Q: What should I wear to my appointment?
A: Wear comfortable clothing that can roll down easily at the waist to access your abdominals.
Q: Why is my appointment 1hour?
A: Women’s health issues are often complex, multi-factorial and bothersome and take time to assess and treat. Our assessment and management are holistic, patient centred and focussed on your goals and quality of life.
Q: Can I bring my baby/child to my appointment?
A: Absolutely. We want our services to be accessible to all women. We welcome babies and children to our clinic. They can be in the treatment room throughout your appointment, or if you are happy to, our reception staff are happy to look after your baby at the front desk if they become unsettled.
Q: Why have I been asked to come with a full bladder?
A: Part of your assessment and treatment may involve visualising your bladder and/or pelvic floor using Real Time Ultrasound (RTU). A full bladder is easy to locate and see using RTU and the movement of the pelvic floor can be seen in relation to the bladder allowing for accurate assessment and biofeedback.
Q: What is Real Time Ultrasound (RTU)
A: RTU creates an image of underlying soft tissues and organs using high frequency sound waves. It is the same tool used by obstetricians, midwives, or ultra-sonographers to visualise a baby in utero. RTU can be a great tool to assess your pelvic floor function and a way that you can see how it moves in real time. It is not invasive. A probe will be applied to your lower abdomen using ultrasound gel.
Q: Will I need an internal vaginal examination?
A: It depends on your symptoms that suggest pelvic floor dysfunction (e.g. incontinence or pelvic floor organ prolapse) your physiotherapist may recommend an internal examination as the most effective way to reach a diagnosis as well as determine pelvic floor strength and the most appropriate treatment plan. This would only proceed with your consent after clear explanation of the reasoning and goals of assessment. If you are not comfortable with an internal examination, there are other assessment tools such as RTU that can be used although these will not provide the same level of information.
Q: Will my treatment involve exercise?
A: Intensive individualised pelvic floor muscle training is effective in the management of symptoms relating to pelvic floor dysfunction (e.g. incontinence or prolapse). It will be a core component of treatment for these conditions.
If you have specific exercise goals, we can work with you in our gym or hydrotherapy pool to achieve these.