Benefits of Pelvic Floor Exercises for Chronic Constipation

Did you know that a weak pelvic floor can often result in constipation as one of its symptoms? Pelvic floor exercises for chronic constipation strengthen your pelvic floor muscles allowing you to control bowel movements effectively. Here is why.

The most common mistake of people suffering from chronic constipation is identifying the underlying cause of it. They tend to rely on laxatives as a long-term solution, while others believe that diet alone can improve chronic constipation. Though laxatives and changes in diet are an effective part of treating chronic constipation, laxatives must only be used during the treatment phase and diet should be balanced with appropriate exercise. 

One effective form of exercise for chronic constipation is pelvic floor exercises.

Overview

Chronic constipation causes infrequent bowel movements and difficult passage of stools for several weeks or more. Although occasional constipation is fairly common, chronic constipation can interfere with their daily lives. Furthermore, constipation can also cause people to strain excessively when they have bowel movements.

However, ​many are unaware that when you strain yourself too much, it may harm your pelvic floor. To avoid it, doing proper pelvic floor exercises may help strengthen pelvic floor muscles.

Pelvic floor exercises are simple clench-and-release exercises that you can do to make your pelvic floor muscles stronger. The pelvic floor is a series of muscles and tissues that form a hammock-like structure at the bottom of your pelvis. This structure supports your organs.

Making sure that your pelvic floor muscles are strong, you can control your bowels or bladder.

But take note that pelvic floor exercises are only effective if you identify the right muscle. Sometimes, you may need the help of a professional to do it right.

How does chronic constipation affect the pelvic floor?

When people are constipated, they tend to strain themselves by exerting a lot of abdominal force to push the stool down. Little did they know that excessive pressure on the pelvic floor muscles causes them to weaken over time.

Moreover, a weak pelvic floor does not improve constipation. Instead, it worsens these muscles that help open and close the sphincter and assist in healthy defecation.

Then, we are trapped in a cycle of constant constipation weakening our pelvic floor and the weak pelvic floor making our constipation worse. Therefore, where do we go from here?

Finding the Right Professional

As we mentioned, pelvic floor exercises are simple exercises to strengthen your pelvic floor muscles. However, you must identify the right muscle for pelvic floor exercises to be effective. Otherwise, your efforts and time will be wasted.

If you are having a hard time dealing with your constipation, stop, and take a deep breath! We, at PELVIS.NYC knows the difficulties associated with constipation, particularly chronic constipation.

Dr. Adam Gvili PT, DPT, understands that successful treatment for one patient may not be successful for another. This is why we offer different treatment plans depending on the symptoms and condition of the patient.

To learn more about our services and schedule a free 15-minute teleconsultation with Dr. Adam, you may visit www.pelvis.nyc.

Don’t be afraid to ask. We are here to listen and help. We are here to support you every step of the way.

Related blog: Addressing Sudden Urge to Poop in Men