Pregnancy, Childbirth, and the Pelvic Floor
Mothers and expecting mothers please read this page and let kegelcompare help you to find a solution to whatever problem you are currently experiencing. We are here for you! Feel free to contact us and let our nurse help you find the best solution for your problem.
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The Kegelmaster is a great option for women who are not currently experiencing a large ammount of stress incontinence and can easily locate and control their pelvic floor muscles. The kegelmaster allows a great progression in vaginal toning. Read more about the sexual benefits of using a product like the kegelmaster. |
Pregnancy / Antepartum
Almost everyone already knows to do kegel exercises during pregnancy, but what are the real goals of this training? There are two main goals one should have in mind. The first goal is to increase strength. A stronger muscle will be more resistant to tearing during a vaginal birth. The second goal is to increase muscle control which will allow you to relax and contract your pelvic floor muscles appropriately during a vaginal birth. A stronger muscle will resist tearing, but the importance of being able to relax the muscles can not be overstated. Muscle control and strength is important during delivery because the muscles need to relax while they are stretched and strong muscles are less likely to tear. Less tears, less likelihood of needing an episiotomy. Kegel exercises during pregnancy are a standard recommendation by Midwives and OBGYNs
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The Pelvexiser is the device we recommend for women who are experiencing stress incontinence, and are having difficulty locating the pelvic floor muscles. The biofeedback feature of the Pelvexiser will allow women with very weak pelvic floor muscles to locate those muscles and track improvements in the strenghth of the pelvic floor muscles. |
After Delivery / Postpartum
Vaginal childbirth frequently has damaging effects on the pelvic floor muscles and the vagina. Tearing of internal musculature, incontinence, episiotomies, a feeling of bagginess, and pelvic prolapse are some of the common undesirable effects of childbirth, even a birth by c-section increases the risk of pelvic floor dysfunction by four times! Overstretching your pelvic floor and small muscle tears are very common occurrences . The good news is that if you have not performed Kegel exercises before delivery there is strong evidence that post partum exercising is more effective than antepartum exercising for regaining and maintaining a healthy pelvic floor. These exercises are most effective when performed against resistance. Since insertion of a kegel exercise device is invasive to the vagina caution needs to be taken in regard to using an insertable device too soon after having given birth. Depending on the symptoms you are experiencing after having given birth and at this point in your life different devices and training programs will be different for different people.
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The Myself is an amazing device we recommend for women who are experiencing stress incontinence, and are having difficulty locating the pelvic floor muscles. The biofeedback display on the Myself is a LCD screen that guides the user through a pelvic floor workout program while displaying the strength of each and every contraction. It tells you when to squeeze and when to relax and will show you if you are isolating the correct muscles. The only drawbacks are that the manufacturer recommends replacing the sensor every month, and you have to have batteries to operate the Myself. Other than that... this is an amazing device! |
If you are not experiencing any incontinence 4-6 weeks after having given birth a good choice for you is likely the Kegelmaster. This device provides a variable ammount of resistance and allows great progression potential. If you are having stress incontinence frequently several weeks after giving birth then you may want to use a device that offers biofeedback such as the Pelvexiser or Myself. These devices will help you to correctly isolate the pelvic floor muscles and help you track your muscle strength progression with biofeedback. If you are confused by the choices we are offering please do not hesitate to contact us, so that we can take your individual situation into consideration. Our staff nurse and partner Brad Porter is a registered nurse and has almost 5 years of experience counseling patients with all types of pelvic floor dysfunction.