Posts

Does Having a Baby Cause Back Pain?

Image
It seems like it’s a weekly occurrence in my practice to field this question: My back has been hurting ever since I had my baby. Did my delivery have something to do with it? Is it the way I hold my baby? There is a little bit of a trick to answering this question: women want to know if any one of a number of variables surrounding the delivery has influenced how their back feels at the present moment. Problem is, variables happen every day, and so it is really hard to pinpoint any one of them and to say, “That’s it! That’s the root cause of the pain!” Even so, women will ask me about a wide variety of potential factors that may or may not contribute to their back pain: epidurals, duration or intensity of pushing, C-sections, posture, rapid labors, perineal tears, and weight gain. They also ask me about the way in which they are breast or bottlefeeding their babies, how they hold and carry them, and sleep postures after baby arrives. Let’s take a look at several of these factors in orde
Post a Comment
Read more

Finding the Right PT Specialist

Image
Pelvic floor dysfunction affects many women who will see multiple providers before they are diagnosed. Often, women are left to feel that the problems they are experiencing are normal and should just be endured. The simple truth is that pain is not normal. Women dealing with symptoms that can include urinary incontinence, constipation, pelvic or low back pain, discomfort during sexual intercourse, muscle spasms or pressure in the pelvic region can look to physical therapy to find relief. And in finding the right physical therapist to meet your needs, you might see certifications listed to which you might give a cursory glance, but these often missed abbreviations are very meaningful to your search. Physical therapists that specialize in pelvic pain have one or both of the following: Certificate of Achievement in Pelvic Pain (CAPP) Biofeedback Certification Institute of America – Pelvic Muscle Dysfunction Biofeedback (BCB-PMD) The Certificate of Achievement in Pelvic Health Physical The
Post a Comment
Read more

Happy First Anniversary, Katie!

Image
It’s been a year since we welcomed Katie Van Scyoc, PT, DPT, CMTPT to PT Center for Women. With her wide variety of skills, she’s been a perfect addition to the team. We love her. Her patients love her ("Katie is the best!," says Gretchen H; "Katie is wonderful and knowledgeable!" says Victoria M). We just wanted to check in with her for an update. We also wanted to introduce you to Katie if you haven’t had the chance to meet her. You’ll find her to be as wonderful as we do. Give us a brief snapshot of your first year at PT Center for Women. "I truly feel so blessed to be in this profession and working at PT Center for Women. The patients I have met and worked with over the past year are so amazing. You're coming alongside women at very different times in their life at different stages, many times when they're feeling vulnerable or insecure or in very stressful situations. And we have the privilege of walking through those stages with them. It's
Post a Comment
Read more

The ART of Physical Therapy

Image
Many times, my patients have questions about what I'm feeling or treating when I work with them. Most people know that physical therapists work with problems within the body, but in my line of practice, people are often befuddled about how and why they were sent to me in the first place. I am going to tell you a little bit about how we (physical therapists) view the patient, how we see and feel their problems and how we justify the treatments that we do. The first thing physical therapists do is realize that we are treating a whole person, not just a hip, a bladder, or a sciatic nerve, for example. We understand that the things going on inside your body - what is happening in all your organs and tissues - has influences on neighboring, regional and distant areas of your body (so please, do not be too put off if I'm intrigued by your big toe when you were referred to me for your low back pain). For everything is connected, and just like dominoes, things can stand together and
Post a Comment
Read more

Obesity: A Concern for Fertility & Pregnancy

Image
More than a cosmetic concern, obesity is a medical issue that raises the risk for heart disease, which is the leading cause of death in the U.S.   The statistics on rising obesity rates are staggering.  Various health conditions arise directly as a result of obesity, namely: Type II diabetes Cardiovascular disease Osteoarthritis Many forms of cancer The list goes on and on . . . Why does this matter to us at Women’s Care of Wisconsin/PT Center for Women? Two critical reasons: infertility rates rise with obesity pregnancy is generally riskier in the overweight population An important study found a missing link from obesity to infertility, clarifying the relationship between being overweight and the inability to conceive. A second study looked at the relationship between exercise both before and during pregnancy, and the onset of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus. The rationale behind the study was the fact that obesity and inactivity are related, and that obesity is a major risk fa
Post a Comment
Read more

Creating Harmony Through Balance

Image
Do you remember the words …“Sit up straight … pull your shoulders back … and for crying out loud, DON’T SLOUCH!” Imagine your mother watching you doing any one of the following: Sitting in front of a computer monitor. Snuggling up with a favorite book. Playing video games. Sitting on the floor, in a chair, on bleachers, at church, or in a theatre. Standing in place. Waiting in line. Watching TV. Fishing. Driving a car.  Or…doing anything during your normal day that requires you to be in one place for a period of time. Worse yet, imagine me watching you doing these things! As a physical therapist, I talk about the importance of good posture as a way of maintaining good musculoskeletal health. This blog entry is to educate you on the relationship between good posture and good musculoskeletal health (I didn’t make this up; they are honestly interrelated). Everything in our bodies is connected somehow, and, at least philosophically speaking, one thing can have an effect on everything
Post a Comment
Read more

I Want My Body Back!

Image
So congratulations! You’ve had your baby, and now you’re excited to get back into those favorite clothes that you haven’t worn in quite awhile. You feel like they should fit, because after all, your baby is five weeks old already. But, your jeans are still two sizes too small So, what do you do? You promptly jump onto the treadmill, turn up the incline, and start jogging. Fast. For like, two minutes. And then something happens. You notice that you’re wet. Not wet with sweat, just wet. In the saddle region, and at that moment you realize that your body is not quite like it used to be prior to that beautiful baby you now have. The very next thing you do is call your girlfriend, mom, sister, or all three and shout, “DID THIS HAPPEN TO YOU!?”  It’s true, and it happens all the time. Women have a baby, and then they want to pick up their life where it left off prior to pregnancy. The little story I just told you about is only one of several potential hiccups that new moms experience when th
Post a Comment
Read more