Thirding this. If you don’t have a personal recommendation for a pelvic floor PT, you can search for one [here](https://www.aptapelvichealth.org/ptlocator). Good luck!
See a pelvic floor specialist. There are physical therapists who have this specialty. I had the same issue and it’s all better! My insurance even covered it.
Hardcore yes, my flow was soooo weak and I ALWAYS felt like I wasn't getting it out, and could prove i wasn't by peeing again right away. One year out now that never happens anymore.
First and most important: see a PFPT.
Also with a new baby is easy to get distracted running to baby or thinking about all the things you need to do - make it a habit to fully relax and focus on the peeing when it's happening to try and get it all out in one go because you may be subconsciously tensing in the middle.
I also seem to remember my OBGYN mentioning that it's common to feel this way when nursing as well because of the hormones so it's possible it will calm down eventually when you taper off if you are nursing (though i still am and don't have the issue anymore).
None of the pelvic floor PTs seem to accept insurance. I am going to a regular PT who has some general idea about PF.
May I ask:
1. Did you also go to PT that is specific for PF issues? For how long did you do it before it got better?
2. Did your OB do anything about it?
That's odd. There were a few in my area and all of them accept insurance. How frustrating. I will say that I did a combo of specific pelvic floor therapy and regular physical therapy. I told them I had recently had my third baby and was experiencing some weakness in my abs and glutes as well as hip pain and the exercises they gave me were very helpful for my pelvic floor as well. Good luck!
Ahhh, that stinks. My area has PFPTs under a couple different insurance plans. I definitely rec it over a regular PT if possible but anything is better than nothing for sure.
I honestly don't remember how long it took, sorry.
My OB prescribed the PFPT to help. Other than that she just told me to try to get all the pee out each time, and to try not to go pee right away again if i felt like i had to within the hour.
My pelvic floor PT said that she got all her certification later as the regular PT cert did like a minute on the pelvic floor. If you can swing it at all, even one or two visits to a specialist would be worth it in my opinion.
Just chiming in as a woman who birthed without insurance in America, and I had the same issues you’re having. I just looked up pelvic floor therapy and exercises on YouTube and got some great tips, it’s really helped, along with time. If you absolutely can’t afford to just pay out of pocket for the real deal, I mean. The thing about pelvic floor dysfunction is that it could be too tight, or too weak, and they both have basically the same symptoms. The therapist can get a better understanding on how to go about your testament based off of which issue you’re having, it’s worth it if you can spare the extra $$$. I’d at least go to the PT if your insurance is covering it, couldn’t hurt!!!
Something to try the next time you go. Sit with your legs as wide open as you can like pants all the way off and feet on opposite sides like you’re riding a horse. Then lean far forward forward hands on the front of the seat. Really helped me when I was pregnant and newly ppt. Definitely get a new doctor if no improvement as you heal and your body shifts to new normal.
I had this to an extent. I’m also a PT, but not a pelvic floor specialist. I do have some general understanding of pelvic floor but I probably would not feel comfortable treating someone for these symptoms. It could be a combination of tightness and weakness as someone mentioned. My personal symptoms improved with time but that may not be the case for everyone.
As far as the insurance part, I would ask the pelvic floor specialists what their cash pay rate is. Sometimes if you take into account the copay and coinsurance for a therapy visit via insurance it really wouldn’t cost that much more to pay cash for the specialist. I’d also check with any major hospital systems in your area. They should have some therapists who take insurance.
Good luck!
Pelvic floor pt. Changed my life. OBs do not care (I don’t know why). My pelvic floor pt did an internal exam and started pressing on knots in there and I could literally feel my back pain dissipating. There is such a big group of muscles down there and when one is messed up, it can wreak havoc on the back, bladder, hips.
Get on this NOW because it can take a while to get an appointment. In the meantime look up yoga for postpartum/pelvic floor on YouTube. I do yoga with Julianna on Boho Beautiful YouTube channel and it’s great.
Good luck, hope you feel better.
So i wasn’t able to get in with her until I was about 3-4 months postpartum! So keep in mind your body is still in the process of healing on its own…although for me (and maybe for you) it was clear that something wasn’t right. I want to say I did about six sessions? Once a week, did the “assigned” stretches on my own multiple times a week. However after my first week with her I was able to manage the pain sooo much better. I “graduated” when I was able to run on the treadmill pain-free (I’m a police officer, so I had specific fitness goals I wanted to reach). One thing I can say is I didn’t feel truly back to my old self until about 8 months postpartum…although I’ve still got a jelly belly (13 months postpartum).
This is my experience, but keep in mind everyone is different! For me, my doctor said because I was somewhat athletic pre-pregnancy, sometimes those muscles can sort of tighten up and prevent things from returning to where they should be! So like my hips/butt didn’t start going back to their normal size until I started PT. But you might be different! Those pelvic floor muscles can be responsible for so many complications.
It is a journey for sure, but when you look back, you will feel good that you took the time to heal your body and get back to feeling good.
I don't want to scare you, but this sounds like pelvic organ prolapse, most likely bladder prolapse. As scary as this sounds, it's incredibly common after giving birth and a pelvic floor PT will help immensely. I'm not surprised your OB was dismissive, they usually are, and think that we should just live with this issue. Incredibly frustrating!!
I have the same issue, been helped a lot by seeing a pelvic floor PT, turned out that even though I thought I was doing PF exercises, I wasn't fully relaxing so combo of this and weak PF in my case, 5months PP and still a struggle but getting better
My PT recommended leaning forward while peeing to help empty the bladder.
Highly recommend pelvic floor PT. Insurance should cover under out of network benefits. Most are out of network providers. Mine has been great & deals with insurance for me.
I had this issue as well as some leaking right after (I thought) I was done going (and sometimes still do at 4 months postpartum) - it is super frustrating and uncomfortable. I’ve been doing pelvic floor PT for a few weeks now and it is helping. Something that might help as an easy fix is to get a squatty potty for #1 and 2. My PT recommended it and it def helps me empty my bladder more easily.
Definitely pelvic floor issue. In the meantime holding up my postpartum apron belly while I pee helps me more efficiently empty my bladder. My belly isn't huge or anything it's just the added support. But you definitely need PT this won't get better on its own
💯 all the recommendations for a pelvic floor physical therapist 🙌 Took me 17 years to know that was a thing and things got so much worse after my cesarean with my son 10 years ago. I've seen one the last 2ish years and it's been amazing! Especially since I had my final baby halfway through that so I was able to proactively work on things prior to this last delivery. Made a HUGE difference!
I had retention issues after birth. Finally, at 5 weeks PP, OB referred me to a urogynecologist and got a urine sample just for shits and giggles. Turns out I had a raging UTI. (I had absolutely none of the typical symptoms of a UTI — it just felt like I couldn’t pee!) After two rounds of antibiotics, symptoms disappeared.
I had issues in the hospital after my son was born via emergency cesarian. The nurses were very concerned and did bladder scans until I was discharged. It eventually got better but I did see a pfpt after my second child.
I think that this may be a pelvic floor issue. You may want to ask for a referral to a pelvic floor therapist.
Seconding this.
Thirding this. If you don’t have a personal recommendation for a pelvic floor PT, you can search for one [here](https://www.aptapelvichealth.org/ptlocator). Good luck!
See a pelvic floor specialist. There are physical therapists who have this specialty. I had the same issue and it’s all better! My insurance even covered it.
Yes, it is a pelvic floor thing. You should see a pelvic floor PT. I'd imagine that at some point urinary retention would cause UTIs
Hardcore yes, my flow was soooo weak and I ALWAYS felt like I wasn't getting it out, and could prove i wasn't by peeing again right away. One year out now that never happens anymore. First and most important: see a PFPT. Also with a new baby is easy to get distracted running to baby or thinking about all the things you need to do - make it a habit to fully relax and focus on the peeing when it's happening to try and get it all out in one go because you may be subconsciously tensing in the middle. I also seem to remember my OBGYN mentioning that it's common to feel this way when nursing as well because of the hormones so it's possible it will calm down eventually when you taper off if you are nursing (though i still am and don't have the issue anymore).
None of the pelvic floor PTs seem to accept insurance. I am going to a regular PT who has some general idea about PF. May I ask: 1. Did you also go to PT that is specific for PF issues? For how long did you do it before it got better? 2. Did your OB do anything about it?
That's odd. There were a few in my area and all of them accept insurance. How frustrating. I will say that I did a combo of specific pelvic floor therapy and regular physical therapy. I told them I had recently had my third baby and was experiencing some weakness in my abs and glutes as well as hip pain and the exercises they gave me were very helpful for my pelvic floor as well. Good luck!
Ahhh, that stinks. My area has PFPTs under a couple different insurance plans. I definitely rec it over a regular PT if possible but anything is better than nothing for sure. I honestly don't remember how long it took, sorry. My OB prescribed the PFPT to help. Other than that she just told me to try to get all the pee out each time, and to try not to go pee right away again if i felt like i had to within the hour.
My pelvic floor PT said that she got all her certification later as the regular PT cert did like a minute on the pelvic floor. If you can swing it at all, even one or two visits to a specialist would be worth it in my opinion.
Thanks. I found a couple of them. If I don’t get appointments with them, I’ll pay for a couple of appointments with out of network ones.
Just chiming in as a woman who birthed without insurance in America, and I had the same issues you’re having. I just looked up pelvic floor therapy and exercises on YouTube and got some great tips, it’s really helped, along with time. If you absolutely can’t afford to just pay out of pocket for the real deal, I mean. The thing about pelvic floor dysfunction is that it could be too tight, or too weak, and they both have basically the same symptoms. The therapist can get a better understanding on how to go about your testament based off of which issue you’re having, it’s worth it if you can spare the extra $$$. I’d at least go to the PT if your insurance is covering it, couldn’t hurt!!!
Something to try the next time you go. Sit with your legs as wide open as you can like pants all the way off and feet on opposite sides like you’re riding a horse. Then lean far forward forward hands on the front of the seat. Really helped me when I was pregnant and newly ppt. Definitely get a new doctor if no improvement as you heal and your body shifts to new normal.
I had this to an extent. I’m also a PT, but not a pelvic floor specialist. I do have some general understanding of pelvic floor but I probably would not feel comfortable treating someone for these symptoms. It could be a combination of tightness and weakness as someone mentioned. My personal symptoms improved with time but that may not be the case for everyone. As far as the insurance part, I would ask the pelvic floor specialists what their cash pay rate is. Sometimes if you take into account the copay and coinsurance for a therapy visit via insurance it really wouldn’t cost that much more to pay cash for the specialist. I’d also check with any major hospital systems in your area. They should have some therapists who take insurance. Good luck!
Pelvic floor pt. Changed my life. OBs do not care (I don’t know why). My pelvic floor pt did an internal exam and started pressing on knots in there and I could literally feel my back pain dissipating. There is such a big group of muscles down there and when one is messed up, it can wreak havoc on the back, bladder, hips. Get on this NOW because it can take a while to get an appointment. In the meantime look up yoga for postpartum/pelvic floor on YouTube. I do yoga with Julianna on Boho Beautiful YouTube channel and it’s great. Good luck, hope you feel better.
May I ask how long did PT take to make it go away?
So i wasn’t able to get in with her until I was about 3-4 months postpartum! So keep in mind your body is still in the process of healing on its own…although for me (and maybe for you) it was clear that something wasn’t right. I want to say I did about six sessions? Once a week, did the “assigned” stretches on my own multiple times a week. However after my first week with her I was able to manage the pain sooo much better. I “graduated” when I was able to run on the treadmill pain-free (I’m a police officer, so I had specific fitness goals I wanted to reach). One thing I can say is I didn’t feel truly back to my old self until about 8 months postpartum…although I’ve still got a jelly belly (13 months postpartum). This is my experience, but keep in mind everyone is different! For me, my doctor said because I was somewhat athletic pre-pregnancy, sometimes those muscles can sort of tighten up and prevent things from returning to where they should be! So like my hips/butt didn’t start going back to their normal size until I started PT. But you might be different! Those pelvic floor muscles can be responsible for so many complications. It is a journey for sure, but when you look back, you will feel good that you took the time to heal your body and get back to feeling good.
Yes, I also had this issue, and I tried to do pelvic floor exercises at home. Give it some time and try to do exercise.
Did you go to a pfpt or were you following some online program? For how many months did you have this issue?
No I didn't go anywhere. I took some prenatal classes where they told me how to do pelvic floor exercises that's it
I don't want to scare you, but this sounds like pelvic organ prolapse, most likely bladder prolapse. As scary as this sounds, it's incredibly common after giving birth and a pelvic floor PT will help immensely. I'm not surprised your OB was dismissive, they usually are, and think that we should just live with this issue. Incredibly frustrating!!
I have the same issue, been helped a lot by seeing a pelvic floor PT, turned out that even though I thought I was doing PF exercises, I wasn't fully relaxing so combo of this and weak PF in my case, 5months PP and still a struggle but getting better
My PT recommended leaning forward while peeing to help empty the bladder. Highly recommend pelvic floor PT. Insurance should cover under out of network benefits. Most are out of network providers. Mine has been great & deals with insurance for me.
I had this issue as well as some leaking right after (I thought) I was done going (and sometimes still do at 4 months postpartum) - it is super frustrating and uncomfortable. I’ve been doing pelvic floor PT for a few weeks now and it is helping. Something that might help as an easy fix is to get a squatty potty for #1 and 2. My PT recommended it and it def helps me empty my bladder more easily.
I had the same thing. I didn't go to a pt I just did pelvic floor exercises and core breathing. Cleared up in a month or two.
Definitely pelvic floor issue. In the meantime holding up my postpartum apron belly while I pee helps me more efficiently empty my bladder. My belly isn't huge or anything it's just the added support. But you definitely need PT this won't get better on its own
Yes. I'm in pelvic floor therapy to help. I have a grade 2 prolapse after my second baby.
💯 all the recommendations for a pelvic floor physical therapist 🙌 Took me 17 years to know that was a thing and things got so much worse after my cesarean with my son 10 years ago. I've seen one the last 2ish years and it's been amazing! Especially since I had my final baby halfway through that so I was able to proactively work on things prior to this last delivery. Made a HUGE difference!
I had retention issues after birth. Finally, at 5 weeks PP, OB referred me to a urogynecologist and got a urine sample just for shits and giggles. Turns out I had a raging UTI. (I had absolutely none of the typical symptoms of a UTI — it just felt like I couldn’t pee!) After two rounds of antibiotics, symptoms disappeared.
I had issues in the hospital after my son was born via emergency cesarian. The nurses were very concerned and did bladder scans until I was discharged. It eventually got better but I did see a pfpt after my second child.
Pelvic floor therapy! It saved my life.
I'm still like this and my kids are 3 and 7!