Why is a Physical Therapist Important for Incontinence?
What will Physical Therapy do for Incontinence
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Incontinence can be controlled by a number of different behavioral changes. Simple tweeks in your diet and exercise plans can help bladder and bowl control significantly. If you see a physical therapist that specializes in incontinence, you will gain all of this knowledge and more.
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Having a physical therapist is great for those with incontinence, because you get one-on-one support and information regarding your condition. While you can do kegels on your own (anytime, anywhere), it can be difficult to determine if you are doing them properly. Kegels exercise specific muscles that support and control your bladder and bowels. If you strengthen these muscles, you will strengthen your control over leakage. But it can be hard to find and focus on these pelvic floor muscles. Your physical therapist will help you locate the right muscles to exercise, and show you how to use them correctly.
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Meeting up with your physical therapist on a regular basis will ensure that you are consistently exercising. Consistent kegel exercise is absolutely key to controlling your incontinence. The saying “practice makes perfect” pertains exactly to kegel exercise.
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Kegels are pelvic floor exercises in which you gently squeeze the sphincter muscles, buttocks, thighs and stomach muscles. Your physical therapist will show you exactly how to do this, which muscle to squeeze and when.
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Every case of incontinence is different and your physical therapist will be able to mold the perfect pelvic floor work out for you. By using biofeedback, your physical therapist can make you aware of how your pelvic-floor muscles work. Biofeedback includes the use of electrodes attached rectally or vaginally, that will provide measurements of your muscle activity. The biofeedback results will then display on a monitor, so your physical therapist can help you understand how to improve those results.They will develop an exercise plan that pertains exactly to your symptoms and level of discomfort. You will learn how to control and exercise your pelvic floor muscles better with the more information you have.
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If biofeedback doesn’t help with the awareness of your pelvic floor muscles, you therapist may take a different path called electrical stimulation. Electrical stimulation is not painful. All it does is stimulates your pelvic floor muscles to improve your awareness of where they are in your body. This awareness will lead to proper kegel exercise and increased muscle strength.
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Kegel exercises are a major form of bladder and bowel control. Countless men and women have seen significant results in their incontinence after they’ve strengthened their pelvic floor muscles. Some have even seen their urinary incontinence completely disappear. While that doesn’t always happen, kegels will definitely help prevent future leakage, and your physical therapist is the best person to help you with that.
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