Services

What is it?

A very common condition with involuntary loss of urine (wee) from the bladder. There are several different types of urinary incontinence with the most common being:

Stress Incontinence – The leaking of urine with an increase of pressure in the abdomen such as coughing, laughing or lifting a weight.

Urge Incontinence – Leakage of urine with a strong urge to go to the toilet.

What Causes It?

With all women’s health conditions, the cause of a problem is complex. Rarely is this caused by one specific issue, there are often multiple factors involved that need addressing. Some of the possible causes are:

Structural – Pelvic floor muscles that aren’t working correctly or unsupportive connective tissue in the pelvis

Behavioural – history of poor bladder habits or consumption of bladder irritants

Medical – Neurological conditions such as Parkinson’s or Multiple Sclerosis, or reactions to medication.

General Function – how we breathe and move.

How we treat

Following the subjective and physical examinations, strategies such as pelvic floor muscle training, bladder retraining, dietary recommendations and pelvic organ support are used for treatment.

What is it?

In addition to urinary incontinence, you can also have a range of different conditions that affect your bladder. Bladder Dysfunction includes:

Urinary Urgency – a strong desire to empty your bladder.

Urinary Frequency – increased need to empty your bladder frequently during the day or waking up several times during the night to empty your bladder (Nocturia)

Bed Wetting – involuntary leaking of urine whilst you are sleeping (Nocturnal Enuresis)

What causes it?

There are a lot of different factors that can contribute to bladder dysfunction and most of the time it’s more than one cause. Some of the possible causes are:

Structural – Changes to muscles of the pelvic floor, pelvic connective tissue and nerves in the area.

Behavioural – history of poor bladder habits or consumption of bladder irritants

Medical – Neurological conditions such as Parkinson’s or Multiple Sclerosis or reactions to medication.

Hormones – Changes in female sex hormones through different stages of life can impact muscle function.

How we treat?

Once causes of the condition have been identified from the subjective and physical examinations, strategies such as pelvic floor muscle training, bladder retraining, dietary advice, bowel and bladder health recommendations and pelvic organ support are the treatment options.

Pregnancy can be a crazy time for mums-to-be as their bodies undergo incredible physical, hormonal and emotional changes.

We know that not all pregnancies go to plan with many women experiencing pain and discomfort as a result these changes. Common issues during pregnancy are:

• • Pelvic girdle pain
  • Lower back pain
  • Upper back and neck pain
  • Carpal Tunnel and wrist pain
  • Swelling and varicose veins

How we treat?

We manage these through the use of manual therapy, advice on activity modifications, prescribing support garments such as pelvic belts and compression stockings,

In addition to managing these issues, we offer pelvic floor assessments to assist with birth preparation and can provide education on labour strategies and postpartum recovery.

No one’s experience of birth is the same which mean everyone’s recovery is unique.

Each individual’s timeline of recovery is very different with some women experiencing uncomfortable new symptoms and others wanting to return to exercise as soon as possible.

Whatever your story is, a women’s health physio can assist with:

• • Treating new symptoms such as bladder leakage and pelvic or neck pain.
  • Recovery following a vaginal birth or Caesarean section delivery.
  • Scar management
  • Stomach muscle separation (Diastasis of the Rectus Abdominal Muscle)
  • Pelvic floor assessment and exercise recommendations.

We recommend a Post Partum assessment for all new mothers, especially before returning to exercise. This can be as early as 6 weeks post partum or whenever you feel comfortable to at any stage after birth.

What is it?

Pelvic pain can be complex. There are lots of different causes of pelvic pain and typically the pain is linked with pelvic function such as periods, sex, urinating and opening bowels but can be through movement of the hips and lower back. Some of the causes of pelvic pain are:

• Dyspaneuria (painful sex).
• Endometriosis
• Vaginismus
• Coccydynia
• Interstitial Cystitis

How We Treat

Pelvic Pain is deeply personal and requires an individualised approach to treatment. We work with you to discover your goals which ultimately determines our treatment options.

Pelvic pain is related to more than just. The pelvic floor and a whole body assessment is usually completed in addition to a pelvic exam, which is done at your own pace.

Often the best approach is a team effort. We liaise with or refer you to several different medical professionals such as psychologists, exercise physiologists, dieticians and gynaecologists to ensure you have the best chance of recovery.

What is it?

Just like pelvic pain, painful sex is very personal and the time needs to be taken to hear your full story. For some women, pain during or after sex has always been painful and for others, the pain has developed over time.

There are many types and causes of painful sex, such as:

• After birth trauma – Vaginal or Caesarean delivery
• Endometriosis
• Pelvic Organ Prolapse
• Vulva skin conditions – Lichens Sclerosis
• Abdominal/vaginal surgery or trauma
• Sexual abuse or trauma

How We Treat?

A big part of the session is taking the time to hear your story in a safe and confidential space. An important component of the sessions is building trust and creating an environment that is healthy for healing. A fully body assessment and pelvic exam is often required but is only completed once the patient is comfortable to do so.

What Is It?

Any condition that results in changes to normal bowel function. This can include:

• Chronic constipation
• Faecal Incontinence (leakage of poo)
• Flatus Incontinence (uncontrollable passing of wind)
• Pelvic Organ Prolapse

Bowel issues have a huge impact on a person’s lifestyle and confidence which can be to the detriment of their emotional, social and physical wellbeing.

How We Treat?

In most cases, bowel dysfunction can be easily treated by physiotherapy once a thorough subjective history has been taken and an internal examination has been completed.

We use interventions such as education on healthy bowel habits, bowel emptying retraining, prolapse management and pelvic floor exercises.

For more difficult problems, we liaise with local GP’s and medical specialists to ensure a successful outcome.

What is it?

There are typically 2 main types of breast injuries:

• Exercise Induced – can be a direct blow or from friction
• Mastalgia (hormone-based breast pain).

Mastitis is also a type of breast injury which is caused by inflammation of the breast tissue during lactation.

How We Treat?

Education is one of the most powerful tools when it comes to treating and preventing breast injuries. Ensuring women wear an appropriate bra during exercise, know how to identify a breast injury and the self-management options available.

We provide sport bra assessments and advice around breast support during exercise.

The treatment approaches vary depending on the cause of the injury with manual therapy and exercise being the main treatment options.

What is it?

When people think of “physio” they generally think of someone that treats sore backs and ankles with exercise and manual therapy.

This type of physio is called Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy or MSK for short.

At The Female Collective we also do MSK physiotherapy for women who have injured themselves or are struggling with pain.

We exclusively treat women and have designed a space that is beautiful and less intimidating than your traditional male dominated practices.

What We Treat?

• Foot, ankle, knee and hip injuries
• Arm and shoulder injuries
• Neck pain and headaches
• Lower and upper back pain
• Post Operative patients
• NDIS

How We Treat?

We use the latest evidence-based treatment approaches to help you return to sport or a pain free lifestyle.

This includes thorough education of your injury or condition, manual therapy, joint mobilisations, dry needling, exercise prescription and a home exercise program.

What Is It?

Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) is where your jaw connects to your skull.

You have one joint on either side of your face and they are responsible for eating, speaking and facial expression.

These joints need to move in a range of different directions and be very strong.

When there is an issue with these joints or muscles, people can experience localised pain, neck pain and headaches, clicking, grinding and clunking.

How We Treat?

The first step is identifying the cause of the dysfunction and pain through an assessment of your neck and jaw which can include an internal mouth examination.

The treatment can include massage, dry needling, trigger point release as well as jaw and neck exercises.