FAQs
Answers to your pelvic health questions
General Questions
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Pelvic health physiotherapy is a specialized branch of physiotherapy that addresses the pelvic floor muscles, and concerns such as incontinence, urinary urgency and/or frequency, retention, constipation, diastasis recti abdominis, pelvic organ prolapse, pelvic pain, as well as prenatal, postpartum, and perimenopausal pelvic health.
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I understand that pelvic floor rehabilitation can feel intimidating, I aim to create a calm, comfortable, and welcoming environment to best help you with your goals. I will always explain the treatment / assessment as we go to ensure you are comfortable and provide you with the opportunity to have your questions answered.
Your sessions may include the following:
Learning about you and your health history
Internal assessment of pelvic anatomy, tissue, and muscles - this is only done if necessary with informed consent by you
EMG Biofeedback
Pelvic floor and core muscular retraining
Education
A home exercise program
During a subsequent appointment we discuss how you have been feeling since the previous visit, we will reassess, evaluate progress, review the treatment plan and make changes as appropriate.
I do need to clear up one thing, pelvic health physio is not just about Kegels!
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No, you do not require a referral from a physician to book an appointment with a physiotherapist. If you have coverage, you may want to check with your provider to see if they require a referral to cover the visit.
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That is completely fine! It does not affect the assessment, as long as you are comfortable.
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A little backstory: during the pandemic due to the increased use of virtual appointments, we were able to research how effective they are, and it turns out they can be really helpful
One of the reasons I offer virtual appointments is to service the early postpartum population (between 0 to 6 weeks). It can be challenging to leave the house with baby, you’re still healing, we’re not at the point where we’re physically assessing the pelvic floor, but have questions or concerns that we want to be addressing.
Scheduling information
Scheduling Pregnancy and Postpartum Appointments:
If this is our first time working together schedule an Initial Appointment
See below for the recommendations for Follow Up Appointments - this allows us to ensure timely follow ups which is important to adequately address concerns
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If you are not currently experiencing any distressing symptoms - schedule an initial appointment at the beginning of your 2nd trimester
If you are experiencing symptoms please schedule an appointment as early as possible
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It is helpful to schedule Follow Up Appointments ahead of time to prevent issues and/or be able to address them immediately
Schedule Follow Ups about 3-4 weeks apart
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Schedule a virtual OR in-person appointment at approximately 2 weeks postpartum
Schedule a virtual OR in-person appointment at approximately 6-8 weeks postpartum
After the 6-8 week mark - schedule a couple of virtual OR in-person appointments about 2-3 weeks apart
Scheduling General Pelvic Health Physio Appointments (non-perinatal)
Schedule your Initial Appointment
Schedule a couple of Follow Up Appointments about 2-3 weeks apart