How to perform postpartum pelvic floor muscle rehabilitation?

I always hear the elderly say that only mothers who give birth naturally need postpartum recovery. Do you really think that only mothers who give birth naturally need rehabilitation training while other mothers do not? The answer is of course no, and this problem also exists for mothers who have undergone caesarean section. Medical scientists have shown that having a baby will accelerate the relaxation of our pelvic floor muscles to a certain extent, but this is not the only reason. Regardless of the method of delivery, it is necessary for postpartum mothers to undergo pelvic floor muscle rehabilitation training to restore the relaxed muscles.

Nowadays, more and more women will experience symptoms such as pelvic floor muscle relaxation after giving birth. We need to carry out postpartum recovery for the general population. When the muscles are not relaxed, people will naturally be more energetic. It is wrong to say that only natural childbirth will hurt the pelvic floor muscles. In fact, this is not the case. Let's talk about how to train.

Deputy Director Zeng Chaoyang introduced that normal delivery is the main cause of pelvic floor muscle relaxation in women. The fetus is delivered vaginally, and the diameter of the baby's head is generally about 9-10 cm. That is, the vagina needs to expand to 9-10 cm during delivery (the normal vaginal diameter is 2.5 cm). After the squeezing of the child at birth, the vagina expands significantly, the pelvic floor muscles are completely destroyed, and the elasticity is significantly reduced. It is easy for everyone to understand this point, but it is wrong to simply think that only natural childbirth can cause pelvic floor dysfunction.

In fact, whether it is a caesarean section or a natural birth, the pregnancy process itself is a kind of damage to the female pelvic floor, but the amount and degree of damage vary. In normal body position, the normal curvature of the human body makes the abdominal pressure and the gravity axis of the pelvic organs point to the sacrum. During pregnancy, the waist protrudes forward, the abdomen bulges forward and protrudes downward, causing the gravity axis to move forward, and the abdominal pressure and the gravity of the pelvic organs to point to the pelvic floor muscles. In addition, the increasing weight of the uterus puts the pelvic floor muscles under continuous pressure, causing the pelvic floor muscle fibers to deform and the muscle tone to decrease. Therefore, it is incorrect to think that as long as you choose a cesarean section, you can avoid damaging the pelvic floor muscles and therefore do not need to do relevant rehabilitation training.

In addition to reasons such as pregnancy and childbirth, long-term constipation, lifting heavy objects, obesity, long-term coughing, changes in estrogen levels, aging, and high-intensity exercise can all damage the pelvic floor muscles to a certain extent.

Postpartum pelvic floor function recovery depends on persistence

Postpartum pelvic floor dysfunction, common symptoms include vaginal relaxation, stress urinary incontinence such as involuntary urine leakage when coughing, laughing, straining during bowel movements, etc., increased abdominal pressure, unsatisfactory sexual life, and recurrent urinary tract infections such as frequent urination and urgency. If not treated promptly, it may be accompanied by complications such as uterine prolapse, bladder and urethral prolapse, internal urethral sphincter insufficiency, urinary incontinence, etc. And as we age, our body's physiological functions decline and the corresponding complications become more and more serious.

In developed countries and regions such as Europe, America, Japan and South Korea, pelvic floor muscle assessment, biofeedback training and electrical stimulation therapy have been popularized. Pelvic floor muscle training is routinely performed on women 42 days after delivery, which greatly reduces the occurrence of pelvic floor dysfunction diseases such as pelvic organ prolapse and urinary incontinence. At the same time, it awakens the nerves and muscles of the pelvic floor, allowing the vagina to return to a tight state better, thereby improving the quality of sexual life.

Zeng Chaoyang said that the recovery of pelvic floor function after childbirth should follow the principles of gradual, timely, appropriate and persistent progress. For those with mild to moderate pelvic floor dysfunction, the traditional non-surgical treatment method can be used - the anal levator technique, which is to consciously contract the pelvic floor muscles, mainly the anal levator muscles, to enhance urinary control ability and pelvic floor muscle strength. The specific method is to repeatedly tighten the anus and vagina, tighten for at least 3 seconds each time and then relax, do it continuously for 15-30 minutes, or do it 150-200 times a day. The patient will see improvement in 4-6 weeks and obvious results in 3 months. For those with severe pelvic floor dysfunction, electrical stimulation therapy or related surgical treatment should be performed under the guidance of a doctor.

You may not know that there are many reasons why women experience pelvic floor muscle relaxation. In addition to childbirth and cesarean section, timely postpartum recovery can also enhance our physical fitness, make the couple's life more harmonious, and exercise the body in the spare time. I hope that all mothers will do recovery exercises in time after delivery. We must be confident, healthy and beautiful women.