In today’s article we will explore how and why pelvic floor physical therapy helps treat infertility. We’re going to start with some helpful information about infertility, then we will move to the basics of pelvic floor therapy, after that we will unpack the connection between pelvic floor dysfunction and infertility, and we’ll wrap up with some info on how pelvic floor therapy can help treat infertility.
Understanding Infertility
A recent CDC study shows that 15.4% (9.23 million) of all women ages 25-49 have experienced difficulty becoming pregnant or carrying a pregnancy to term (a.k.a impaired fecundity), and 8.5% (2.4 million) married women have infertility. The World Health Organization defines infertility as a “failure to achieve a pregnancy after 12 months or more of regular unprotected sexual intercourse.” The CDC adds that “Because fertility in women is known to decline steadily with age, some providers evaluate and treat women aged 35 years or older after 6 months of unprotected sex.”
Infertility and impaired fecundity can manifest through a number of different symptoms.
So… what this might look like? Below are some scenarios we often see at Optimize Pelvic Health:
- A couple has been trying to conceive for more than a year but hasn’t been successful. The patient reports that she experiences pain during sex (dyspareunia), and as much as she wants to have a baby, she dreads the process because of how she feels during it. It’s hard to get psyched up to “do it” when she knows how much it will hurt.
- Similarly, a couple is trying to conceive but hasn’t. The patient shares that she has had chronic pelvic pain ever since she experienced an accident at a young age.
- A couple has been trying to conceive for more than a year but hasn’t been successful. The patient shares that they have scars related to prior surgery that perhaps could be limiting blood flow, hindering their ability to conceive
In other words, if you are experiencing infertility in part due to something being “off” or “dysfunctional” with your pelvic floor – something hurting or feeling uncomfortable or tight, or your pelvic floor musculature not functioning optimally – pelvic floor physical therapy can be helpful to improve your pelvic health.
Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy: The Basics
Our Doctors and Patients at Optimize Pelvic health know this to be true: pelvic floor physical therapy can be life-changing. Pelvic floor physical therapy can profoundly improve a person’s quality of life and minimize, or altogether eliminate, symptoms, pain, discomfort, and dysfunction.
What’s more: pelvic floor physical therapy can be an effective and non-invasive way to treat infertility.
As always, if you have specific questions about your individual circumstances, consider reaching out to a pelvic health physical therapist certified to address infertility for your pelvic health and fertility-related concerns. At Optimize Pelvic Health our doctors are certified pelvic rehabilitation fertility specialists.
For more information on our fertility service please visit our website
Before we dive into how pelvic floor therapy helps treat infertility, it’s critical that we first understand what the pelvic floor is and what pelvic floor physical therapy actually entails.
Meet Your Pelvic Floor, The Support You Probably Didn’t Know You Had
Your pelvic floor supports you and your body every day, at every moment, of your entire life. It’s like the best friend you never knew you had.
If you are like most people, you likely didn’t know where or what your pelvic floor was until something was “off.”
The pelvic floor muscles include all the musculature and connective tissues that support organs in your pelvis. These include but aren’t limited to your bladder, bowel, and reproductive organs.
Everyone Has A Pelvic Floor
Every human on Earth – regardless of gender and regardless of child-bearing status – has a pelvic floor. The easiest way to think about your pelvic floor is to imagine a sling.Your pelvic floor musculature holds all these organs in their proper places while simultaneously supporting your bodily functions. Anything that occurs in the lower half of your body, such as urination, defecation, or intercourse is supported by your pelvic floor.
This cross-section picture below can help you visualize where, exactly, your pelvic floor is situated in your lower abdomen. Note the sling-like appearance of the pelvic floor. Most people don’t think about their pelvic floor, or even know it exists, until or unless they experience some type of dysfunction, discomfort, or pain.
Connections Between Pelvic Floor Dysfunction and Infertility: Symptoms & Conditions
At Optimize Pelvic Health, we see patients who are experiencing a vast array of pelvic floor dysfunction symptoms.
Pelvic floor dysfunction is an umbrella term that refers to when a person’s pelvic floor musculature and associated connective tissue is not functioning properly.
In terms of infertility, pelvic floor dysfunction can negatively impact the reproductive organs. Conversely, when the reproductive organs are under stress, the pelvic floor is also impacted. An example of this is when the pelvic floor muscles are tight. Tight pelvic floor muscles may restrict blood flow and alter lymphatic flow to the pelvic region. Restricted blood flow to the pelvic region will cause organs to function sub-optimally.
Treating Infertility by Addressing All of Your Symptoms
Pelvic floor physical therapy helps treat infertility by addressing an assortment of conditions, symptoms, and dysfunctions. In regards to infertility, they include, but aren’t limited to:
- Endometriosis/Adenomyosis
- Uterine fibroids
- Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS)
- Dyspareunia (painful intercourse)
- Pelvic pain
- Pelvic organ prolapse
Pelvic floor physical therapy can positively impact a wide array of conditions, and can be an effective and non-invasive way to treat infertility.
How Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy Can Help With Infertility
Pelvic floor physical therapy can be instrumental when it comes to addressing infertility. Here, we will take a look at factors that contribute to infertility that pelvic floor physical therapy can help address:
Pain During Intercourse
Painful intercourse is one of the biggest driving factors in infertility. When the pelvic floor muscles have increased tone and spasm, it causes pain during penetration. The increased muscle tone can be due to various causes. Please read about vaginismus here.
Visceral Restrictions
Visceral (organ) mobilization is a technique to help restore the movement of a specific organ. This technique is based on the premise that every organ should be free to move. Limitations arising from organ dysfunction, for example the fibroids in the uterus, will limit organ mobility. Our doctors of physical therapy have treatment strategies to restore visceral mobility.
Scars and Adhesions
Scars and adhesions, such as those related to endometriosis, uterine fibroids, PCOS, c-section or post-surgical, will often limit blood flow. Specifically, abdominal surgery can cause scars and adhesions around the surgical site which can limit blood flow to the reproductive organs.. Scar tissue mobilization is common after “orthopedic” surgeries such as knee, shoulder or hip surgery. However, it is not common to see a physical therapist for scar mobilization post abdominal surgery despite there being lingering effects of poor tissue mobility, pain and decreased blood flow. All of which can impact the reproductive organs and contribute to infertility.
Lymphatic System
The lymphatic system clears our body’s waste product. When you twist your ankle, the lymphatic system is responsible for your ankle swelling. Trauma, inflammation and altered organ mobility contributes to increased demand on the lymphatic system. When the lymph system is not fully functioning, the waste products are not sufficiently removed and remain around the pelvic organs. This limits optimal function of the pelvic organs and can contribute to infertility.
Complimentary Treatments & Lifestyle Changes
- Nutritional Deficiencies: A pelvic floor physical therapist can share evidence-based best practices for basic nutritional support during infertility. We refer out to a fertility-specialist dietitian for additional guidance.
- Support For Menstrual Cycle Tracking: When managing fertility, it is important to track your menstrual cycle. Tracking your menstrual cycle is more than just when your cycle starts, how long your period was and how long the whole cycle is. At Optimize Pelvic Health we provide resources to track your menstrual cycle with the indicators/metrics which are the most important for fertility. We analyze the results to assess how treatments are helping, to guide subsequent treatments and how to best refer for additional support.
To fully support you while going through infertility we believe in a team approach with other allied professionals. Other providers provide services to improve blood flow to the pelvic organs, improve nutrition to support fertility, and provide mental support through the journey.
- Acupuncture
- Chiropractics
- Functional Medicine
- Mental Health
- Dietitian
- Endocrinologist
Connect with a Pelvic Floor Physical Therapist to Address Fertility Concerns Today
If you have been experiencing infertility, consider reaching out to a doctor of physical therapy who specializes in the pelvic floor today to understand how pelvic floor therapy helps infertility.
Pelvic floor physical therapy can play a critical role in a person’s care to help them manage their infertility. Pelvic floor physical therapists are experts in the optimal functioning of all parts of the pelvic floor musculature and fascia, so if the barrier to fertility is something “structural” within the pelvic floor, pursuing pelvic floor physical therapy can be helpful.
No matter the type of symptom you have been experiencing while trying to conceive pelvic floor physical therapy can help.
You don’t have to live your life in pain or discomfort or relegate yourself to having painful, uncomfortable intercourse for the rest of your life.
You are worth it.
Don’t give up on your desire to start a family.
We invite you to reach out today so that we can begin your healing journey together.
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