Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy
Guiding Children and Parents through the daily struggle of Bedwetting and Bowel Accidents.
What is pediatric pelvic floor physical therapy?
Pediatric pelvic floor therapy is where the family, your child's doctor, and the pediatric physical therapist, all come together, to help your child with bowel and bladder issues. We combine regular play pediatric physical therapy with pediatric pelvic floor therapy.
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I would love to hear more about the children who come to see you.
 They are beautiful. |  They appreciate learning new things. |
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 They are content. |  They are good decision makers. |
 They are sweet. |  They are curious. |
 And they need to be talked to in language they understand. |  They are loving. |
 They can be all over the place. |
What diagnoses do you treat?
 We work with children age 5 and up, but we're happy to begin earlier at age 4 to offer helpful education. |  We also see kids with constipation. |
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 Bowel incontinence. |  Daytime leaking. |
 Bedwetting. | Increased or decreased frequency. Also straining, weak or intermittent stream. |
 Leakage during play. |  Kids presenting with withholding behaviors or holding maneuvers. |
 We see kids with a history of bowel or bladder surgeries or other medical problems. |  We see kids who are constantly cleaning. |
 Who hide their issues. |  Who hide in closets. |
 And who won't tell anybody about their problem. |
What do the therapy sessions look like?
We Play
Using more regular pediatric physical therapy play:
 Our play suits your child's unique challenges. | We may work on strenthening their back. |
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 On balance. |  Abdominal strength. |
 How to control their breathing and expand their rib cage. |  We may do all kinds of stuff using a therapy ball. |
 Coordination. |  And many more! |
As well as pelvic floor pediatric physical therapy play:
 Specific pelvic floor play can include many things, such as breathing awareness. |  Teaching organ anatomy. |
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 We may read stories. |  And teach the kids the long pathway their food travels. |
 We will give mom or dad a food diary to fill out. | Teach potty stuff in a fun way. |
 Teach how to do "belly big, belly round". |  We will look to see if orthopedic factors are affecting their pelvic floor, |
 or if they have some difficulty with feeling things. We call this interoception. |  We will teach them about food, |
 and their pelvic floor. |  We may utilize surface EMG biofeedback so they can see how their pelvic floor works on a computer screen. |
 We will teach them how their pelvic floor works with their bladder using a balloon. |  How good posture will help the food go down. |
 We will encourage crossed-legged sitting vs w-sitting. |  We will do fun strengthening exercise to help the pelvic floor, |
 We will teach them a belly massage. |  And explain how slowing down will make their organs happy. |
 We will also use gentle visceral manipulation to calm their nervous sytem and mobilize their organs. |  And after every visit we hope their life may feel just a tiny little bit easier. |
My child struggles, and I suspect pelvic floor problems, but could that be normal?
Feel free to call our pelvic floor physical therapist to discuss your concerns.
The following screening tools may also be helpful for you to see if your child may need help.
A screen for pelvic floor dysfunction:
 To screen for pelvic floor dysfunction. (Credit Dawn Scandalcini) |  Does your child usually pee less than 4 times a day? |
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 Does your child ever leak pee when they sleep at night? |  Does your child poop less than 3 times per week? |
 Does your child ever have to push hard or strain to make their poop come out? |  Does your child ever feel embarrassed, anxious or don't do things with friends because of pee or poop problems? |
A screen for difficulty with interoception:
 Interoception Screen. Does you child know what is happening inside their body? |  Does your child go more than 3 hours without asking for food or drink? |
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 Does your child need to be reminded to drink liquids throughout the day? |  Does your child seem to get overtired quickly or easily? |
 Are "bedtime battles" frequent in your home (more than 4x/week)? |
A screen for constipation:
 Constipation screen: Could constipation be the cause of your child's bedwetting or daytime leaking. |  A history of constipation. |
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 Infrequent bowel movements. |  Hard stools or stools clogging the toilet. |
 Needing to strain or push to have a bowel movement. |  Leaking stool or smearing in their underwear. |
 Lacking the urge to have a bowel movement. |  Withholding bowel movements. |
My child is shy. How can you make them feel comfortable during your sessions?
 We structure the visits to meet your child where they are. |  We try our best to make your child feel comfortable. |
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 We have your child be involved in the decision-making process. |  We feel that it is crucial that your child bonds with our pelvic floor physical therapist. |
What are your goals with pediatric pelvic floor therapy?
Our goal is a happy family.
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And a confident child.
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"Let the child be the scriptwriter, the director, and the actor in his own play."
- Magda Gerber
I have never met a therapist with so much love in her heart. She has the magic touch with kids.
She won my child over with her bubbly personality and playful attitude.
He was scared at first, but realized it was actually fun after Sunel gave him a big smile and started playing silly games with him.
He thought we were just going to her office each visit to play with her.
Little did he know each game was working on a specific skill.
We went from not being able to leave our house because of potty issues and having it rule our world, to thinking the potty is awesome and listening to our bodies when they tell us when to go! She is a miracle worker, you won't regret it.
S.D
Please click here for our comprehensive Preteen Encopresis Guide.
