Overactive Pelvic Floor Muscles

Where might I feel it?

Pain can be felt in many areas such as:

• Vagina (in women)
• Labia and/or vulva (in women)
• Anus
• Bladder
• Penis (in men)
• Testicles/scrotum (in men)
• Coccyx
• Groin
• Lower back
• Stomach

It can also lead to various other symptoms such as:

• Bladder urgency and frequency
• Incontinence
• Erectile dysfunction (in men)
• Pain during or after sex (men and women)
• Bowel problems

What causes an Overactive Pelvic Floor?

Sometimes there is no explanation for why this has happened. Sometimes it can be triggered from other sources such as:

• Urine infection
• Thrush
• Stress
• Pelvic surgery
• Childbirth
• Trauma or abuse
• Endometriosis or other painful conditions

What can I do to help myself?

• Get checked out by your doctor to rule out other causes for your pain
• General relaxation can help
• Abdominal breathing exercises:
  1. Get in a comfortable position laying on your back or side.
  2. Place one hand on your chest and one hand on your tummy
  3. Breathe in slowly through your nose imagining your tummy filling with air, you should feel your belly rising
  4. As you breathe in, allow the area between your sit bones to relax and widen. This helps to relax the pelvic floor muscles
  5. Exhale slowly and then repeat 3-4 breaths
• Watch this video to learn more:
  Breathing Technique to Relax: Belly Breathing Exercise with Dora Kamau - YouTube
• Warm baths or heat pads on the area
• Take pain relief as recommended by your pharmacist/GP
• A reduction in aggravating factors such as cycling and sex until the pain has improved.
• Massage, stretches and muscle release as taught by your physiotherapist can be very useful    
• Try some of these stretches from the Pelvic Pain Foundation of Australia or see the QR code for more.
• Learn more about pain and how it impacts on your life:

Tame The Beast — It's time to rethink persistent pain (youtube.com)

Learn how to relax your pelvic floor with the video -
Want to relieve your pelvic pain? Relax your pelvic floor muscles... (youtube.com)

Physiotherapy Treatment

This may involve massage of the soft tissues, stretching of tight muscles (other parts of the body) and teaching relaxation. The physiotherapist may also use biofeedback to help you learn about your muscles and their function. The physiotherapist can teach you ways to help you understand and manage your pain better. 

For further help and advice: 

For Women - Pelvic Pain Foundation

Pain and Relaxation for Men - Pelvic Pain Foundation

Pelvic Pain Support Network | Support, Information and Advocacy for those with Pelvic Pain

A UK based support network for patients suffering from pelvic pain.