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Why Pelvic Floor Dysfunction Could Be Related to Your Headaches and Neck Pain

Why Pelvic Floor Dysfunction Could Be Related to Your Headaches and Neck Pain

pelvic floor therapy San Ramon, CA

Can head and neck pain really be caused by tension in the pelvic floor muscles? As interconnected as our body systems are, this seems like a long stretch. However, it’d interest you to know that the neck, jaw, and pelvic floor are all part of the same muscular system and can be involved in a similar problem when there are problems with nerve signalling. 

Pelvic floor therapy can relieve this by addressing the root cause of the dysfunction and help you lead a healthier life. How? Let’s see as we proceed. 

What are the Causes of Pelvic Floor Dysfunction?

Pelvic floor dysfunction can result from any of these conditions:

  • Weak or tight muscles
  • Pregnancy and childbirth vaginal delivery
  • Surgery or trauma to the pelvis or abdomen
  • Long-term constipation caused by repeated straining during bowel movements 
  • Medical conditions affecting the pelvic floor such as endometriosis, interstitial cystitis, or chronic bladder pain, can lead to pelvic floor muscle tension. 
  • Pelvic organ prolapse 
  • Being obese 
  • High-impact exercises
  • Psychological stress and trauma.
  • Nerve damage 
  • Poor posture
  • Natural muscle weakness due to aging

The Connection Between the Pelvic Floor, Headaches, and Neck Pain 

When your head and neck are suffering, it might feel silly to connect those problems with disordered pelvic floor function. But there is a link, and it's a lot more common than you might think. If you have body-wide tension or a certain kind of joint disorder in your upper body, you're more likely to have tight, visibly dysfunctional pelvic floor muscles that also might lead to some kind of tension headache.

The muscles of your pelvic floor are responsible for supporting your lower body and holding your internal organs in place. Yet when these muscles are tight, they can cause the body to ripple into waves of headache, neck pain, and discomfort elsewhere. 

How Can Physical Therapy Help?

Elimination of pelvic floor dysfunction requires a practical, holistic approach—and physical therapy is just that. Dealing with the symptoms of pelvic floor disorders can be a long road of trying various prescription medications and undergoing recommended surgical procedures. 

However, working with a skilled physiotherapist and targeting the causes of pelvic floor dysfunction can provide real relief that doesn’t require surgery.

Some physical therapy techniques that can help address pelvic floor dysfunction include;

Stress-Reduction Techniques 

Stress reduction can alleviate the tension you may hold in your jaw. It can help break the cycle of tight jaw and headaches. Ironhorse Physical Therapy & Pilates recommends techniques like guided breathing, relaxation, and meditation for pelvic floor, headache, and neck pain treatment. These methods target the neck and jaw muscles and train the mind to switch off muscle gripping and teeth clenching.

Manual Therapy

Manual therapy entails hands-on approaches for relieving tightness in the neck, jaw, shoulders, and pelvic floor muscles. Myofascial release and trigger point therapy are two manual approaches used to relieve pain and improve mobility.

Postural Training

Exercises that enhance posture and alignment can relieve strained necks and pelvic regions. A good therapist can work with a patient to structure movements that minimize the undue pressure that they seem to be generating on jaw muscles.

Pelvic Floor Muscle Training

As noted earlier, tense pelvic muscles can cause headaches and neck pain. The good news is that pelvic therapy can help relieve muscle tension and train the pelvic floor for better function. Your physical therapist will work with you to develop a specific exercise program that meets your individual needs. 

Comprehensive Education

Grasping how your everyday posture, stress, and other daily habits affect your symptoms helps you to manage your condition. Your therapist will teach you about the myriad ways your physical body and the environment you live in can contribute to your pain. You will also learn how to live in a way that minimizes symptom production.

What Happens During Physical Therapy for Pelvic Floor Dysfunction?

If you're contemplating pelvic floor dysfunction physical therapy, you may be curious about the order of events during a therapy session. While each patient's experience is unique, the following is a fairly standard sequence of events that happen during pelvic floor physical therapy.

Holistic Evaluation

Your therapist will talk to you about your symptoms, medical history, and your way of living. They will want to know about your headaches, neck pain, and pelvic health problems. And they will perform a physical exam to better understand the situation. This allows them to evaluate not only the big stuff but also all the little details. 

Customized Treatment Plan 

Following the assessment, your physiotherapist will create a custom-fit plan. This plan is unique to you and may involve several treatment techniques, including manual therapy, therapeutic exercises, and education. The treatment is progressive and adjustable, and your physiotherapist will make changes as needed based on your responses to the treatments.

Your treatment plan might involve physical therapy techniques such as;

Manual therapy

Manual therapy is a hands-on treatment. The physical therapist might use manual therapy to release muscle tension and enhance flexibility in muscles. That's if you're comfortable and the therapist thinks it's a good idea. When used in pelvic floor therapy, manual therapy can involve external and internal treatment techniques.

Targeted exercises

You will learn to use targeted exercises to relax and strengthen specific muscles. For most of you, this will involve muscles that are quite close to the surface of the body, like those in the neck and shoulder. You will also learn how to strengthen your pelvic floor muscles through exercises.

Education

Your physical therapist will educate you on making changes to your lifestyle, managing your stress, and improving your posture. Your therapist will also design a home exercise program for you to follow so that you can maintain the progress you make in therapy between sessions.

TMJ-Focused Therapy

If the pelvic floor problems you are experiencing stem from TMJ dysfunction, Ironhorse Physical Therapy & Pilates is also going to treat this condition as well. They will evaluate your condition to know the appropriate techniques for you. It is very wise to treat both pelvic floor and TMJ disorders together for comprehensive relief.

Conclusion

Headaches, neck pain, or pelvic floor dysfunction—these seemingly disassociated areas of the body can all serve as sites of distress, yet they may also be connected in ways that can lead to a clearer understanding of their underlying problems and, therefore, to more effective treatments.

What you may not know or think about very often is that tension, tightness, and poor muscle functioning can occur in these structures and then manifest themselves as pain. If they are not treated, they can worsen health problems.