Any pelvic floor physio success stories?

[MeadowHay]

I saw a pelvic floor physio the other week. She has told me to do a bunch of pelvic floor exercises and I have an appt with her in about 6 weeks where she will check me again using the biofeedback thing. I don't have prolapse and only a few mild symptoms (no incontinence), I'm 9 months PP and complained to the GP about my symptoms, which were worse at the time, 3 months PP but he refused to refer me and brushed everything off as normal. Changed GPs after I moved house at 6 months PP who referred me to gynae that I saw about 2 weeks ago who also said he thought my pelvic floor muscles were good even compared to women who haven't had a baby but agreed to refer me to physio anyway just because i was a bit persistent.

Anyway the physio said my pelvic floor muscles are weak but she reckons after these weeks of exercises that should be all I need. She rated my pelvic floor strength as 2/5 which makes me feel sad tbh. One baby, less than 7lb, ventouse delivery and episiotomy.

So, help me feel better, I guess I won't magically be a 5/5 after a few weeks of exercises lol (can a postpartum woman ever be a 5?!) but as anyone managed to up their pelvic floor strength score through the exercises?

Also, if it improved, if you went on to have another baby(/ies), what happened, did you have to go back, did it make things worse ?

I would also like to know this! I am 9 weeks postpartum, had foreceps and an episiotomy and have been referred for some physio - sure all is ok just have a slightly low cervix

Hope pelvic floor exercises is all I will need and will help to get things back to ‘normal’

I did pelvic floor exercises religiously and ended up with a pelvic floor you could bounce ping-pong balls off.

I stuck little bright dots at eye level in places I might stand. Wardrobe mirror, sink, cooker, bathroom. When I saw a dot I'd do an exercise. I was catching a bus twice a day and I always did them while waiting for the bus. In queues at the supermarket - anywhere.

It's getting it so that you're almost automatically doing the exercises.

I had a full fourth degree tear and was told I was virtually guaranteed long term problems. I went to two physio sessions (not fun at all) and after a year was back to normal. Also had another baby a few weeks ago. Good luck

I don’t know if this is the reason I have never had a ‘leak’ and am
able to hold my bladder for hours, thus avoiding the use of public toilets, but my mother told me when I was a teenager to stop, hold, start when urinating and I have done it every day and I’m in my fifties.

After having children (now adults) I started doing pelvic floor exercises -

‘First, lift up and squeeze your back passage as if you’re trying to hold in a bowel movement. Then lift up and hold the muscles of your vagina and bladder, as you would if you were holding in urine.
For short squeezes, hold for a second or two, then release. Rest for one or two seconds before squeezing back and front again.
For long squeezes, hold for at least four seconds, then release. Rest for a few seconds, then repeat. Over time, try to work up to holding the squeeze for 10 seconds.
Do as many pelvic squeezes as you can, long and short, before your muscles get tired. Aim to repeat your exercises three times a day.’

So easy to do and become second nature over time.

I’m in my fifties and can laugh, cough, sneeze, rude a horse and go on a trampoline without any fear of leaking unlike a couple of women my age that I know who do leak and worry about leaking.

My physio worked wondered in my pelvic floor. First child it was wrecked. I did my exercises and it’s fine now. If I have a long cold it feels the strain and after a week or so I can’t sneeze standing up without preparing for it!

My second child was forceps and my pelvic floor was much less damaged than the ventouse. I still do the odd maintainance set of exercises but it’s nowhere near as much of a problem.

So yes it gets better. Much better