4 Reasons Why Your Fertility Treatment Could Be Affecting Your Pelvic Floor
Written by Dr. Nicole Dailey:
April 23rd through April 29th is National Infertility Awareness Week. As a pelvic floor therapist, who is also going through infertility treatment, I wanted to dive deeper into how this process may affect your pelvic floor. According to the World Health Organization, 1 in 6 people will experience infertility in their lifetime. For someone who is trying to have a baby, dealing with infertility can become emotionally and physically taxing. Here are four reasons that your fertility treatment may be affecting your pelvic floor:
Stress: Dealing with infertility and undergoing fertility treatments can feel scary and overwhelming. These emotions can lead to increased muscle tension in the pelvic floor, and other areas of your body. Increased pelvic floor tension can cause pain, urinary urgency, frequency, and constipation.
Hormonal changes: Hormonal changes related to fertility medications can affect your pelvic floor muscles, vulvar tissue, and the environment inside of the vagina.
Vaginal microbiome shifts: Introducing new things into the vaginal ecosystem such as gel/lubrication used during ultrasound procedures, or sperm can disrupt the vaginal microbiome and lead to irritation of the tissues, which can further contribute to pelvic floor tension.
Post surgical considerations: Fertility treatment may involve some surgical procedures on or around the reproductive organs which can contribute to pain, scar tissue development, or increased stress on the body.
If you are experiencing any pelvic floor symptoms that you think may be related to your fertility treatment, see a pelvic floor PT or OT to help support you through this process. Other supportive practices may include acupuncture, nutritional counseling, massage therapy, yoga, and mental health therapy.
