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1.7 million deaths each year from poor water, sanitation and hygiene, with a child dying every 20 seconds. CAFOD's Thirst for Change campaign seeks put pressure on the G8 countries to make tackling water poverty a top priority. Find out how you can help with the just the click of a button.
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Next Back Class Starts 2nd February
Our Back Classes are the ideal way of finding out how to improve the mobility and strength of your lower back, under the instruction of experienced, chartered physiotherapists, in a fun, group setting.
Just £50 for six sessions
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women's health
[see also our Pregnancy Related Pain page]
Approximately 1 in 4 women will experience women’s health problems at some point in their lifetime, with a wide range of severity and nature, and across a broad age range. A large number of women are affected but many are too embarrassed to talk openly about their problem and so it often goes unreported. It can create enormous stress and may impact on a woman’s quality of life as well as her health and wellbeing. Yet often it just takes some specialist advice and training to resolve the problem.
What we can do to help
Women’s health physiotherapy can help women regain control of their bladder, their bowels and hopefully thereby improve the quality of their lives. In fact, NICE (the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence) recommends physiotherapy as the first-line course of action to treat stress or mixed urinary incontinence. It can also help improve the quality of a woman’s sex life, if that’s an issue.
By taking a detailed assessment of all factors which may exacerbate a patient’s problem, we can tailor treatment to address their individual concerns. We can offer a number of treatment options, including:
- teaching correct pelvic floor exercises as part of a programme to strengthen the pelvic floor muscles,
- bladder and bowel re-education,
- dietary and lifestyle advice, and
-
where appropriate, biofeedback and electrotherapy treatment.
We also treat women with pregnancy related back, pelvic or stomach pain, both antenatal and postnatal (please see our Pregnancy Related Pain page.)
Contact us
If you have any of the following problems:
- frequently going to the toilet to pass urine during the day and/or at night -referred to as 'frequency',
- urgency - when you feel that you cannot hold on until you get to a toilet,
- urinary incontinence i.e. leakage caused by stress (e.g. coughing, sneezing or laughing) or urgency or both, however mild it may be,
- faecal urgency and/or incontinence,
- problems controlling wind, and/or
-
a prolapse, of which there are several kinds.
Risk factors
The following can increase the likelihood of experiencing bladder or bowel problems:
- pregnancy and childbirth,
- the menopause and ageing,
- obesity,
- jobs involving heavy lifting,
- certain types of surgery, and
-
a history of constipation and/or poor bowel habits.
The causes
These conditions may have a number of causes but are usually associated with weak pelvic floor muscles. Not only do the muscles of the pelvic floor support the pelvic organs but they also help control urinary and faecal continence. When they have become damaged or stretched they may no longer work properly and/or they may no longer be able to hold up the bladder, vagina or back passage. The pelvic floor muscles might be weak or damaged or it might be that they’re just not being used properly. Some women don’t know where their pelvic floor muscles are or have very little awareness of how to use them. Others think they are doing pelvic floor muscle exercises but are not doing them correctly or appropriately. Others might have a strong pelvic floor, but are not using it when they should.
Strictly confidential
We recognise that this is an extremely sensitive area and we maintain the highest professional standards at all times. All information received and any treatment given remains strictly confidential. Our assessment and treatment is subject to on-going consent, which patients are free to withdraw at any time.
SO, IF YOU’VE GOT ANY BLADDER OR BOWEL PROBLEMS, OR YOU’RE NOT SURE WHERE YOUR PELVIC FLOOR
IS OR HOW TO USE IT, CONTACT US IN CONFIDENCE, FOR SPECIALIST HELP.
See also:-
Vicky Keates' women's health website
Pregnancy related pain
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