This month we are fortunate to have a wonderful guest writer, Canda Lodge, DPT. Canda Lodge is a pelvic physical therapist in Eugene. Her practice focuses on chronic pelvic pain, queer and trans health, EDS/hypermobility, and so much more. She has done some training of As You Like It Staff and is passionate about sharing knowledge so we can all be our own pelvic floor experts!
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“What’s the deal with my pelvic floor?”
“15 ways to get stronger pelvic floor for better sex”
“Strengthen your pelvic floor with this easy 10 minute routine”
Have you seen articles like this? In the last few years there’s been a lot more talk about the pelvic floor. TikTok and Instagram have pelvic floor content everywhere! Celebrities are openly talking about going to pelvic floor therapy. I love it! I’m so glad this magical part of the body is getting its long overdue publicity.
At the same time, do you ever feel like you don’t quite know what’s going on? A lot of information is still missing. You might see a video pop up here or there, but what does it mean for you? Even if you’ve heard more about the pelvic floor lately, navigating the stream of information from wellness influencers, doctors, and other educators can still be super overwhelming.
As a pelvic physical therapist (PT), I’ve been so excited to finally see more information out there. When I started specializing in pelvic PT 10 years ago, it was not this easy. Most people had heard of a “kegal” but that was usually about it.
Something worth noting is that unfortunately a lot of the pelvic content out there is still only marketed toward cis white women. A lot of it is still focused on postpartum and pregnancy. Occasionally it is focused on sex or urinary issues, but either way much of the content is telling you your pelvic floor needs to “get stronger!” It can carry a sense of urgency that somehow leaves you wondering if you’ve been slacking off on your health. One might occasionally leave Instagram stressed thinking “Wait do I need to buy a yoni egg immediately? What if I’m not a cis female who just had a baby? What even is a “kegel”, and am I even doing it right? How do I know if my pelvic floor is strong? Does a person with a penis still have a pelvic floor? What if I tried the thing I read online and my problem got worse? Which video on YouTube is the one that’s going to help my situation?"
There are both simple and complex answers to these questions!
This is one of the reasons I’m excited to do more writing and workshops on this content. More than anything, I would LOVE to teach everyone how to do my job. How to know what the pelvic floor is, how to be aware of it, and how to know what your pelvic floor needs from you.
In my lifetime, I’ve watched health literacy improve. Do you remember a time before we knew how to recognize the signs of stroke and heart attack? Do you remember a time when we didn’t know women had different heart attack symptoms than men? These things still aren’t completely common knowledge. But compared to the 1990s we are in such a better place being able to spot and respond to these emergencies.
We can do this with pelvic health too!
Wouldn’t it be great if we knew what kind of advice applied to our specific pelvic floor?
It takes time but I think it’s possible for anyone to learn and have power over their bodies. To give a little glimpse, here are some good examples of pelvic floor facts that may not be common knowledge:
1. Someone diagnosed with prolapse might want to buy some kegel weights or a yoni egg to strengthen their pelvic floor, but did you know that putting something heavy in the vaginal canal can actually worsen the prolapse? Yet there are some rare situations where it might actually be helpful in increasing the sensation in the vaginal canal to do a better contraction. Many factors can go into treating prolapse, and your PT can guide you o the appropriate products and exercises.
2. Someone who has urinary leakage with coughing and sneezing might think their pelvic floor is weak and may be diligently trying to do 100 kegels a day because they saw that in a magazine. But in reality, they might turn out to have a tight pelvic floor. If the pelvic floor muscles can’t relax, coordinate, or allow any shock absorption from high pressure coming from above the bladder, leakage definitely can happen! Repetitive kegels with no other strategies could make this worse. But then again, in the long run, after the pelvic floor learns to relax and move through a full range of motion, re-training and strengthening these muscles will be really important.
3. Someone with urinary urgency or overactive bladder might be running to the bathroom every time before they leave the house and going as soon as they walk into a store just to “make sure” they don’t get caught with a full bladder. But, training the brain to empty the bladder “just in case” can actually train the bladder to alert you before it is actually full!
Wild right?
I’d love for us to all know how to tell if our own pelvic floor is tight, too weak, uncoordinated or shut off. And I think that knowledge is possible the more we talk about it!
Related, you might not know it but pelvic floor issues can come up with a very broad range of conditions. Here’s a short list of conditions that I’ve treated in my career: Prolapse, urinary leakage, overactive bladder, endometriosis, IBS, constipation, pain during sex, tailbone pain, EDS/hypermobility, abdominal pain, hernias, scar tissue, genital discomfort, hysterectomy, c-section scars, gender-affirming surgeries (both bottom and top), hip pain, low back pain, groin pain, difficulty emptying the bladder, chronic UTI, and bladder pain.
Have you heard any of these descriptions in conversation with doctors, friends, or family members? Have you experienced any of them yourself?
All of those conditions have intimate relationships with the pelvic floor. All of them are treatable issues! There are so many creative ways to improve them through physical therapy and education. I’d love to see us all more confident about caring for our bodies when we face these kinds of issues.
Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to know exactly how to adapt sex for your hip pain? How to go on a run without your bladder leaking? How to have less constipation and bloating?
Wouldn’t it be great if we all knew the right terms to google for our weird issues or the best buzzwords to ask the doctor when we’re seeking help?
I think so.
The solutions can sometimes be simple, and other times complex. Either way, I think better pelvic floor literacy is possible. I think we can all understand that each one of us is unique and what works for one person might not work for another. It’s a journey to find the thing that works for your unique body.
If you struggle with pelvic health issues, know a pelvic floor physical therapist can help you! And if you don't, and you’re just curious, keep an eye out for future posts where we deep dive into more pelvic health information together!
You can also join us for my Pelvic Health Workshops May 31st, 2026.