Pelvic Floor Dysfunction Physical Therapy
The pelvic floor is a group of muscles that sits at the bottom of the pelvis. The pelvic floor is responsible for many important functions, so when something goes wrong here, it can impact you in many ways.
FIND THE ROOT
with clarity in care
What Is Pelvic Floor Dysfunction—and Why Does It Matter?
Your pelvic floor is a group of muscles that support your organs and help with things like bladder and bowel control, posture, and movement. When those muscles aren’t working well, it’s called pelvic floor dysfunction, and it can show up in a lot of different ways.
​
Leaking urine. Constipation. Pelvic pain. A constant need to pee. Pressure or heaviness. These symptoms aren’t always easy to talk about, but they’re common. And they’re treatable.
​
At Sage, we take pelvic health seriously. We use pelvic floor physical therapy to help you understand what’s happening in your body and how to work with it, not against it. This might include internal or external manual therapy, breathwork, movement strategies, and nervous system support. Our goal is to give you tools that make sense for your body, your symptoms, and your life.
​
Pelvic floor dysfunction can affect women and men at all stages of life. If you’re dealing with symptoms that don’t feel right, you don’t have to push through or guess your way forward. Let’s figure it out, together.
​Symptoms That Point To Pelvic Floor Dysfunction
Urinary Incontinence (leakage)
You should not lose urine involuntarily. Period.
​
Had a baby? Getting older? Lifting in the gym? Running a marathon? Weekend warrior? Nope, still shouldn't leak. Pelvic floor physical therapy helps to identify why you leak and what to do about it. Hint: it's not just kegels. It's never just kegels.
Urinary incontinence is one of the most common signs of pelvic floor dysfunction, and one of the most treatable. Leaking can happen with impact, coughing, sneezing, or even just standing up. We look at how your pelvic floor muscles are coordinating with your breath, core, and pressure system.
​
Your therapy may include pelvic floor muscle exercises, movement retraining, breathing work, and strategies that reduce strain and improve control. We guide you through practical steps that match your lifestyle, so you can get back to moving and laughing, sneezing, and lifting all without leaking.
​
Urinary Urgency
Also: urinary frequency, overactive bladder
Do you rush to the bathroom? Do you pee much more frequently than those around you? Learn why and what to do about it in pelvic floor physical therapy. This often includes bladder retraining and muscle downtraining.
Urinary urgency, frequency, and overactive bladder are often tied to pelvic floor dysfunction. When your pelvic floor muscles are too tight or not coordinating well with your bladder and nervous system, it can feel like you always need to go…and fast.
Through therapy, we help retrain those systems. Treatment may involve breathwork, nervous system support, toileting strategies, and exercises to help your muscles relax and regain control. It’s not about holding it forever; it’s about helping your body feel safe enough not to panic.
​
You don’t have to live around bathroom breaks. There’s a path forward.
Pelvic Pain
Including, but not limited to:
-
Pain with intercourse (dyspareunia)
-
Pain with exercise
-
Pain with urinary or bowel function
-
Tailbone pain (coccydynia)
-
Other diagnoses: vaginismus, vulvodynia, vestibulodynia, endometriosis, adenomyosis
Often involves tightness in the pelvic floor muscles and those around them. Learn how to release that tightness and more.
​Pelvic pain can be sharp or dull, constant or only with certain movements, but no matter how it shows up, it’s not something you just have to live with. Many people with pelvic floor disorders carry tension in the surrounding muscles, often without realizing it.
At Sage, we use therapy that supports your whole system. We address both local and full-body contributors to pelvic pain, using techniques like internal and external manual therapy, nervous system regulation, posture and movement strategies, and breath-centered care.
Pain is a symptom, not a life sentence. Let’s figure out what your body is telling you and how to help it move and feel better.
​
Learn more about pelvic pain with Sage PT here.
Constipation
Blocked up? Painful bowel movements? The pelvic floor is often involved in constipation and pain with toileting. Our muscles need to perform coordinated movements with the core and breath to successfully have a bowel movement. Sometimes they forget how to do this, or tightness in the muscles makes it difficult. Pelvic floor physical therapy can find the issue and retrain those muscles so you're not pushing or straining.
​
Constipation is more than a gut issue. It can actually be a sign that your pelvic floor muscles are holding tension or not relaxing at the right time. When we work on pelvic floor rehabilitation, we look at more than the symptom. We also look at how your breath, posture, nervous system, and movement patterns affect your ability to go.
Constipation is more than a gut issue. It can actually be a sign that your pelvic floor muscles are holding tension or not relaxing at the right time. When we work on pelvic floor rehabilitation, we look at more than the symptom. We also look at how your breath, posture, nervous system, and movement patterns affect your ability to go.
Your care may include breathwork, body mechanics for toileting, manual release of muscle tension, and retraining how the muscles coordinate. By working with your body, not against it. This type of physical therapy can improve bowel regularity and reduce straining.
Constipation doesn't just affect comfort; it also impacts quality of life. You deserve a solution that addresses the real root.
Fecal Incontinence (leakage)
Loose stool and/or losing stool? Your pelvic floor muscles might not be up for the job of keeping stool where it's supposed to be until the time is right. Pelvic floor physical therapy can identify why you're leaking and help you hold it.
Fecal incontinence can feel isolating, but it’s more common than you think, and it’s often connected to a pelvic floor disorder. When the muscles that support the rectum and control bowel movements are weak, uncoordinated, or not responding in time, stool can pass involuntarily.
We work with you to understand the movement patterns and muscle function involved. Treatment may include improving sensory awareness, strengthening or relaxing specific floor muscles, practicing bowel control strategies, and learning how to manage pressure through breathing and movement.
​There’s no shame here. Our therapists just bring care that helps you feel more in control.
Anal Fissure
Have you been diagnosed with an anal fissure? That can be a real bummer. Luckily, pelvic floor physical therapy can help reduce pain and retrain the muscles to effectively have a bowel movement without pushing or straining. This may involve specific breathing exercises, stretches, toileting posture and mechanics, releasing muscle tension, and more.
​
Anal fissures are small tears in the lining of the anal canal, often caused or worsened by straining, constipation, or overly tight pelvic muscles. If the area stays tense or guarded, healing becomes harder, and pain during bowel movements can persist.
We look at how your pelvic floor muscles, breathing, and body mechanics work together (or don’t) during a bowel movement. With the right support, including movement strategies, muscle relaxation, and nervous system downtraining, we can create an environment that supports healing and reduces recurrence.
Interstitial Cystitis
Interstitial cystitis (IC), also known as bladder pain syndrome, often shows up as pelvic pain, urinary urgency, and bladder pressure—even when tests come back “normal.” Many people with IC also have tight or overactive pelvic floor muscles, which can make symptoms worse over time.
​
Pelvic floor physical therapy helps calm those muscles, reduce bladder sensitivity, and improve how the body handles urgency and discomfort. Treatment may involve manual therapy, breathwork, and strategies that help the nervous system feel safe again.
Do you have pain and urgency with urination? Pelvic floor physical therapy helps to improve bladder function and trains the muscles to relax. In fact, pelvic floor physical therapy is one of two recommendations from the American Urological Association, which says that "all patients with tight pelvic floor muscles should be referred to a pelvic floor physical therapist." Wondering if that's you? Make an appointment to find out!​
Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) can be a tough diagnosis. IBS affects 10-20% of the population, and the exact cause is often unknown. Pelvic floor physical therapy helps with IBS symptom management and improves the quality of bowel movements. This may be through toileting posture and mechanics, specific muscle training and/or relaxation, and exercise to promote mobility.
​
Many people with IBS also experience pelvic tension, poor coordination during bowel movements, or difficulty fully relaxing the muscles involved. We use pelvic floor therapy to help retrain those patterns. Treatment may include breathwork, body awareness, and movement-based strategies to support digestion and reduce discomfort. Treatment is about more than symptom relief; it’s about helping your body work better from the inside out.
Pelvic Organ Prolapse
Do you feel pelvic pressure or heaviness? Does it get worse when you're up and about or doing impact activity? Does it feel like something is falling out down there?
Pelvic organ prolapse can be a scary diagnosis, but it doesn't have to be. Learn how to strengthen and/or relax the muscles in and around the pelvis (it can be both!), manage the pressure going down into the pelvis, and more.
​
Prolapse happens when the organs in the pelvis - like the bladder, uterus, or rectum - shift downward due to loss of support. This often involves changes in the pelvic floor muscles, core strength, breath coordination, and pressure management. Through physical therapy, we work on strategies that improve support, reduce symptoms, and help you move with more confidence.
​
Treatment may include posture and movement training, breathwork, pelvic muscle exercises, and education on how to manage daily activities without worsening pressure. Whether your goal is to return to impact exercise or simply feel less discomfort when standing or walking, there are options for treatment that don’t involve surgery.
Pudendal Neuralgia
Pudendal neuralgia can be a real pain in the butt. This occurs when the pudendal nerve, the nerve that supplies innervation to most of the pelvic region, is irritated. This can be due to entrapment from tight muscles, a bike seat, and more. The pudendal nerve can also be irritated for other reasons, including trauma, childbirth, and prolonged sitting. It can cause pain throughout the pelvic region, difficulty with sexual function, tailbone pain, and pain down the leg. Pelvic floor physical therapy will help you figure out why the nerve is irritated and what to do about it.
​
Treatment for pudendal neuralgia often focuses on calming irritated tissues, restoring mobility, and reducing muscle tension that may be contributing to nerve compression. By addressing the pelvic floor muscles, surrounding structures, and nervous system responses, therapy can reduce pain and improve daily function, especially with sitting, exercise, and intimacy.
If you’ve been told there’s nothing you can do, and you are getting discouraged thinking that your rehabilitation is at a standstill, don’t give up. With the right approach, there’s a way forward.
What Our Pelvic Floor Dysfunction Therapy Clients Are Saying
S.M.
Katherine is extremely detail oriented and explains the PT exercises very clearly. Her superpowers are knowledge of the human body, empathy, and listening/hearing her patients.
E.F.
Katherine brings a fresh perspective to PT. During my time with Katherine, it was clear she is knowledgeable and passionate about her work. Katherine connected dots for me related to my women's health issues that I never knew before.
S.B.
I am eternally grateful for her understanding and her expertise that served me greatly and continues to be a foundation for my continued healing. I feel much stronger and more flexible in my back, hips and neck as a result of my work with Katherine. She has been a true gift to me. Thank you Katherine for your professional PT abilities and your human touch.
Frequently Asked Questions About Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy
- 01
- 02
- 03
- 04
- 05
- 06
You Don’t Have to Navigate Pelvic Floor Dysfunction Alone
Pelvic floor dysfunction symptoms can be frustrating, isolating, and hard to explain, but they’re also incredibly common. Whether you’re dealing with leaking, pressure, pain, or something that just doesn’t feel right, a pelvic floor dysfunction therapist can help you understand what’s going on and what your body needs to heal.
At Sage Physical Therapy, we provide one-on-one care with a foundation of expertise, education, and trust. We listen first, then work with you to build a plan that supports your movement, function, and overall well-being, without judgment and without guesswork.
If you're ready to feel more at home in your body, we’re here. Reach out today to get started with pelvic floor dysfunction therapy in Denver.