Why I Start Teaching Perineal Massage Way Earlier Than the Research Says

Why do we start teaching perineal massage (and all of our birth prep) earlier than most at PelvicSanity?  There are a few reasons.The first is simple - 37 weeks is considered full term.  No one will try and stop it if you go into labor.  So we plan to have all of our birth prep complete by then.  Any time we get after 37 weeks is just a bonus.  We're keeping our people comfortable or reminding them of things we've already covered in those final weeks.Next, most of our pregnant folks are coming in with other symptoms.  So if we're planning to wait until 34 or 35 weeks, our plan to teach perineal massage might get blown up if they have a flare-up of back pain or need other help.As they get closer to delivery, our people (naturally) get more focused on the baby as well.  They are going to more OB appointments, which might get in the way of our plan of care.  They're trying to prepare for the arrival of the new addition, and have other stresses as they plan for delivery and bringing the new one home.Finally, I think we usually oversimply perineal massage.  It's not that easy!  It's a difficult area to reach.  The tissue is often tender and needs to be worked on by us prior to teaching them to do it themselves.  They may not want a partner to help or might feel self-conscious about doing this.  Remember, not everyone is as excited about the pelvic floor as we are!And speaking from personal experience, I'm guessing even many of us - as pelvic rehab providers - don't do much for our own perineal massage.  So if we're going to emphasize it to patients, we need to give ourselves time to do it!PelviCon 2025 - Wait List OpenThe PelviCon 2025 wait list is now open!  For those who want more info (or know they are coming and want priority registration on Black Friday), make sure you head to www.pelvicon.com and sign up for the wait list!About UsNicole and Jesse Cozean founded Pelvic PT Rising to provide clinical and business resources to physical therapists to change the way we treat pelvic health.   PelvicSanity Physical Therapy (www.pelvicsanity.com) together in 2016.  It grew quickly into one of the largest cash-based physical therapy practices in the country.Through Pelvic PT Rising, Nicole has created clinical courses (www.pelvicptrising.com/clinical) to help pelvic health providers gain confidence in their skills and provide frameworks to get better patient outcomes.  Together, Jesse and Nicole have helped 600+ pelvic practices start and grow through the Pelvic PT Rising Business Programs (www.pelvicptrising.com/business) to build a practice that works for them! Get in Touch!Learn more at www.pelvicptrising.com, follow Nicole @nicolecozeandpt (www.instagram.com/nicolecozeandpt) or reach out via email ([email protected]).Check out our Clinical Courses, Business Resources and learn more about us at Pelvic PT Rising...Let's Continue to Rise!