3 Habits that Cause Pelvic Floor Dysfunction - Changing Bad Habits

There are many habits that we all carry in our daily lives that contribute to pelvic pain and dysfunction. These habits may just be a part of our posture, our walk or we may have picked it up somewhere along in our lives. Here we go Top 3 and we can make a change Today.

1. Standing on one leg

This one is very common for people complaining of pelvic pain or dysfunction its the daily habit of leaning on one leg or favoring a particular leg when standing up. Instead of distributing your weight over both legs evenly one leg takes the brunt of the weight.

This habit is very common when standing for long periods of time you may find it more comfortable to shift your weight to your preferred leg and rest on it like a kick stand.

This habit can cause major dysfunctions in the pelvic floor in the long run and if the habit is not changed it will often lead to muscle tightness and loss of the full range of motion of your leg muscles.

The main issue here is that the hip flexors and extensors muscles become overly tight and bound up which can be a very serious issue as the psoas (hip flexor muscle) which is attached to the lower spine and pelvis can become chronically tight to the point were it will start to lift one side of your pelvis higher than the other. When your pelvis is out of alignment this can cause muscle spams and pain over time.

If there was one habit you can stop today , its this one and I urge you to consciously make an effort to distribute the weight evenly to keep your pelvic happy and healthy. Will post an article on correction exercises shortly:). The main corrections for this will include psoas stretches (warrior pose, pigeon pose, fire hydrant exercises but I will cover them in more detail in a future post)

2. Sitting down for long periods of time

This is the number one habit that can sometimes be impossible to avoid especially when your work requires sitting down infront of a computer screen for long periods of time.

Much like favoring one leg, sitting down for long periods of time will cause muscles imbalances and will therefore eventually effect pelvic floor stability.  A few things you can do to help prevent posture issues will then lead to pelvic floor issues are

- Stand up and take a walk every hour
- Perform Psoas stretch (warrior pose image below) throughout the day
- Breathing exercises for the back and neck to avoid forward head posture

I will cover specifics in upcoming posts but the other option would be to see if your workplace would be able to offer a standing work desk solution. I am currently experimenting with a standing desk and it can take a while to get used to, it also brings on a whole lot of different concerns when it comes to standing for long periods of time.

3. Stress and the pelvic floor

Stress and the pelvic floor, definitely a topic that deserves its own post but in short the pelvic floor takes a beating from our emotions and in times of stress or anxiety we often rely on our pelvic floors to store all our tension and pain.

The pelvic floor is often used as a defense mechanism , say we are startled by a loud noise or angry about something we may find ourselves unconsciously contracting the muscles of the pelvic floor and holding them inwards. This chronic behaviour of tensing the pelvic floor muscles creates an environment inhospitable for nutrients and proper blood flow which then leads to more pain and dysfunction. This is often referred to as the stress, pain , anxiety cycle where we are feeding our dysfunction and it takes on a life of its own.

I will definitely be doing another post dedicated stress, anxiety and the pelvic floor and hope to release it soon but for now when you feel stressed take a look at your pelvic muscles , take a deep belly breath and release the muscles. It can go a long way to relaxing your body and calming your mind.

as always I hope that helped and wish everyone the very best with their pelvic floors :) treat them nicely

Best Stretch for Pelvic Floor Dysfunction - Ease Pelvic Tension

Jean Claude Van Damme Pelvic Floor Specialist :)

I thought I was going to save this post for later on but I just received an email from a fellow pelvic floor pain sufferer requesting stretches and exercises for pelvic floor pain and tension and it motivated me to post this one.

This is by far my favourite stretch for pelvic floor and if you really relax into it can bring amazing results. After doing this stretch for a while I would finally feel my natural ability to relax the pelvic floor and dare I say it I may have broke wind due to my relaxation. Sorry for that image back to it, here we go!

The Splits

That's right its the splits, I can see the dread on your faces but this is not just an exercise for little gymnasts and ballet dancers. Can you remember the last time you stretched in any way that resembled a split stretch. Most likely not and its an amazing stretch that can target

-> Tight hamstrings and Calves

-> Posterior or Anterior tilted Pelvis

-> Abductors

-> IT band

Steps

So we are not going to go all out and perform your regular splits stretch we are going to be doing a Static Wall Stretch (Always Warm up before a stretch, never stretch cold)

1. Find a wall large enough for you to spread your legs against. Move yourself up close to the wall so that you are sitting side on to the wall with your right or left hip touch the wall.

2. Swing your legs up so they are vertical against the wall.

3. Waddle your bum back slowly so you are able to maintain a neutral curve in your spine

4. Rotate your feet outwards so your pinky toe is closest the wall 

5. Try and relax and let gravity bring your legs down

6. Sit out here for 2-5 minutes, take it easy it can be quite a shock at first and you made find it hard to relax especially with tight hamstrings and tendons.

7. When you are relaxed you can also use your hands on your pelvic floor to find any trigger points and slowly knead them out. Remember to relax as much as possible.

8. When your finished slowly bring your legs closer together and gently bend your knees to your chest. You may feel some pain in your legs which is very normal after never having stretched like before.

 Similar to this one but feet more outwards and pinky toe close to the wall, obviously this lady has done the split stretch before and you shouldn't expect to go so low with your feet.

Need Some Assistance

You may find that the wall split stretch is not working for you or you just don't have a wall big enough for your luscious legs. Well never fear you can either do a traditional split on the carpet or try a Leg stretcher device to perform the stretch.

I use a simple leg stretcher which is made up of 3 metal rods and handles to help achieve a stronger stretch without the need for a wall. The simple metal pole leg stretchers are quite cheap but there are also more advanced versions with pulleys and winding mechanisms. (device I use below)

That's all folks, I really do hope it helps you out as it has honestly helped me greatly in regaining my flexibility and letting my pelvic floor feel relaxed.