What to Expect During my First Pelvic Floor Therapy Visit?

By Shannon Strauch, PTA, STMT-1 on 5/10/2024

During a pelvic floor therapy initial evaluation, you can expect several key steps:

1. Medical History Review:

   Your therapist will review your medical history, including any relevant surgeries, injuries, or conditions that may affect your pelvic floor health. While something may seem unrelated to you, like an old car accident, it may give your therapist more insight into what may be going on with you.

2. Symptom Assessment:

   You'll discuss your symptoms in detail, such as pelvic pain, pain with sex, incontinence, or difficulties with bowel movements. This helps the therapist understand your specific concerns and goals. While some topics may be difficulty to talk about or taboo, we promise that we want you to be as comfortable to disclose anything you would like to us.

3. Physical Examination:

   The therapist will conduct a physical examination, which may include assessing your posture, pelvic alignment, muscle strength, flexibility, and sensation. For pelvic floor assessment, they may perform internal and external examinations to evaluate muscle tone, tenderness, and coordination. Sometimes patients are taken aback when this is first mentioned, but visually seeing the pelvic floor and being able to examine the internal muscles and how they work may be key to your recovery. Without dancing around the subject, this may mean vaginal or rectal! Depending on your external evaluation or patients comfort, an internal evaluation (which can lead into subsequent internal treatments of the muscles) may not even be warranted, but we feel as if it is important for people to know coming in so that they are not blindsided.

   ALL OF THIS IS DONE WITH INFORMED CONSENT FROM THE PATIENT!!

4. Biofeedback and EMG:

   Some therapists use biofeedback techniques to assess pelvic floor muscle activity. This involves using sensors to measure muscle contractions and relaxation patterns. Currently at Pelvic Health, us therapists are the biofeedback giving you verbal and tactile cues as to what is happening in your pelvic floor.

5. Education:

   Your therapist will educate you about pelvic floor anatomy, function, and how it relates to your symptoms. They may also discuss lifestyle factors that can impact pelvic floor health, such as diet, exercise, and posture.

6. Treatment Plan:

   Based on the evaluation findings and your goals, the therapist will develop a personalized treatment plan. This may include pelvic floor exercises (such as Kegels), manual therapy, relaxation techniques, behavioral strategies, and lifestyle modifications.

7. Follow-Up:

   You'll schedule follow-up appointments to track your progress, adjust the treatment plan as needed, and receive ongoing support and guidance.

Overall, the initial evaluation is a comprehensive process designed to gather information, assess your pelvic floor function, and create a tailored plan to address your pelvic health concerns. Looking to optimize your well being with pelvic floor physical therapy? Reach out to us at Pelvic Health Center in Madison, NJ to set up an evaluation and treatment! Feel free to call us at 908-443-9880 or email us at receptionmadison@pelvichealthnj.com.

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