In this Raw Refun, Kris & Allie sit down with pelvic floor physical therapist Dr. Sara Tanza, owner of Pelvic Potential in Santa Cruz, Calif. We talk about leaking, clenching, breathing, how best to use lube and how a pelvic floor physical therapist can help with painful sex. Dr. Sara takes listeners through a self-assessment and offers tips on breathing and muscle activation. Part 1 of 2.
Here's what we discussed with Dr. Sara Tanza in Part 1:
- What is your pelvic floor?
- How our core relates to our pelvic floor
- Pain and your pelvic floor
- How you know if you have pelvic organ prolapse
- Why am I leaking and what to do about it
- Stress vs. urge incontinence
- Pain with sex — a PT can help with that!
- The problem with bad advice
- Great lube but tight muscles
- Exercises that can help
- The “flat belly thing”
- Clenching and postural holding patterns
- “Bring on the TMI!”
- What treatment is actually like
- Pelvic floor breathing and a self-assessment
- The role of vaginal dilators
- How to use lube properly
- Too tight and too loose at the same time
- How to relax the pelvic floor
- Activating the front muscles
- Stress and your pelvic floor
- Coffee, fiber and poo: fecal urgency
- Keeping a bowel/bladder diary
- Referring out to other specialists
Links to resources discussed in this podcast:
- Dr. Sara’s practice: Pelvic Potential Physical Therapy
- Book a virtual or in-person appointment with Dr. Sara Tanza here.
- Join Dr. Sara’s mailing list here and you will be the first to have access to her free Guided Meditation for Pelvic Floor Relaxation video. You’ll also be notified when her online program goes live.
- Follow Dr. Sara on Instagram. She offers lots of free content surrounding pelvic health. She’ll be announcing the launch of her online program—Pelvic Potential: A Hands-On Guide to Pelvic Muscle Training—on Instagram.
- Find a pelvic floor physical therapist near you here.
- Here is an extremely robust resource for links to pelvic floor anatomy.
- Intimate Rose Vaginal Dilators
- The yoga practice of Dr. Sara’s friend, Tianna Bartoletta. Tianna is a two-time Olympian, three-time Gold Medalist and an amazing yoga instructor. Get up early or request the Zoom link!
- In addition to her physical therapy practice, Dr. Sara, an avid runner herself, is also the assistant race director for one of the largest female-focused 5k/10k races in the country. Learn more about She.Is.Beautiful here.
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