At Akasha, we help you figure out where things actually fit into your life and how to make small changes that will actually work within your lifestyle.

So, what does Holistic even mean? The word holistic gets thrown around a lot, and it doesn’t always mean much. It’s often just a marketing ploy because it sounds good. But the official definition is “characterized by the treatment of the whole person, taking into account mental and social factors, rather than just the symptoms of an illness.” I would extend my definition a bit and include all systems of the body, as well as social, emotional, psychological, and spiritual factors.

“One of the best things I can do is just listen to your story”

Exploring why we do what we do

Making the connection between stress and pain

This is one of my favorite topics. There’s so much fear put into our heads around something that is most often a really normal process. People having been giving birth since the beginning of humanity. While we want to prepare ourselves and do what we can to have a great birthing experience, a big part of that is not letting fear drive our preparations. Instead, let’s talk about things you can do to prepare your body so you have a fantastic birthing experience.

Let’s talk about sex. After babies. Yeah, that’s right, we’re going there. Every mom knows about that magic six week visit when you go to the doc for a checkup, they do a quick exam, and say you’re “good to go”, much to the delight of your husband or partner. But… what if you’re not ready? What if you had a c-section? Or a vaginal tear? Or an episiotomy? Or (God forbid) hemorrhoids? What if you’re feeling tired and covered in bodily fluids that aren’t your own, which is just NOT SEXY?

Typically, stress incontinence is due to weak pelvic floor muscles. Your pelvic floor is made up of the muscles that span from your pubic bone to your tailbone and surround your urethra, vagina, and rectum. They function to stop the flow of urine, gas, or feces, to support the pelvic organs (bladder, uterus, rectum), and in sexual function they contract with stimulation and orgasm to increase blood flow to your sexual organs.

Pelvic organ prolapse, or POP, is a topic that is very relevant to all women as 45% of women between the ages of 45 and 85 have some form of POP. Does that statistic surprise you? The number is even higher among women who have had children, at 66%. So, why have many women not heard of it, or even understand that they are at risk for it? One reason is that, despite 45% of women having POP upon exam, only 12% of them are having symptoms.

To a pelvic physical therapist, the pudendal nerve is a commonly referenced and thought of part of an individual’s anatomy. However, as the article states, I never thought of the origin of the term. It turns out, pudendum is Latin for “shame.”