What does uterine placement have to do with our health? Everything! Our pelvic spaces are a complex intersection of stability and movement, top and bottom, intake and release. Many important nervous, circulatory, and fascial structures originate in this area. And smack in the center of it all is the uterus. The uterus is the Queen around which all of the other organs and tissues orient. What happens when the Queen forgets her good posture? Current Western medicine gives us a

Ever wonder if your headaches and jaw pain are connected to your pelvic dysfunction? You’d be right! One of the tenants of bodywork I most impress upon my clients is dysfunction in one area affects the whole system. Your foot pain will change your walking pattern which will affect your hips which will pull on your shoulders. Your shoulder injury will change how you use your arms which will affect your posture that in turn could cause problems with your neck and low back. S

Men’s pelvic floors need attention too! Self penile massage can be a great tool to support sexual function and overall health. Pelvic floor health is often on the lowest rung of the ladder when discussing physical health. When it is mentioned, it is often in relationship to pregnancy or other women’s issues. But men have pelvic floors too! And they can also be affected by pain and dysfunction. Self penile massage can be a wonderfully supportive tool for you address pelvi

Pain in your bladder, pressure in your pelvis. Disruptive, uncomfortable, and illusive to treatment. Arvigo® Maya Abdominal Massage can help! Usually I try to come up with more creative titles for my blog posts, but for a condition that can be mystifying I figured a little straight-shooting was in order here. Interstitial cystitis (IC), also known as painful bladder syndrome (PBS), is a chronic pain disorder that falls under the even broader umbrella of chronic pelvic pai

Chronic Pelvic Pain. This term encompasses conditions ranging from endometriosis to painful sex (dysperonia), incontinence to constipation, pelvic floor inhibition to over activation. These are complex conditions with a multitude of contributing factors. As such, it can a be frustrating nightmare when looking for answers. But complexity in this instance also offers those with these conditions several avenues to begin addressing the pain at home as well as gather information

Flexing your pelvic floor, commonly known as “doing Kegels,” has gained huge popularity over the past couple of decades. And for good reason. Gaining better control of your pelvic muscles can enhance your sexual health and enjoyment as well as benefit your digestive and respiratory systems. Kegels can help to improve urinary incontinence and decrease pelvic pain. Plus, this exercise can be done literally anywhere at any time! But there are two major, common misconceptions a

Getting a massage is a wonderful, relaxing, therapeutic time in our routines! In the midst of our bliss or startling at the sound of our own snores, we can think of “getting a massage” as a completely passive act. But active participation in the experience can rev up results and add another dimension to the work. One of the most (hopefully) obvious and encouraged forms of active participation is telling your therapist when you feel especially tender or painful areas. Even

“Sitting is the new smoking.” I'm sure you've heard this phase at least once in the recent past. Our modern culture is inundated with activities best done in this immobile position. It is taking years off our lives and contributing to a slew of health problems like low back pain and obesity. Many of these issues are connected to the ill effects this position has on our pelvic floors. Sitting for prolonged periods destabilizes the sacroiliac joint, exacerbates poor postural ha

Ladies! Use a waist trainer, girdle, or corset? Ever notice how you bloat a little bit (or a lot a bit) after taking it off? Strange, isn't it, how something that is supposed to hide a puffy belly seems to cause it? Here's why. As women, our stomachs are not meant to be board flat. Shocking, right?! Binding apparatuses make us look smaller by pinching in the natural waist, pulling the floating ribs closer together, and pushing in on the topmost part of the hips. This will con

In honor of Sexual Assault Awareness Month (April), I am using this post to address a topic that the majority of Massage Therapist tend to avoid. Massage Therapy and its relation to Sexual Health! With the fading but still lingering stigma of illicit services offered by shady massage parlors and the safety issues that creates for licensed therapists as well as unfortunate fact that usually massage is only connected with sex in misconduct news reports or human trafficking case

Tami Kent is a leader in women’s health and developer of Holistic Pelvic Care - a system of internal vaginal massage and energy work that helps women to restore balance to their pelvic floor and energetic root. Her book, Wild Feminine: Finding Power, Spirit & Joy in the Female Body, is considered a staple in the women’s pelvic health field. Filled with case studies, personal reflections, actionable exercises, and affirming insights, it is easy to understand why both practiti

What does it mean to have a strong core? Raise your hand if you think of six-pack abs when someone says the phrase “strong core.” Would it surprise you to learn that you can have a perfectly chiseled stomach and still have a weak core body? Strange, but true! Our core encompasses all of the muscles between and including our respiratory diaphragms and pelvic floors. I have also heard wiser, more experienced people than I suggest “core” includes any muscle that connects to our

Last week we discussed the signs of a happy period. While an ideal world would automatically come with the perfect menses for every woman, in this one we might have to work a little bit for it! Different menstrual dysfunctions have different causes and therefore will have different treatment needs. However, all of these problems can basically be split into one of two categories: structural dysfunction or hormonal imbalance. Though these might seem like unreachable, unchang

Are you a woman who experiences pain during penetrative intercourse? It’s a “normal” or acceptable amount of pain, right? Or maybe you feel like some strange anomaly? Either way, what can you really do about it? Well, I’m here to assure you you’re not alone, it isn’t normal, and you have options! In this post I’m going to be referencing a survey by Herbenick et al. done in 2012. It has some limitations, including that it analyzes only penile penetrative sex and only consi

In the care-giving world there is a term that describes the ability to be completely present for another person without judgement, open to whatever the other needs in that moment. It is called “holding space.” This is an element of therapeutic care that most professionals strive to achieve for their clients. But recently I have come to realize how important this type of openness is to give to yourself. In fact, I believe it is possibly the most essential tool we can have

Not long ago, a regular client came in complaining of shortness of breath as was as her usual pain. With a history of asthma and sinus issues, this wasn't super unusual. But the symptoms were becoming so pronounced, my client was concerned with the possibility of a hospitalizing asthma attack. Because she remained composed and there were no audible or visual signs of distress, I was unaware of the extent of the situation. (Side note: please, please, please let your therapist

“Thank you so much for helping me! A lot of women who do pelvic work will not work with men, so it can be difficult. I am so glad you agreed to see me because I think this is really going to work.” A man who recently came to see me for pelvic floor dysfunction and pain told me this at the end of his session. It is one of the most humbling and thought provoking things I have yet heard from a client. As a women working in pelvic care, most of my pelvic floor dysfunction clie

Dysmenorrhea and dyspareunia. Big words for extremely painful menstruation and painful sex during penetration, respectively. In other words, cringe-worthy conditions that are complicated, frustrating, and emotionally draining. For women living with these issues, massage therapy is one of the treatment options that can significantly improve your symptoms and your quality of life. Preliminary research performed in 2004, 2010, and 2011 all strongly indicate manual therapy has

When it comes to uterine position, most health professionals are concerned by prolapse (the uterus descending through the vaginal canal), severe retroversion or anteversion (the uterus tilting too far backward or forward), and anteflexion or retroflexion (uterus folding forward or backward). All other versions of off-center are are considered “normal” because they are common. Well, getting a cold is common, but that does not mean having one is “normal” or healthy. Malposit

Our pelvic floors are composed of 15 different muscles. More when you count the named muscles that are duplicated on both the left and right! These are designed to support our pelvic organs; preventing prolapses, steadying our gait, and preserve the integrity of our core. Any and or all of these can become over or under active which can cause imbalance in the pelvic bowl leading to dysfunction. Vaginal/Pelvic Floor massage can help to care for these important muscles. Be