Look below for some answer to frequently asked questions about pelvic floor physical therapy!

What will my first visit be like?

At your initial visit we will take time to sit down and go over all of your past and current medical history prior to the physical examination. This way we will have all of the essential information to rule out any systemic issues contributing to your symptoms and to form a greater understanding of your current situation/symptom presentation. The physical examination will consist of a thorough neuromusculoskeletal evaluation in order to assess posture, alignment, mobility, and strength. Typically, it is eventually helpful to assess the pelvic floor internally (vaginal or rectal depending on symptom presentation). However, this is totally based on your comfort level and can be discussed in detail.

Based on the information gathered during the evaluation we will come up with a comprehensive and customized plan of care to address your specific case, both together and on your own each day!

What is concierge pelvic floor physical therapy?

Concierge healthcare is becoming more popular as we begin to shift away from the massive insurance-based companies that only care about your copay and the number of patients they can see in a day. Concierge physical therapy puts you back in the drivers seat in the comfort of your own home!

We provide home visits — meaning we come to you with all of our equipment for a holistic, calming, and educational physical therapy session. We don’t feel rushed, you can stay relaxed without navigating childcare or driving to a clinic, and we have the added benefit of observing you in your natural habitat for the most realistic snapshot of your daily symptoms.

Because we’re able to provide such dedicated one-on-one time, we’re typically available more often between your sessions to problem-solve or answer any questions that may come up during your week. We don’t want you to feel brushed off with a brisk email when you have questions. We’re here to support you along every step of your healing journey!

What should I wear?

Something comfortable! Feel free to wear comfortable, easy to move in clothes as we will be assessing your movement. At some point during a visit, we may be doing an internal assessment which would require you to undress from the waist down, draping with sheets and towels.

How many treatment sessions will I need?

Every person is coming to physical therapy with a unique situation and the follow up plan will be unique as well! My goal as a pelvic floor physical therapist is to enable you to learn/find the tools necessary to heal and manage your symptoms. Typically the amount of visits that are required for clients to feel they have come full circle in their healing is somewhere between 1 and 12 visits. Some patients love to keep coming for maintenance and general wellness!

What if I do not feel comfortable consenting to an internal pelvic examination?

That is ok! We will ALWAYS be working within your comfort level and can always modify/make changes at any time, as needed! It is perfectly fine to say NO to an internal assessment/treatment if you are not comfortable with it. The reason that we do check internally at all is because there are specific muscles of the pelvic floor that can only be accessed vaginally/rectally and they can be major players in the cause of pelvic floor pain and dysfunction. However, we can still make good progress without internal work if you would prefer not to!

What does an internal pelvic floor assessment entail?

We make you as comfortable as possible with no unnecessary equipment. We use only a single, gloved finger with lubrication during the internal evaluation which allows us to assess for muscle tension, pain, tendon insertions, ligament integrity, and some pelvic organ positions. We can assess for strength, the muscles’ ability  to relax, potential prolapse, movement with breathing, myofascial tension through adjacent body part.

You are able to lie down comfortable with your legs relaxed, with a sheet under you and one draped over you. No crinkly paper to lay on!

Should I keep my appointment if I am menstruating?

I always say of course! But this is totally up to you. We can still perform any type of treatment while you are menstruating but will always operate within your comfort zone. Even if you are experiencing bad symptoms, that could be a great session to spend most of the time with calming manual therapy and pain relief techniques!

Why don’t you accept insurance?

This is always a great question! Over the years insurance companies have continued to cut reimbursements to physical therapy providers as they would rather encourage prescription medications for short-term rather than long-term pain relief and management.

They also mostly expect physical therapists to work with multiple patients at a time during a 30-minute appointment, which I don’t believe is an ethical way to care for someone’s health. I value one-on-one time with my patients during a 60-minute appointment to ensure we have adequate time to catch up on what’s been going well and what’s a struggle, to calm down the mind & body with manual therapy work, and finish with mobility, exercise, questions, education, or home program adjustments as needed.

With insurance-based care, you typically get cookie-cutter, rushed appointments that aren’t spent listening to your actual concerns. Once insurance sees that ‘goals have been met’ (usually a certain amount of range of motion, strength, or balance) patients have to be discharged even if pain or other symptoms are still present. Without insurance, we can also keep working together until you are satisfied with your symptoms and we can work towards longer-term goals that insurance-based PT is unable to capture.

Overall, I’ve found that clients are able to get better faster and reach their personal goals with quality appointments that are spent 100% with me. I also invite clients to reach out to me in between appointments by text, email, or phone to troubleshoot in the moment.

What if I need to cancel my appointment?

Please cancel all appointments at least 24 hours in advance to avoid the late cancellation fee which is $30.

Still have questions?

Check out our blog to read more about the pelvic floor, what it is, what it does, and how pelvic floor physical therapy can help you!