Going to the bathroom shouldn’t regularly hurt. If you experience sharp pain, pressure, burning, cramping, or discomfort when having a bowel movement, it can be easy to assume constipation is the only possible explanation. But painful bowel movements can happen for several reasons—including problems with how your pelvic floor muscles are working. Your pelvic floor plays an important role in bowel movements. These muscles need to coordinate with your abdominal muscles and actu

If your child is dealing with bedwetting, daytime accidents, or frequent trips to the bathroom, it’s easy to focus only on the bladder. But here’s something many parents (and even providers) don’t realize: 👉 The bladder and bowels are closely connected—and constipation can impact all of it. Understanding this connection can be a turning point. It often explains why symptoms seem unrelated… and why some strategies haven’t worked long-term. How Are the Bladder and Bowels Conne

If you've noticed urine leakage when you sneeze, a heavy feeling in your pelvis, pain during sex, or persistent core weakness after having a baby, you're not alone. Many women assume these symptoms are simply part of postpartum recovery, but they don't have to be. One of the most common questions we hear at Bonneville Pelvic Health is: When is the best time to start pelvic floor physical therapy after giving birth? The short answer: earlier than most people think. While every

We all know that stress, diet, fluid intake, and activity can influence our bowels, but what about the pelvic floor muscles? Pelvic floor physical therapy (also known as PFPT) is a specialized branch of physical therapy that targets the muscles, organs, and joints of the pelvic area. There are many structures in the neighborhood, including the bladder, reproductive organs, and the rectum, and they all interact with each other more than you might think! By addressing dysfunct