Estimates vary wildly so, conservatively, it is estimated that around 7 million people in the UK alone have bladder incontinence and around another 6 million have issues with their bowel. And that’s just the ones who have gone to seek help for the condition. It is estimated that this costs the NHS £26 million a year. However, this is a global problem and, in developing countries, the numbers of people suffering with this will be significantly higher and they may not have access to incontinence products.
Pelvic floor issues transcend race, culture, age and gender. Due to embarrassment or lack of resources, people remain mainly silent and, given the advertising we now see around incontinence aids, they begin to believe that there is an inevitability to having some form of leakage. Over time lives can be severely impacted due to concerns over exercise, work, relationships, travel and even just going out of the house.
Pelvic floor exercises can and will help along with some coping mechanisms for day to day living and may also prove useful prior to any impending pelvic surgery as a way of strengthening and preparing the area for that surgery. They can have a positive impact on sexual function and can give our bodies a strong yet adaptable foundation to power our daily movements.
- Pelvic floor muscles too lax or too tight
- Pregnancy
- Lifestyle – standing or sitting all day
- Age
- Stress
- Menopause
- Obesity
- Scoliosis and spinal curvature
- Posture
- Adhesions
- Surgery
- Trauma
- Poor breathing techniques
- Accidents
- Lipoedema
- Genetics
- Lymphoedema
- Substance abuse
- Neurological conditions
- Cancer – prostate, bladder or bowel
- Chronic chest conditions
- Hypermobility
- Certain medications
- Childbirth
- Radiation treatment
Phew!
Working to help your pelvic floor cope as we get older is vital as loss of bladder/bowel control impacts on dignity and independence and can be a major factor in someone going into a care home. If you put the work in now and the exercises become a habit then there is one less reason for you needing additional care support.
In the early stages of retraining of the pelvic floor it would be advisable to go walking rather than running, low impact aerobics as opposed to high impact, swimming or aqua aerobics as opposed to trampolining etc. I am not saying you will never be able to get back to the higher impact modes of exercise, but the retraining takes time and focus to allow each stage to be mastered and having a goal (such as I want to be able to run 5K again or I want to trampoline with the kids) keeps us focused on improving. If your chosen mode of fitness is gym based there are loads of ways to modify exercise to avoid overloading the pelvic floor and that is a conversation you can have with a personal trainer.
Postural alignment can prove challenging to the strength of your pelvic floor. Something as simple as a lazy slouched posture compresses the lungs and diaphragm or a pelvic tilt causing an over- or under-activation of the abdominal muscles and diaphragm can mean that the pelvic floor is unable to work as effectively as it could do if these extraneous issues are addressed.
The first thing to do is to have an honest conversation with yourself about your pelvic health. In the Appendix page you will find both a Bladder and Bowel Questionnaire which you can complete for your own records - complete one or the other (or both if required). I encourage you to complete this prior to and after finishing ALL the course. If you want to share this with me then by all means do so but, even if you don’t, please share your experiences at the end of the course I would be delighted to have your feedback and see the progression you have made.