The Pelvic Health Podcast

Movers & Mentors with Tim Reynolds, Julie Wiebe, Sandy Hilton and Biljana Kennaway

Welcome to this international party episode of The Pelvic Health Podcast. 
Movers & Mentors is a new book by physiotherapists Tim Reynolds and Bryan Guzski featuring the thoughts and advice from leaders in physiotherapy and movement science - a book in which I was asked to contribute to along with absolutely brilliant names, including both Julie Wiebe and Sandy Hilton. 
Tim Reynolds asked to interview me about some of my answers to very cool questions in this book and I thought it would be more fun to have Julie and Sandy join, and decided to make it even more international and exciting by inviting another brilliant physio representing the Pelvic Obstetric & Gynaecological Physiotherapy group - Biljana Kennaway.
I hope you all enjoy!!!!
Find the book HERE
Bios via link on the names above :)
Bios:
Bryan Guzski PT, DPT, OCS, MBA, CSCS (couldn't party with us for this episode) is an outpatient orthopaedic physical therapist practicing in Rochester, NY working primarily with patients with spine related issues and persistent pain. Bryan earned his Doctor of Physical Therapy degree from Ithaca College in 2014, completed an orthopaedic residency program through Cayuga Medical Center in 2015 and received his Orthopaedic Clinical Specialist certification, and earned a Master of Business Administration degree from Simon Business School at the University of Rochester in 2021. 
 
Tim Reynolds PT, DPT, OCS, CSCS is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Anatomy & Physiology at Ithaca College and a part-time physical therapist practicing at Cayuga Medical Center in Ithaca, NY where he predominately treats patients with spine or lower extremity impairments. Tim earned his Doctor of Physical Therapy degree from Ithaca College in 2014 and completed both his orthopaedic residency and spine fellowship through Cayuga Medical Center, and currently helps mentor and teach in both of these programs as well. 
 
 

Empowered Motherhood Program with Lyz Evans and Kimmy Smith

I reached out to Lyz Evans and Kimmy Smith to to tell me about the Empowered Motherhood Program because I have watched them work tirelessly to create such a comprehensive and brilliant program and I think everyone needs to know about it. And a side note, this is NOT a paid advertisement. I just believe in this and wish I had their collective brains :).
Lyz Evans is a co-founder of the Empowered Motherhood Program, an APA titled Womens and Pelvic Health Physiotherapist, with over 17 years experience in both the public and private sector. She is the founder of Women in Focus Physiotherapy in Sydney, and spent over 10 years working at the Royal Hospital for Women in Sydney in Maternity, Oncology and Gynaecology. 
Lyz completed her Womens Health Masters through Curtin University in 2017, and as apart of her Masters has published clinical research in the International Urogynecology Journal reporting on the multifaceted longer term impacts to a woman of sustaining an Obstetric Anal Sphincter injury. 
She is also a busy mum to three young children and has an unwavering passion for armouring women with quality information to enable them to make better choices for their health. 
Kimmy Smith is the co-founder of the Empowered Motherhood Program. She is a pregnancy and postnatal exercise specialist, maternal health advocate and a proud Mum to three little girls. Kimmy was a former professional athlete and corporate lawyer. She played at the elite level for over 10 years, representing the NSW Swifts and was a member of the Australia Diamonds Squad. Drawing from her experience as a professional athlete, Kimmy is passionate about supporting women to feel strong during their pregnancy and  to return to exercise in a safe and positive way after birth. 
Health care professionals listening to The Pelvic Health Podcast can use the link to access:
Two Week Free Trial for Health Care Professionals. 
Links to our Find a Physio page where they can list their clinic and reach our members. 
EMP Member Pathway 
List of Included Content. 
Testimonails from Women’s Health Physiotherapists using the program. 
 https://www.empoweredmother.com.au/the-EMP-for-Health-Professionals 
 
Other links:
WHTA - Women's Health Training Associates
ICS 2021 Melbourne (online)

Physiotherapy-Led Pelvic Health Clinics

To address long hospital waitlists and improve patient access to care for pelvic floor conditions such as #incontinence and #prolapse , physiotherapy-led pelvic health clinics were introduced as a new model of care for gynaecology, urogynaecology and colorectal patients. Two physiotherapists involved in the evolution of this model of care are Jenny Nucifora and Janelle Greitschus (bios below). In this episode, they explain how this model was developed, the research supporting it's positive impact, and the role and pathway for advance practice physiotherapists in this setting.
 
Bios:
Jenny Nucifora is the Clinical Lead Physiotherapist in the Physiotherapy Led Pelvic Health Clinic at Gold Coast Health. This part time primary contact role within the urogynaecology team Clinic, was established in December 2016, to provide timely conservative management interventions as part of a strategy to reduce the urogynaecology waiting lists. Jenny continues to work part time in her private practice, Focus On Women Physiotherapy, at Benowa, Gold Coast, Queensland. She has been a Women’s Health physiotherapist for more than 25 years. Her research interests are in improving care of women with urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse, and the development of women’s health physiotherapists.
Janelle Greitschus is a clinical lead physiotherapist in the Pelvic Health Clinic at the QEII Jubilee Hospital, Metro South, Brisbane. This is a part time primary contact role associated with the Gynaecology, Urogynaecology, Urology and Colorectal Departments of this hospital. This clinic was established in 2016 and is designed to reduce the waiting lists of those clinical specialties by providing conservative care for patients with pelvic floor dysfunction prior to them seeing a medical specialist. Conditions included are: urinary or faecal incontinence, urogenital or rectal prolapse, obstructed defaecation or constipation. This provides a streamlined model of care following evidence based practice.
Janelle continues to work at Results Physiotherapy Private practice part-time, treating patients with pelvic floor dysfunction.
Janelle has a sessional teaching role at the Griffith University, Gold Coast and Nathan campuses teaching continence and Womens health physiotherapy in the Undergraduate and Masters of Physiotherapy programmes.
Janelle has been involved in teaching the Assessment and Treatment of the Pelvic Floor Course offered by the APA since the late 1990s until the recent introduction of the Womens, Men’s and Pelvic Health level 1 and 2 courses. She has been part of the successful research grant application “To assess the success and acceptability of a physiotherapy management program to treat urinary incontinence in indigenous women in a community based indigenous health service.”
 
Research:
Jenny - ResearchGate, email: jennifer.nucifora@health.qld.gov.au
Do patients discharged from the physiotherapy-led pelvic health
clinic re-present to the urogynaecology service? May 2021
Outcomes of a physiotherapy-led pelvic health clinic.
Patient Perceptions of a Group-Based Lifestyle Intervention for Overweight Women with Urinary Incontinence: A Qualitative Descriptive Study

Overactive bladder and dementia risk with anticholinergics with Dr Kerac Falk

Overactive bladder (OAB) is a very common condition involving urinary urgency, with or without incontinence, plus frequency and nocturia. In this episode, urogynaecologist Dr. Kerac Falk joins me to discuss general information on overactive bladder (OAB) with a focus on the medical treatment options - particularly involving recent research he has worked on as part of a team regarding very common anticholinergic medication for OAB and evidence of potential dementia risk.
Dr. Kerac Falk is a urogynecologist (Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgeon), and recently accepted an Assistant Professor of Urogynecology position at the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine. He has been involved in researching recurrent UTIs, biofilm, fluid dynamics and our focus for today’s episode was based on his research as part of a founding member of the "Fellows OAB Taskforce for Treatment accessibility” advocacy group.
Dr. Falk will be starting to see patients at his new practice in August 2021. You can find him through his new website (keracfalkmd.com) and a professional Instagram (@keracfalkMD) and Twitter (@KeracFalkMD).
 
Recent OAB publications include:
Menhaji K, Cardenas-Trowers OO, Chang OH, Hall EF, Ringel NE, Falk K. Anticholinergic Prescribing Pattern Changes of Urogynecology Providers in Response to Evidence of Potential Dementia Risk. Int. Urogynecol.J. Accepted for publication 1/2021, available online 3/2021, pending print.
Escobar C, Falk K, Mehta S, et al. Rethinking Second-Line Therapy for Overactive Bladder to Improve Patient Access to Treatment. Obstet. Gynecol. 2021 Mar;137:1-8.
Johnson TM, Goode PS, Hammontree L, Markland AD, Vaughan CP, Ouslander JG, Falk K, McGwin G, Burgio KL. An Exploratory Analysis of Tamsulosin for Overactive Bladder (OAB) in Men With Varying Voiding Symptom Burden. Urology. 2021 Jan 20:S0090-4295(21)00085-6. 
Bennett AT, Ringel NE, Menhaji K, Brown OE, Hall EF, Cardenas-Trowers OO, Falk K, Jeney SES, Barnes H, Escobar C, Tellechea LM, Sappenfield EC, Mehta S, Chang OH. "First, Do No Harm"-Trainees' Observation of Risk Reduction in the Treatment of Overactive Bladder. Female Pelvic Med Reconstr Surg. 2021 Jan 1;27(1):2-4.
 
Enjoy and thanks again to Always Discreet for sponsoring this episode!

New ICS Podcast Teaser with Prof Paul Hodges on Balancing Mobility, Stability and the Pelvic Floor

The International Continence Society Podcast is coming!
On behalf of the ICS Institute of Physiotherapy, I had the pleasure of interviewing Professor Paul Hodges for Episode 1 on Balancing Mobility and Stability within the #pelvicfloor and am excited to be able to share some of it here first. This episode on The Pelvic Health Podcast is only half of our discussion - you can catch the entire episode as of June 1 (2021) on the new ICS Podcast through their website and all major podcast platforms like iTunes and Spotify. The ICS Podcast series line-up is not to be missed and aims to highlight the amazing speakers in pelvic health that will be presenting at this year’s ICS Virtual Conference on October 14-17.
So sit back and get ready to be floored by only some of the wisdom of Prof Paul Hodges on concepts and research on pelvic floor muscle stiffness, movement, pain, strength and so much more. Don't forget to look for the new ICS Podcast in June to listen to the rest of this episode and so much more!
 
Thank you to Always Discreet for sponsoring this episode of The Pelvic Health Podcast.
 

Surgical journey for DRA repair with physiotherapist and patient Liz Lush

Liz Lush is a Brisbane physiotherapist and clinical lead at Mummy and Co Physiotherapy and Fitness, childbirth educator and tutor for physiotherapy students, and a mother of 4 children. Today she shares her journey (21 days post surgery at the time of recording this) for her large #diastasis or often called #DRA or #DRAM. For previous episodes covering more on DRA research and practical exercise tips, check out the previous episodes (click on the links) with Dr David Larson in July 2020 and physiotherapist Lashonda Jones in Sept 2020
In addition to treating women with DRA for years, Liz not only had a large DRA, she had a ventral hernia, and discusses the different kinds of surgeries and how her journey led her to make the surgical decision. She has such an interesting perspective as both a clinician and a patient.
Follow her visual journey on Instagram at MummyandCoPhysio 
 
Listen and enjoy and a big thanks to Always Discreet for sponsoring this episode of The Pelvic Health Podcast. Head to Always Discreet to learn more about bladder leak tips, management and incredible bladder leakage protection!
Please rate and leave a review on the Apple Podcast app so more people can find it and share on any social media platform, or just with your mates. 

Always Discreet presents Urinary Incontinence with physio Cath Willis

Today is an extra special episode! We have physiotherapist Cath Willis back (go find the episode on breast health from April 2018) to talk about #bladder leakage, or technically known as urinary incontinence. She breaks down the types and causes for urinary #incontinence, what physiotherapists look for as part of assessment and ways we can help treat this, as well as understanding the importance bladder leak protection products such as Always Discreet.
Not only is Cath a wealth of clinical knowledge in her roles as a pelvic health physiotherapist for Queensland Health and Movements Solutions Physiotherapy in Brisbane, she was our previous Chair of the APA's Women's, Men's and Pelvic Health National Group, is the New Chair of the APA's National Advisory Council, and teaches the undergraduate Gender Health subject to physiotherapy students at Australian Catholic University in Brisbane. 
On that note, I want to say a very big thank you to Always Discreet as this entire episode has been made possible by their support.
For more than 30 years across the world, Always has been helping women with their menstruation needs thanks to its comprehensive line of period pads and liners. The brand gained global accolades for some of its previous topical campaigns, including “Like A Girl” and “End Period Poverty.”
As a brand, Always’ purpose has been to empower and help females everywhere live life to their fullest potential. Not only have they created a superior line-up of bladder leak protection products called Always Discreet, they have helped to educate women around the globe about the help from doctors and physiotherapists available for bladder leakage rather than just telling women to use their products and ignore it.
But, what makes the Always Discreet range so great?
It’s specifically designed for incredible protection from bladder leaks (vs. menstruation needs)
It features breakthrough technology via a super-absorbent core that turns liquid into gel and locks in odours
Its products on the range are surprisingly thin and discreet, helping you feel more comfortable and confident going about your everyday life
Now sit back and enjoy!
 

Prep for Pushing in Labour with physiotherapist Anita Lambert

Anita Lambert is a Registered Pelvic Health & Orthopaedic Physiotherapist with a focus on #prenatal, #birth prep and #postpartum care, as well as the co-host of the To Birth & Beyond podcast. She’s one of the few #physiotherapists in Canada to have completed physiodoula training which blends physiotherapy expertise with birth doula support and now assists this professional course taught in Canada.
She joins me today to talk about preparation around stage 2 in labour - what happens in the body, how can we help with breath and #pelvicfloor, where do physiotherapists play a role.
Links for today:
www.holistichealthphysio.com
www.bumptobirthcourse.com
www.tobirthandbeyond.com
IG: @holistichealthphysio
FB: @holistichealthphysio
 
More of Anita's bio:
Anita is passionate about helping #pregnant physiotherapy clients connect more with their body including their pelvic floor plus keep you active and comfortable during pregnancy while you prepare for birth which will give you a head start on your postpartum recovery. She enjoys helping postpartum clients navigate their recovery and return to activities they love including exercise, sports and dance without pain and pelvic floor symptoms.
Anita created her Bump to Birth online course which guides you step by step to prepare you, your pelvic floor and core for birth and co hosts the To Birth & Beyond podcast to share this information to help people around the world. 
Growing up as a ballet dancer and athlete, Anita was always fascinated with how the body moved and healed. Her love for sport led her to become the team therapist for the McMaster University women’s rugby and basketball teams.
She completed her clinicial Pilates rehab training during her final physiotherapy clinical placement in Brisbane, Australia alongside working with semi-professional ballet dancers. She brought this knowledge back to Toronto to start off her physiotherapy career including becoming an on-site physiotherapist for Canada’s Ballet Jorgen and Past President of Healthy Dancer Canada, an organization that fosters and facilitates communication and collaboration among the dance community, health professionals and researchers. 
Outside of work, you can find Anita practicing yoga or Pilates, strength training or enjoying the outdoors and spending quality time with her husband and energetic 4 year old daughter and 2 year old son.
 
Queensland Health Clinical Guidelines for Perineal Care
 
https://www.safetyandquality.gov.au/sites/default/files/2019-10/severe_perineal_tears_clinical_care_standard_-_consultation_draft_251019.pdf
 
 
Upcoming courses/lectures discussed:
 
Smart Education PowerTalk : "Strength training and the female pelvic floor: what we all need to know
 
IUGA International Symposium on A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Prevention and Management of Pelvic Floor Dysfunction
Listen and enjoy and a big thanks to Always Discreet for sponsoring this episode of The Pelvic Health Podcast. Head to Always Discreet to learn more about bladder leak tips, management and incredible bladder leakage protection!

Menstrual cycle and athletic performance with Dr. Kirsty Elliott-Sale

What better way to start off 2021 with Associate Professor Dr. Kirsty Elliott-Sale discussing the #menstrual cycle and how sex #hormones may affect #exercise performance in the general female population.
Dr. Elliott-Sale is the Head of the Musculoskeletal Physiology Research Group at Nottingham Trent University in England and lectures in the areas of Exercise Physiology, particularly in Female Physiology, Endocrinology, Performance, and Health. She has more than 20 years of experience working with females, elite female athletes and maternal populations including expertise in regards to the design and implementation of exercise-based interventions.
Since the completion of her PhD, which examined the effects of female reproductive hormones on muscle strength, her research has concentrated on various aspects of health and athletic performance in female populations.
In this episode we cover:
the stages of the menstrual cycle – simplified so we all understand!(CLICK HERE AND HERE FOR MENSTRUAL CYCLE PHOTOS TO FOLLOW ALONG)
if hormonal changes influence athletic performance
whether the research supports females training according to their menstrual cycle
How oral contraceptives change the picture
She also recently recorded a brilliant podcast episode with BJSM so do not miss it – it’s a great compliment to this one! 
Her Twitter account @ElliottSale
Open Access Papers:
McNulty, K.L., Elliott-Sale, K.J., Dolan, E. et al. The Effects of Menstrual Cycle Phase on Exercise Performance in Eumenorrheic Women: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Sports Med 50, 1813–1827 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-020-01319-3
Elliott-Sale, K.J., McNulty, K.L., Ansdell, P. et al. The Effects of Oral Contraceptives on Exercise Performance in Women: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Sports Med 50, 1785–1812 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-020-01317-5
Listen and enjoy and a big thanks to Always Discreet for sponsoring this episode of The Pelvic Health Podcast. Head to Always Discreet to learn more about bladder leak tips, management and incredible bladder leakage protection!

After gynaecological cancer with Melanie Roussin

So many gynaecological cancer survivors, particularly younger females, are left with a poor sexual quality of life and not many are asking about this or helping provide tools to help. Out of the 3 million women living with gynaecological cancers, up to 70% live with temporary or permanent sexual difficulties.
Our guest today, Melaine Roussin, is working to change all of this. She was diagnosed with cervical cancer at age 31. As part of her recovery, she left corporate life to study and work in health and is now working on her PhD which focuses on the sexual quality of life (SQoL) for young gynae cancer survivors (YGCS). In this episode, she shares her journey and how she plans to use her research to help those affected, in addition to Girls Rocking Cancer - a cancer support community and blog at www.girlsrockingcancer.com. (Instagram + Facebook) where they celebrate women’s stories and bodies after cancer.
Other links:
melanie.roussin@research.usc.edu.au
Recruiting participants: She is currently recruiting women living in Australia who were aged 18-45 and pre or perimenopausal at their gyn cancer diagnosis for 1-on-1 interviews with her on Zoom. Study link: https://uniofsunshinecoast.syd1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0UsbscK6D9g1DzT
 
Listen and enjoy and a big thanks to Always Discreet for sponsoring this episode of The Pelvic Health Podcast. Head to Always Discreet to learn more about bladder leak tips, management and incredible bladder leakage protection!

The Glottis and Pelvic Floor

We know holding our breath can influence pressure onto the #pelvicfloor, but did you ever think about how this happens, or why, or that our vocal cords can influence this pressure?
Physical therapist and academic, Aliza Rudavsky, joins me to discuss her research in this area and some very cool facts about how the #glottis works and how this can influence the pelvic floor.
Bio from her website:
A native of Pittsburgh, Aliza grew up as a dancer.  She studied modern dance in college and performed professionally for several years before going to graduate school for her Doctorate in Physical Therapy at the University of Washington in Seattle.  As a physical therapist, Aliza has specialized training in pelvic floor dysfunction and women's health PT through the Herman and Wallace Institute.  She trained as a dance PT through the Harkness Center for Dance Injuries and the Australian Ballet.  She also has unique training in physical therapy for voice dysfunction and treats both performing artists and other occupational voice users. 
Aliza completed her PhD in 2018 through the University of Copenhagen (in collaboration with Monash and Latrobe Universities in Melbourne, Australia) under the supervision of Dr. Jill Cook.  Her research involved studying tendon development in adolescent ballet dancers. She has published this research in several sports journals as well as the International Association of Dance Medicine and Science.
Currently, Aliza is an assistant professor at Penn State University where she has a split appointment in the department of Kinesiology and the School of Theatre.  In Kinesiology she teaches the athletic training students and does research, and in the School of Theatre she runs an on-site PT clinic for the musical theatre and acting students. Her current research involves connecting the pelvic floor to the vocal folds to study how they coordinate to regulate pressures in the trunk. This research is currently funded by the Foundation for PT Research-Pelvic Health Research.
Aliza is the mother of two delightful young boys with a third baby on the way.  She enjoys biking, hiking and exploring central PA with her family. 
 
Listen and enjoy and a big thanks to Always Discreet for sponsoring this episode of The Pelvic Health Podcast. Head to Always Discreet to learn more about bladder leak tips, management and incredible bladder leakage protection!

Sexual activity and Low Back Pain

APA Titled Sports and Exercise #Physiotherapist, Indianna Franke, who also holds a Grad. Cert in #PelvicFloor Physiotherapy, joins the podcast today to talk about sex in the context of low back pain.
 
As low back pain is one of the most common musculoskeletal types of pain, and sex is part of life but often becomes difficult when you have #backpain, why aren't all of us as professionals asking our patients about this? We ask about pain with bending, lifting, #exercise, #sports, and other daily activities, but often we are too embarrassed or ill-equipped to talk about how to help our patients when they are quite possibly having #back #pain during #sex.
 
Thank you to @alwaysdiscreet for sponsoring this episode
 
Below are some useful links from our chat. Enjoy!
Indianna Franke
OMGYes
Sidorkewicz & McGill 2015. Documenting female spine motion during coitus with a commentary on the implications for the low back pain patient 
Tone Dahl-Michelsen, David A. Nicholls & Karen Synne Groven Approaching intimacy, sexuality and ethics in the professional training of physiotherapy students in Norway
Michael E. Metz & Barry W. McCarthy The “Good-Enough Sex” model for couple sexual satisfaction
 
 
 
 

Cognitive Hypnotherapy and Pelvic Pain with Sheren Gaulbert

This episode will blow your mind! I admit the word "hypnotherapy" really threw me but you have to listen - especially if you are a #pain #science nerd, have #pelvicpain, or treat those with pelvic pain. Sheren Gaulbert has extensive knowledge in the pain science field and brings a very large piece to this puzzle.
Sheren Gaulbert was diagnosed with unprovoked vulvodynia in 1999 after a lifetime of intermittent pain and comorbid conditions. With frequent episodes of fainting as the pain worsened, and mobility affected, she stopped working altogether.
10 years on from diagnosis and unsuccessfully trialling different treatments, she stumbled across self-hypnosis and later Quest Cognitive Hypnotherapy (QCH), starting her on her journey toward freedom. Her curiosity to find out why it was working and how she could help others, led her to seek out further training for a better grounding in pain neurophysiology, and to understand best practice models from current, up-to-date treatment methodologies and pain science.
Sheren has a specialist interest in female and male pelvic pain and is now a Trustee of the Vulval Pain Society, She hosts VPS webinars with specialist vulval pain clinicians, and you will find a selection on YouTube.
Sheren is currently working on the Pelvic Pain Toolkit, which includes short information videos, with Pain Toolkit founder Pete Moore. This will be released later in 2020.
Sheren also runs CPD courses for health professionals and one-to-one mentoring for clinicians ready to learn from different modalities to provide better care. She encourages a multidisciplinary approach to pain management (and for some complete relief), and an effective treatment plan which treats the individual – the whole complex person, considering their values, beliefs, expectations, cognitive evaluations, contextual, cultural factors and more.
She is also founder of the Break Through Pain Programme: a tailored, collaborative and action-orientated approach which utilises the Cognitive Hypnotherapy framework to help each unique individual experiencing persistent pain, start living a better quality of life, more comfortably doing more of the things that give them joy.
Sheren’s Website: https://the-ultimate-you.com/
Sheren’s Free Resource for clinicians and patients - 7 Keys to Reducing Pain: http://the-ultimate-you.com/7KeysReducePain
Vulval Pain Society: http://www.vulvalpainsociety.org/
Vulval Pain Society YouTube: https://bit.ly/YouTubeVPS
Pain Toolkit (Pelvic Pain Toolkit coming soon, this is the website for the general one): https://www.paintoolkit.org/
 
  

Practical tips for Diastasis Rectus Abdominis with physical therapist Lashonda Jones

It's time to talk about the practical side of abdominal separation, or DRA - diastasis rectus abdominis, after discussing the lack of research on a recent episode. How should we assess it? What kind of exercises should we try? What if we can't physically see a physiotherapist because of location or isolation? Who better than Lashonda Jones.
 
Lashonda is a licensed physical therapist, certified personal trainer & pre/postnatal corrective #exercise specialist. She's has 14 years of exercise in outpatient orthopedics with a more recent transition into women's health once she became a mom of two. She loves educating & empowering women on Postpartum rehab, fitness & Diastasis Recti healing journeys. After working hard to heal her own #Diastasis & seeing the lack of education moms were given about their postpartum healing she developed an online program that allows women to work 1 on 1 with her online to receive the individualized education & exercises they need to heal
 
Education: Masters Physical Therapy
Bachelor's Exercise Sports Science Sports Medicine concentration
NSCA Certified Personal Trainer
Certified Pre & Post natal exercise specialist 
 
Program:  http://coreelevationfitness.com/diastasis-recti-repair-program/
 
Instagram: instagram.com/ptrainershonda 
 
Listen and enjoy and a big thanks to Always Discreet for sponsoring this episode of The Pelvic Health Podcast. Head to Always Discreet to learn more about bladder leak tips, management and incredible bladder leakage protection!

Returning to CrossFit 6 weeks after having a baby with physio and coach Candice Lamb

Physiotherapist and coach, Candice Lamb, and I are back to talk about what first sessions, weeks and first few months might look like when returning to CrossFit-brand training and high-intensity exercise after having a baby. This episode, as a continuation from our last one on CrossFit in Pregnancy, focuses on women who were doing this activity before and during their pregnancy - not women who are new to this activity after having a baby. Pelvic health considerations and modifications for certain specific exercises, much needed discussion around bracing (which will continue in episodes to come), returning to intensity, and more. 
Enjoy, subscribe and keep moving :)
Big thanks to this episode's sponsor Always Discreet. Learn more about bladder leak tips, management and incredible bladder leak protection by checking out Always Discreet.

Diastasis Rectus Abdominis with Dr. David Larson

DRA, the separation of the abdominal muscles most often associated in women with pregnancy, is very close to my heart and I am so excited to bring you this AMAZING conversation on the research on #exercise for #diastasisrecti with David Larson @dmlarson31 dmlarson@asu.edu
 
Aside from discussing what research we do have , the drawbacks of this limited data, and the physiology behind the effects of adequate load on connective tissue, he talks about his research into patient satisfaction with exercise programs. Just because as professionals we think someone is better, doesn't mean they feel that way. 
 
Bio from Arizona State University website: (see below for reference list)
David is a Lecturer and Coordinator for CHS100/300 in the College of Health Solutions at Arizona State University.  David earned a Doctoral degree in Health Science from A. T. Still University, Masters degree in Kinesiology from A. T. Still University, and a Bachelors degree Kinesiology from Arizona State University.  His research is primarily focused on conservative treatment modalities such as abdominal strength training for the postpartum condition diastasis recti.  David is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), a Certified Pre- and Postnatal Coach (CPPC), and Certified Level 2 Nutrition Coach through Precision Nutrition (PN2).  He specializes in pre- and post-natal training, youth athletic performance, and strength and conditioning and has over 10 years of experience in the fitness and sport performance industry. 
 
Reference list:
Acharry, N., & Kutty, R. K. (2015). Abdominal exercise with bracing, a therapeutic efficacy in reducing diastasis-recti among postpartal females. International Journal of Physiotherapy and Research, 3(2), 999-1005. doi:10.16965/ijpr.2015.122
Awad, M. A., Mahmoud, A. M., El-Ghazaly, H. M., & Tawfeek, R. M. (2017). Effect of Kinesio Taping on Diastasis Recti. Med. J. Cairo Univ., 85(6), 2289-2296.
Benjamin, D., Van de Water, A., & Peiris, C. (2014). Effects of exercise on diastasis of the rectus abdominis muscle in the antenatal and postnatal periods: a systematic review. Physiotherapy, 100(1), 1-8. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physio.2013.08.005
Bo, K., Hilde, G., Tennfjord, M. K., Sperstad, J. B., & Engh, M. E. (2017). Pelvic floor muscle function, pelvic floor dysfunction and diastasis recti abdominis: Prospective cohort study. Neurourol Urodyn, 36(3), 716-721. doi:10.1002/nau.23005
Boissonnault, J. S., & Blaschak, M. J. (1988). Incidence of diastasis recti abdominis during the childbearing year. Phys Ther, 68(7), 1082-1086.
Chiarello, C. M., McAuley, J. A., & Hartigan, E. H. (2016). Immediate Effect of Active Abdominal Contraction on Inter-recti Distance. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther, 46(3), 177-183. doi:10.2519/jospt.2016.6102
da Mota, P. G. F., Pascoal, A. G. B. A., Carita, A. I. A. D., & Bø, K. (2015). Prevalence and risk factors of diastasis recti abdominis from late pregnancy to 6 months postpartum, and relationship with lumbo-pelvic pain. Manual therapy, 20(1), 200-205.
El-Kosery, S. M., El-Aziz, A. A., & Farouk, A. (2007). Abdominal muscles exercise program and/or electrical stimulation in postnatal diastasis recti. Bull. Fac. Ph. Th. Cairo Univ, 12(2).
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