What Exactly Is Pelvic Pain?
9 Types of Pelvic Pain
Pelvic pain. You hear us talk about it all the time, and with May being Pelvic Pain Awareness month, I wanted to provide some information on this broad diagnosis because pelvic pain can mean so many different things. It can be felt in different areas of the pelvis and with different activities. Everyone and every situation are unique, but I’ve given some details below on some of our most commonly treated pelvic pain conditions.
1. Pelvic pain with daily activities: This can be felt anywhere in the pelvis, but commonly painful areas include the vaginal region, the rectal region, the groin, the lower abdomen, and around the sit bones. Pain may increase with sitting, exercise, or stress. Some patients have time when their pain is resolved however other patients always report a low level of pain during their daily routine.
2. Pain with sex: People can have pain with sex and also have pain with daily activities OR they can be pain-free during the rest of their life, but have pain with sex. This can begin during their first sexual experience, after having a vaginal delivery, after a c-section, during menopause, after a surgery, after an orthopedic issue, or for a variety of other reasons. Some patients report their pain immediately resolves after intercourse while others may have some lingering soreness. Along these same lines….
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3. Pain with tampons/menstrual cups/speculum exam: Basically, this is pain that occurs any time something is inserted into the vaginal region. Some patients report they have always been unable to use tampons or menstrual cups due to pain and others report this began after a change, such as after delivering a baby. Switching to a 100% organic tampon may change pelvic pain as well. One brand we recommend is TOP Organic. Use code EYP25 for 25% off your next purchase.
*Check out this video on YouTube
4. Pain with bowel movements: Some patients report pain that increases with bowel movements while other patients report having pain before a bowel movement that improves once the stool has been eliminated.
5. Pain with bladder filling/emptying: Some patients report pain in their bladder with daily life that may increase as the bladder fills. Some have pain, such as burning, with urination (testing to rule out a UTI may be recommended). This may or may not be accompanied by frequent urination.
6. Pelvic pain with pregnancy: This can be a few different things. Some women report pelvic pressure in the vaginal region during pregnancy due to the weight of the uterus/baby placing increased pressure on the pelvic floor muscles. Other patients report pain at the SI joints in the back of the hips or at the pubic symphysis joint in the front of the pelvis, and both of these often stem from hormonal changes that affect ligament laxity.
7. Period pain: Many women brush off pain that occurs during their period as normal, however if you are having cramps that are severe enough to cause you to miss school, work, or daily activities, it is too much and should be considered pelvic pain.
8. Orthopedic pain: In addition to what was mentioned above during pregnancy, non-pregnant patients can also experience orthopedic pain at and around the pelvis. This can include (but is not limited to) hip pain and low back pain.
9. Pain associated with other conditions: This includes pain (can be vaginal, abdominal, low back, or lower extremity pain) that goes along with conditions such as endometriosis, interstitial cystitis, IBS, fibromyalgia, etc.
All of these conditions can be treated with pelvic floor physical therapy. This includes pain that has begun recently as well as pain that is chronic (lasting longer than six months). No one should have to avoid activities they love because of pain, and we encourage you to take the first step to healing by contacting a pelvic floor PT.