My sister has been diagnosed with a pelvic floor that is always contracting. Will your DVD help her?”
If your sister’s diagnosis is hypertone of her pelvic floor, then she really needs to concentrate on the relaxation phase of pelvic floor exercises. I still believe patients with hypertone benefit from strengthening exercises as long as they prolong the relaxation phase and allow their pelvic floor to completely let go.
I often describe this like when we make a tight fist and our knuckles turn white – that is what a pelvic floor that never relaxes can look like – unhealthy, lacks blood flow, and dysfunctional. Exercising these muscles, allowing a lengthened relaxation phase, allows for an influx of healthy blood flow similar to opening and closing your fist.
Often, to recognize how to relax the pelvic floor, manual feedback from a physical therapist is required. You can find a women’s health physical therapist in your area at www.apta.org under “find a PT.”