Preconception

The State of Arizona’s Babies / State of Babies Yearbook 2020

June 19, 2020 by Debra Stevenson

The State of Babies Yearbook: 2020 compares national and state-by-state data on the well-being of infants and toddlers, released on Thursday by Zero to Three, it reflects a wide array of data. Overall, Arizona received a “G” = “Getting Started”

Click below to view the Arizona 2019 profile:

State of Arizona Babies State of Arizona Babies

Where children are born can affect their chances for a strong start in life. Babies need Good Health, Strong Families, and Positive Early Learning Experiences to foster their healthy brain development and help them realize their full potential.

This information is copied from the Mon 6/15/2020 United Way of Southern Arizona – Pima Early Education Update Newsletter

What is a Pelvic Floor Anyway

March 31, 2020 by Body Central PTs

What Is A Pelvic Floor Anyway

Your pelvic floor is a group of muscles that make up the bottom of your pelvis. You have THREE layers of pelvic floor muscle that most people do not know are there. The pelvic floor muscles are pretty special as they are the only muscle in the whole body that support a transverse load.

They are in charge of the 5 S’s of your body.

Support – these muscles support your bowel, bladder, and sex organs. These muscles hold and support the bladder when it gets full holding up to 600 mL of fluid (20 oz)!
Stability – these muscles provide stability to your sacrum and to your hip bones. With a lot of help from ligaments these muscles help keep your pelvis stable.
Sphincter control – the pelvic floor muscles make up our external anal sphincter and our urethral sphincter too. They are in charge of keeping everything in to avoid leaking incidents, and they are in charge of letting things out when it’s appropriate (i.e. on the toilet).
Sexual Functioning – The pelvic floor muscles allow for relaxation of the vaginal muscles as well as maintaining an erection for males to allow for intercourse. If all the muscles are working as they should be, there should not be any pain involved with intercourse.
Sump Pump – Your pelvic floor muscles actually help pump fluid that collect in the legs and lower abdomen back up to your heart and kidneys to be processed.

It is amazing that only one group of muscles allow for so much to go on! These muscles are just like any other muscle in the body too, they can be strong but they can also be weak.

If the muscles are too weak you might start noticing any of the following signs

Urinary of fecal Incontinence or leaking
Pelvic Organ Prolapse
Low Back Discomfort
Overactive bladder

If your muscles are working too hard and have difficulties with coordination you might notice any of the signs below

Pelvic pain
Dyspareunia (painful intercourse)
Constipation
Hemorrhoids
Coccyx (tailbone) pain
Painful bladder (Interstitial Cystitis)

Any of the above apply to you? Give pelvic floor physical therapy a chance to resolve the following symptoms and medical diagnosis. Reach out to the pelvic floor health care team at BodyCentral Physical Therapy today.

Do I have to get on the floor? As a pelvic health physical therapist that is my favorite question to hear. The answer is No! Your physician has probably sent you for an assessment and treatment of your pelvic floor muscles. These muscles support your organs, stabilize your pelvis, are your main source of bowel and bladder control, are important for sexual function, and aid with pumping fluid in your body. Some of the reasons you might be referred to a pelvic health physical therapist would be urinary or fecal leaking, difficulty urinating or completing a bowel movement, constipation, pelvic organ prolapse, pelvic pain, vulvodynia, vaginismus, or pain with intercourse.

What to Expect:

Since these muscles are a part of your pelvis, assessment and treatment is more personal and private. When you come to see a pelvic health professional we ask the more personal questions. Your provider will want to know about pee, poop, and sexual functioning which are the more taboo things to talk about, but we don’t think so! If you are uncomfortable talking about these things we want to know so please protect your space.

Your examination of your pelvic floor muscles are all based on your level of comfort – this is your road to better health and we are here to guide. Your provider will lay out the options and you pick!

Internal vaginal or rectal assessment. An internal assessment will tell your provider strength, coordination, and endurance of your pelvic floor muscles. This will also tell your provider if there is a certain muscle that is causing pain or not working properly to give you the strength you need.
Visual Assessment. Your provider can assess the coordination of the pelvic floor muscles by visually assessing the muscles in reference to the bones you sit on.
External pelvic floor assessment. Your provider will feel for the bone you sit on and place their hand to the inside of that bone over clothing. This will tell us how the coordination of the pelvic floor muscles are but not the strength.
Biofeedback or sEMG assessment. External sensors are placed on your backside – you can even place them yourself. This will allow for you and your provider to visually see the activation of your pelvic floor muscle. This is often used as a training tool as well as assessment.

Pelvic floor therapy is NOT scary, not shameful, not taking autonomy away from you. Pelvic Floor Therapy is meant to be confidence boosting in putting yourself back into charge of your health care journey.

If you have any questions about pelvic health therapy please reach out to the pelvic health physical therapists at BodyCentral. We would love to answer any questions.

520-325-4002 kristenfisher@bodycentralpt.net

The Pandemic of COVID-19: A lesson to our kids that we are all connected

March 24, 2020 by Intuition Wellness

https://youtu.be/dV4CWsEj6nE

I didn’t understand– most of us didn’t– exactly how it would feel to prepare for a pandemic to sweep through. On Friday afternoon our team naturopathic physician, Dr. Sage, attended a special seminar hosted by the Arizona Department of Health Services about COVID-19 (aka. Novel Coronavirus). On Monday, Dr. Sage and I began putting together a statement for our team and our clients as well as a protocol for increasing cleaning measures in our office. By Tuesday, we became aware that a confirmed case of the virus is now in our county. And for the last couple of days we’ve been working out the details of a plan in case our team members or clients are quarantined. It’s been a whirlwind, but now we’re just waiting and thinking a lot about what’s to come. The spread of COVID-19 is a reminder and a lesson on how interconnected we all are at both global and local levels… for better or worse.

Checking in on Coronavirus

As a pediatric practice, most of our clients are children and young adults who seem to be the least impacted by the virus. This is a relief certainly. Yet, we believe in a community-based model of healing and wellbeing, which means that each of us– old, young, healthy and sick– has a responsibility to others. It’s up to all of us to make efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and to respond with compassion to those who are suffering because of it.

Most of the kiddos we see are spending their days at school in what is often akin to a petri dish no matter how well school personnel clean. Many kids have or will get COVID-19 and they will very likely be fine. However, in order to be a part of protecting others in their community, they do need to understand that there is a virus coming through. They need to understand also that each of us could unwittingly spread it to others.

Looking for support in talking to your kids about COVID-19?

I encourage you to talk to your children about COVID-19 in a measured, compassionate and rational way. There’s some excellent content out there about how to do so that I’m linking below. My biggest tip is to monitor your own anxiety about it and be certain that your anxiety feels manageable in the moment(s) you have this conversation with your children. Filter their news intake and your own for that matter, as well. And don’t forget to talk to them about what they can do to help protect their community.

We can help support you in talking to your child about COVID-19 and if your child already has a provider, don’t hesitate to let them know that you would like this support.

If you notice that your child seems to be experiencing particularly big worry about COVID-19, it’s not generally helpful to tell them simply not to worry. Katie Hurley, a licensed clinical social worker who works with children, recently summed this up on her social media.

“During the past few days of therapy sessions, a number of kids have said something like this: Grownups are telling me not to worry because it only gets old people, but what about my grandparents? Will they be okay? …It’s up to us to help kids work through their anxious thoughts. Kids never ever stop worrying simply because adults say, ‘don’t worry.’ That’s not how worrying works.” — Katie Hurley, LCSW

What steps is Intuition Wellness Center taking to protect our community?

Limiting exposures. We are asking that if you have symptoms, please do not come in for your appointments. In fact, stay home altogether. Call or email us and let us know if you have a fever or cough. Our team members are working hard to stay healthy and will be staying home if they have symptoms. Medical facilities are reserving tests for only those with severe symptoms, so, unfortunately, there will be no way for many of us to truly confirm if it’s COVID-19 rather than just a cold. Telehealth may be an option for your OT or therapy sessions if it’s clinically appropriate and it will definitely be an option for naturopathic medical sessions.
Keeping a clean space. We’ve given each team member additional cleaning options and we’ve asked them to up their cleaning protocol. We’re also pulling out some of the non-essential play items and fabric items in our center so that we can concentrate our cleaning efforts. Lastly, we’ve also asked our nighttime cleaning crew to increase their efforts.
Handwashing. You’ve heard it a million times now, but this may be one of the most important tips. Wash your hands… wash your hands… wash your hands. Simple soap and water is very effective at killing COVID-19. We’ve added a hand washing station and reminders and tips to make it more enjoyable for children. Please wash your hands when you arrive in our center to protect yourself and others.

Read our full statement about attendance at sessions and our precautions here.

What’s New at Banner Health?

February 10, 2020 by Debra Stevenson

2020 will be a Banner Year! In 2019 we saw 404 couples come through our doors for education and we have big plans for the year ahead. We offer classes for parents in the following areas: Birth Prep in English and Spanish, Baby Care, Breastfeeding, and Infant CPR. Did you know we are the only hospital to offer a class specific to pumping?

Our OB Pumping Class for Breastfeeding Mothers can be taken during pregnancy or postpartum. Topics covered include: when to start pumping, pumping at work, storing your milk, as well as cleaning and maintenance of your pump to name a few. If you choose to take the class after your delivery, we recommend attending at least three weeks prior to returning to work. Your baby is welcome to attend with you.

After your delivery we offer continued support through our FREE support groups for Breastfeeding and Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders. Babies in arms are welcome as well as female identified support people.

Curious to see our new facility for your own interest or client referrals?

Come take a free tour. Of course, we also include tours in our Birth Prep classes, so you don’t have to make two trips. As you walk through the unit you’ll see our open concept nurses’ stations that provide easy access to our friendly personnel.

You’ll stroll past our on-call areas for our Perinatologists and Pediatricians on the Labor and Post-Partum units and feel comforted by the 24/7 attention to your care. Inside our delivery suites you will see brand new fold-out couches and recliner chairs for partner and family comfort. And we now offer a one-time partner meal for the support person of the patient’s choosing.

Speaking of choices –

Each labor room comes with a peanut and birth ball, as well as an Aqua Doula birth tub upon request. If you’d like to delight the senses we offer four aromatherapy blends to choose from.We continue the tradition of honoring the U of A legacy. Our Wildcat for Life onesie, bib, and gift bag is given to all babies born to University of Arizona Alumni.

Before discharge from the hospital you will have time to address any breastfeeding or pumping concerns to one of our five Lactation Consultants, and we have someone you can speak with 7 days a week, including weekends and holidays.

Joan Snelz, MSN-Ed, RNC-OB
Katherine Torres, RN
Women and Infant Services
Banner – University Medical Center Tucson

Your Pelvic Floor and More: The Benefits of Physical Therapy in the Childbearing Years

February 12, 2019 by gatadmin

Part II: Postpartum Care

Some people think urinary incontinence is to be expected after having a baby. Sneeze and pee, right? Here the doctors at Body Central Physical Therapy discuss why this doesn’t have to be your new “normal” and how physical therapy can help with a plethora of issues after baby arrives:

Why is it important to see a physical therapist after baby is born?

Birthing causes trauma to tissues just like any other injury or surgery. Many times, after a birth (either vaginal or cesarean), muscles, ligaments, pelvic alignment, and tissues can be irritated or in a state of dysfunction. Without assistance of pelvic floor therapy, these lingering dysfunctions will continue years after birth. Leaking urine when jumping or sneezing, while common, is not normal for a postpartum body and it generally means there is an underlying issue with the coordination and/or strength of the pelvic floor muscles. There are also the potential added challenges of scarring, tissue asymmetry, pelvic alignment, and posturing dysfunctions. These all can be assessed after birth which allow the new mother to rehabilitate her body in order to strengthen and stabilize the pelvis to reduce long lasting effects or complaints.

What kind of issues do women have after birth with which a physical therapist is trained to help?

Postpartum care can include a myriad of diagnoses. All can be assessed through physical therapy and properly assigned exercises to improve mobility and function and to relieve pain.

Coccydynia is inflammation of the tailbone caused by relaxin’s effect on the pelvic floor muscles or by the baby passing through the birth canal.
Diastasis Recti is a fairly common condition of pregnancy and postpartum in which the right and left halves of Rectus Abdominis muscle spread apart which can lead to lower back pain, incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse, and even painful intercourse.
Incontinence (both fecal and urinary), frequent urination, nocturia (excessive voiding at night), and fecal urgency can all be caused by pregnancy and birth, whether vaginal or cesarean.
Dyspareunia (painful intercourse) can be caused by hormone imbalance or lingering pelvic floor issues. Cesarean birth and vacuum assisted birth both make this issue it twice as likely to occur.
Sciatica and Back, Hip, or Pelvic Pain may linger after birth or be caused by the work of birth.

Dr. Melissa uses physiotape to treat Diastasis Recti.

Exercises are demonstrated in the office and then sent home for continued work on healing Diastasis Recti.

Are there any “must-do’s” for healing from which all women can benefit?

Although there is no “one-size-fits-all” treatment because every woman is different, most women can benefit from transverse abdominus strengthening along with pelvic floor conditioning. Gentle stretching to relieve achiness caused by breastfeeding, holding a new baby, or lugging around a carseat is beneficial. Resting whenever possible and using relaxation techniques are wonderful for tuning back in with yourself and your body, which is often lost when constantly caring for a newborn. Call Body Central Physical Therapy today and let them “mother the new mother” in this critical fourth trimester.

Many thanks to Doctors Maria, Madeleine, and Sarah for their contributions to this article and Doctor Melissa and Client Jessica for allowing me to tag along and see first hand the wonderful work the team of Pelvic Floor Specialists at Body Central can do!

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