Physiotherapy for women’s health

Specialist physiotherapy treatment for women can provide relief when struggling with your health. Problems can arise at any time in life, but physiotherapy for women’s health has shown to be a proven success. If you’d like to find out just how physiotherapy can help you, then continue reading.

Physiotherapy treatment for women

Women will go through some sort of health complication at one stage of their life, whether that is bladder or bowel issues, chronic pelvic pain, incontinence or menopause. Many women live with these conditions and pain for years, thinking it’s a natural occurrence of being a female. Some will live through the discomfort because of embarrassment and anxiety brought on by seeking care.

If you have experienced these types of conditions and embarrassment or anxiety at the thought of seeking care, just know that you shouldn’t have to live like this. Treatment is available in the form of physiotherapy for women’s health. For example, pelvic floor muscle physiotherapy helps to cure or improve the symptoms of weak pelvic floor muscles for over 70% of women.

There are a wide variety of treatments available to all women who are dealing with any issues. So contact a physiotherapist or your local GP to start the process of accessing targeted physiotherapy for women’s health.

Conditions

Historically, physiotherapy for women’s health covered just obstetrics, treating back and pelvic pain during pregnancy. However, physiotherapy for women’s health is a growing specialty and encompasses a wide range of conditions in 2022. They include:

Bladder or bowel dysfunction – up to 60% of women, who have not had children, have struggled with bladder or bowel problems
Pelvic floor dysfunction
Incontinence – one in three women experience this at some point in their life
Pelvic pain
Pelvic organ prolapse – this can happen to up to 50% of women who have had children
Pregnancy related musculoskeletal disorders (back pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, sciatica)
Menopause

The steps taken by a physiotherapist are designed to reduce the pain in the affected area and increase mobility, leading to an improvement in your overall quality of life.

Physiotherapy for women’s health can also address the side effects of menopause, including aches and pains, vaginal symptoms and pelvic floor muscle rehabilitation.

Physiotherapy treatments for women’s health

Due to the high number of conditions that physiotherapy for women’s health can address, there are a lot of techniques a physiotherapist will use. They vary depending on the type of condition a patient is struggling with, but they’re all known to have success in the majority of cases. You can typically categorise physiotherapy for women’s health into three sections.

Obstetrics

This method of treatment focuses on issues typically brought on during pregnancy, like pelvic, back and neck pain. Of course, women who aren’t pregnant can also feel these symptoms, so the care and treatment still applies.

Your physiotherapist will not only provide care and techniques to reduce the pain you’re experiencing, but they can also help in the build-up to your due date. This includes teaching breathing techniques, positions for labour, massage and relaxation.

Obstetrics physiotherapy treatment also covers conditions like carpal tunnel syndrome and sciatica. With soft and deep tissue massages combined with stretching exercises, they’ll help you on your way to a pain-free lifestyle.

Postnatal

Postnatal physiotherapy treatment includes abdominal retraining for weak distended abdominal muscles, and abdominal muscles that have separated. Treatment for any pain post-pregnancy is also covered, as well as practical advice for breastfeeding and improving your posture when carrying your baby.

Your physiotherapist will also provide treatment for strengthening your pelvic floor muscle. This helps with incontinence, prolapse and pelvic pain.

Finally, you will also be shown bespoke and safe steps to help you return to a good level of activity and exercise, without risk of injury or complication.

Gynaecology

Physiotherapy for gynaecological conditions mostly revolve around the pelvic floor muscles and how to strengthen them. The pelvic floor is made up of a group of muscles that attach from the pubic bone at the front of the pelvis to the coccyx at the base of the spine. This forms a muscle creating the floor of the pelvis.

Treatment for these muscles involves manual therapy for an overactive or painful pelvic floor, which includes Kegel exercises and muscle stimulation.

Your physiotherapist can also conduct bladder training exercises and acupuncture for overactive bladder syndrome.