WOMEN'S HEALTHCARE
Our physiotherapists have specialist knowledge of women's health throughout all stages of the life cycle including pregnancy and older women's health. Whether you are a woman experiencing bladder, bowel or pelvic floor concerns, suffering from back or pelvic pain during pregnancy or as a new mum, then physiotherapy has been proven to provide significant relief.
Diane Wootton is a Clinical Specialist Physiotherapist with over 20 years experience in treating male and female bladder and bowel incontinence, pelvic floor dysfunction and pelvic pain.
She trained at The Middlesex Hospital in London and took a postgraduate course to gain full membership of the Association of Chartered Physiotherapists in Women’s Health. Diane has also passed the Acupuncture Association of Physiotherapists course to enable her to use acupuncture in women’s health.
She has a particular interest in rehabilitating men after prostate surgery and treating women after childbirth to strengthen their pelvic floor muscles. Her other main treatments are for chronic pelvic pain and the use of acupuncture in women's and men’s health.
Pregnancy-related problems
Pregnancy, childbirth and baby care can place enormous mental and physical strain on a mother. At The PhysioStudio, we support and educate our mums-to-be and new mums to help maintain their strength and suppleness and to prevent long-term problems of back pain and incontinence. We are also able to treat mums-to-be throughout their pregnancy with gentle mobilising and strengthening techniques, helping them enjoy as comfortable a pregnancy as possible.
We work to inspire and motivate women to stop putting exercise on the backburner and incorporate time spent with children with physical activities to help boost energy levels and keep in overall good shape, encouraging exercise to become an integral part of life.
At the PhysioStudio we encourage mums to do more with their new baby to promote happiness and a sense of wellbeing. Regular exercise not only helps to improve your strength, suppleness and stamina but is also important for relaxation, restful sleep and confidence building. We believe that if we can encourage mums to start to exercise with their babies as soon as they feel able (usually about 6 weeks post childbirth), they find it easier to incorporate exercise into their everyday life.
Remember when you first start to exercise, be sensible and start gently. If you experience any backache, pelvic girdle pain or incontinence give us a call for a specialised consultation. The use of acupuncture in pregnancy is also a great and completely natural way to help with problems such as morning sickness, fatigue and back pain.*
Click here for » Physiotherapy Tips for Mums
Menopause
Menopause usually affects women around the age of 50 and can have some unpleasant side affects. Through effective physiotherapy we can help manage symptoms such as hot flushes, fatigue and hormonal imbalances. Acupuncture can also be used effectively in treatment. **
PELVIC FLOOR PROBLEMS
Many cases of incontinence and bladder or bowel weakness can be improved with a specialist continence programme. You can read our Pelvic Floor Muscle Treatment leaflet by clicking here. This gives more information about the physical examination, exercises and various treatment options.
Overactive bladder
It’s important to realise that, particularly when it comes to bladder weakness, no symptoms of leakage or a sudden dash to the toilet should be considered normal after having children and, although up to 1 in 3 women have bladder leakage at some stage in their life, there are some simple steps that can be taken to help retrain the bladder and strengthen those all important pelvic floor muscles.
Pelvic floor
Many women find that after having children and during the menopause they experience changes in their pelvic floor. These problems are very common but can have a significant effect on women's quality of life. They can be rectified via physiotherapy or in some cases surgical intervention. Where surgery is required, physiotherapy is an essential element in the recovery process.
Bladder and bowl incontinence
Urinary incontinence is a common condition but is more widespread in women. The two main types are stress and urge incontinence. Stress incontinence is mainly caused by a weakening of the pelvic floor muscles, causing urine to leak when only slight pressure is applied to the bladder, such as when coughing or laughing. Physiotherapy can be an invaluable treatment aid in these cases, usually in the form of a programme of exercises to strengthen the muscles surrounding the bladder. Urge incontinence occurs when the bladder prematurely sends a signal to the brain that it is full causing the bladder to contract immediately. For this condition physiotherapists may recommend a programme of bladder retraining.
Bowel incontinence can be caused by damage to the muscles or nerves around the anus and in women these sometimes occur during childbirth. Physiotherapy can be extremely useful in this condition, again by helping improve muscle function.
Trigger Point Massage For Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome
Chronic pelvic pain may be caused by a number of reasons both bladder and bowel related, but sometimes the pain may have other origins.
One of these origins can be a tightness of the pelvic floor muscles causing them to be held in constant spasm, just like having a permanently clenched fist. This constant tightness then causes a dysfunction of not just the pelvic floor muscles but also other related structures around the pelvic girdle.
Pelvic floor dysfunction in both men and women can be myofascial (i.e. within muscles and or tissues) and patients may have some exquisitely tender areas within the muscle known as trigger points.
These can respond well to massage and stretches done by a clinical physiotherapy specialist. Patients are encouraged to exercise and perform daily stretches in conjunction with treatment.
Chronic pelvic pain treatment is available by Diane Wootton, Clinical Specialist Physiotherapist and is usually covered by insurance.