By Melissa Hines, DPT
It seems like all of our patients recently have been telling us about their constipation, bloating, hemorrhoids etc so I wanted to take this opportunity to educate us all about the pelvic floor and its role in constipation. In fact, constipation and the pelvic floor is such a hot topic that we created a video on YouTube that has 17k views!
50% of people with constipation have a form of pelvic floor dysfunction. There are a few pelvic floor muscles that wrap around the rectum and when they are tight, they prevent the rectum from opening up fully to allow stool to smoothly pass through. When they are tight, you will notice thin ribbon like stool, pebble like stool or recurrent hemorrhoid irritation. Think of a garden hose…when it gets kinked, the water can’t pass through. This is what happens with the rectum. When the pelvic floor muscles are too tight then it kinks off the rectum and prevents the stool from passing through.
Below I am doing a supported squat on the wall to open up my pelvic floor muscles! This is great to do before a bowel movement. Give it a try!
A product we love to recommend to help relieve constipation: the Squatty Potty! Not only does pelvic floor therapy dramatically help with the mechanical issues that arise with constipation but the Squatty Potty is an easy thing to add into your bowel routine. The squatty potty allows these muscles to relax so that you can more easily pass stool because the rectum is in proper alignment. Straining for a bowel movement and hemorrhoids are not normal and a lot of times, these muscles just need some help relaxing! Use code HC-WELLEST20 to get 20% off your first Squatty Potty!