How do I find a Pelvic Floor PT?

[paininla]

One of the biggest challenges for pelvic pain patients is finding the right physical therapist. Since we’ve launched our blog, one of the most consistent areas of feedback has been the difficulty patients have finding appropriate pelvic floor PT.

A variety of issues are behind this difficulty. First, the supply of PTs qualified to treat pelvic pain does not meet the patient demand. A major reason for this is that pelvic floor PT is not part of the current PT school curriculum. So, PTs who wish to become educated in pelvic floor PT must find and fund their own post graduate training. And post graduate educational opportunities in pelvic floor PT, while they do exist, are limited.

Another reason its so hard to find a pelvic pain PT is that many PTs today who do treat the pelvic floor only treat incontinence, which as we’ve already discussed in previous blog posts, is a very different animal than pelvic pain.

On top of all of this, the pipeline between doctors who treat pelvic pain and pelvic floor physical therapists is still very much a work in progress. So it’s not a given that a patient’s physician is going to be able to recommend a PT to him or her.

What makes the current PT environment for pelvic pain treatment so frustrating is that hands-on PT is a proven treatment approach for pelvic pain. I for one have seen first-hand just how successful it can be–even in situations that previously seemed hopeless to the patient.

So considering these challenges, how does one find a knowledgeable and experienced pelvic floor PT?

Fortunately, there are extremely knowledgeable and experienced pelvic floor PTs out there. And resources and avenues do exist to help pelvic pain patients connect with them. In this blog I’m going to give you the downlow on these resources as well as some advice on how to best apply them to your PT search.

To read the post in its entirety, please click the link below:

pelvicpainrehab.com/blog/20...

[PPSN_JudyB Pelvic Pain Support Netwo]

Thank you for this blog. Regarding the curriculum and training for physiotherapists the same applies to the UK. Women's Health physiotherapists are trained to treat continence issues. In the NHS there are hardly any physiotherapists treating pelvic pain. As a result patients who want to try this have to find their own therapist and pay privately. Private insurance will cover acute physiotherapy but not on an ongoing basis. The number of sessions is limited.

In France, Germany and many other European countries, physiotherapy is covered by the normal medical insurance that everyone has. There are quite a few physios in France who have specialized in treating pelvic pain patients but this has followed their interest through additional training.

Pelvic pain should be included in the curriculum/training of physiotherapists alongside back pain/chronic pain. It's as though there is a reluctance to acknowledge that pain is as debilitating or even more so in a part of the body that is not usually seen !

[jcb555]

Hi Judy

only just come across this post,I am a womens health physio based in Warrington Cheshire as well as treating continence and obstetric problems I have a special interest in treating pelvic pain especially when there are problems arising from ,or associated with pelvic floor dysfunction. For both male and female patients I use a manual therapy approach using connective tisssue release and trigger point release to normalise tone or tightness within the pelvic floor . All of the courses and workshops I have attended have been post graduate level, and i agree there are not many of us, especially in the North of England!Please feel free to contact me at [e-mail] or have a look at my website womenshealthphysiotherapy.c...