health and vitality than most people realize.

You might be thinking. “What is pelvic health and the pelvic floor? Do I even have one of those?”.  The answer to that is yes, if you have a pelvis, you have a pelvic floor. The pelvic floor is a group of muscles that sits at the base of your pelvis, supporting your bladder, bowel, and reproductive organs. It also is a critical, and often overlooked, part of the core. Think of it more as part of your body's foundation. When the pelvic floor functions well, it helps you move, exercise, breathe, balance, and stay active. When it's not working optimally, symptoms can show up in ways you might not expect.

Leaking urine when you laugh or exercise, feeling pressure or heaviness, constipation, painful intercourse, back pain, hip pain, generalized pelvic pain, and even difficulty returning to exercise can all be connected to pelvic floor dysfunction. While these symptoms are common, they are not something that women have to "live with".

The reality is that every major phase of a woman's life impacts the pelvic floor. Adolescence, pregnancy, postpartum recovery, perimenopause, menopause, and aging all bring changes to our muscles, hormones, and connective tissues. Understanding how these changes affect our bodies allows us to stay active and resilient through these transitions and for decades to come. 

We are no longer subscribing to the narrative “I wish someone would have told me this would happen”.  

When we are knowledgeable of the changes that can happen throughout the lifespan, we are in a unique position to prepare our bodies and optimize our health and longevity for long symptom-free lives. Research consistently shows that maintaining strength, balance, mobility, and physical activity as we age improves quality of life and independence. Isn’t that the name of the game? The pelvic floor plays a critical role because of how interconnected it is with every system in the body, from our head to our toes. 

The good news? It's never too early, or too late, to learn about pelvic health and begin to make microchanges to make things better. Whether you're raising teenagers, chasing toddlers, training for a race, navigating menopause, or enjoying retirement, paying attention to your pelvic health is an investment in your future self.

Because thriving through every stage of life isn't just about living longer, it's about living well.

Yours in health,

Dr. Nikki Berner, PT, DPT