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Pelvic pain is discomfort, pressure, or aching that develops in your lower abdomen, groin, or pelvic region. It might appear suddenly and resolve quickly (known as acute pain) or persist for months or even years (also known chronic pain). In men, pelvic pain is often linked to your urinary tract, prostate, bladder, and digestive system. A variety of conditions can contribute to the pain, and it is more common than many people think.
Common symptoms of pelvic floor problems in men may include:
- Ongoing pelvic, lower back, or tailbone pain
- Pain during or after ejaculation
- Discomfort when sitting for long periods
- A sense of heaviness or aching in your pelvic area, which is often worse as the day goes on
- Difficulty starting urination, frequent urges, or trouble fully emptying the bladder
- Poor coordination of the pelvic floor muscles, either excessive tension or difficulty relaxing them
Living with pelvic pain can be frustrating and exhausting, but effective treatments are available. Options may include medication, lifestyle changes, and physiotherapy tailored to your specific needs. With the right support, many men are able to reduce their symptoms, restore normal pelvic function, and improve their overall quality of life.
At Circle Health Group, our specialist physiotherapists have extensive experience in men’s health, addressing pelvic floor issues across all ages. Our aim is to help you recover confidence, manage your symptoms, and get back to doing the things that matter most to you.
How can physiotherapy help your pelvic pain?
Physiotherapy plays an important role in managing pelvic pain by addressing the underlying issues with the muscles, joints, and connective tissues that contribute to your discomfort. A physiotherapist will use techniques such as targeted exercises to strengthen or relax your pelvic floor muscles, manual therapy to reduce your tension and improve mobility, and education around the posture, movement, and lifestyle factors that can influence symptoms. In some cases, physiotherapy also incorporates breathing techniques and pain management strategies to help reduce sensitivity and improve your overall function. At Circle Health Group, our specialist physiotherapists cover all areas of men's health. We cover a wide range of conditions including an overactive bladder, bowel dysfunction, and sexual dysfunction.
Our highly skilled and experienced physiotherapists specialise in the treatment of men’s pelvic health, with a focus on chronic pelvic pain. This includes the treatment of urological and pelvic floor conditions, such as:
Hyperactive or hypertonic pelvic floor dysfunction
In men, hypertonic pelvic floor dysfunction happens when the muscles of your pelvic floor remain excessively tight or fail to relax properly. This can cause chronic pelvic pain, urinary urgency or frequency, constipation, pain during or after ejaculation, and sometimes difficulty starting urination or bowel movements. Unlike weakness-related pelvic floor problems, hypertonicity involves overactivity and muscle guarding, often triggered by factors such as chronic stress, trauma (including surgery), prolonged sitting, or postural strain.
Physiotherapy focuses on restoring normal muscle tone and function by releasing tension, teaching breathing and relaxation techniques to calm the nervous system, using biofeedback to improve awareness and voluntary control, and prescribing mobility or stretching exercises. With a personalised approach, physiotherapy helps reduce symptoms and improve quality of life by teaching the pelvic floor not only to contract effectively, but also to let go.
Chronic prostatitis or chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS)
CPPS is one of the most common causes of persistent pelvic pain in men. It is not always linked to infection but instead to tension, inflammation, and nerve hypersensitivity in and around the pelvic floor and prostate area. Symptoms can include deep aching or burning pelvic pain, urinary urgency or frequency, pain during or after ejaculation, erectile discomfort, and lower back or perineal pain.
Physiotherapy provides strategies to manage CPPS by addressing muscle overactivity, improving pelvic floor coordination, using manual therapy and relaxation techniques, and teaching pacing, posture, and movement strategies. Education and lifestyle advice are also important, helping you understand and manage flare-ups effectively.
Overactive bladder syndrome
In men, overactive bladder occurs when your bladder’s signalling system becomes overly sensitive, leading to urgency, frequency, and sometimes urge incontinence. You may find yourself rushing to the toilet, waking up multiple times at night, or feeling anxious about being far from a bathroom.
Physiotherapy can help retrain the bladder through urge-suppression strategies such as timed voiding, breathing techniques, and calming exercises. We also focus on pelvic floor muscle coordination to support bladder control and sometimes use biofeedback so you can see and improve how your muscles respond.
Pudendal neuralgia
Pudendal neuralgia is a nerve-related pain condition where the pudendal nerve, which supplies sensation to the genitals, perineum, and anus, becomes irritated or compressed. Men may experience burning, tingling, numbness, or stabbing pain in the penis, testicles, perineum, or rectal area, often worsened by sitting.
Physiotherapy treatment aims to reduce nerve irritation by addressing surrounding muscle tension, improving posture and sitting habits, teaching nerve-gliding exercises, and supporting pain management strategies.
We offer physiotherapy to help you recover from pelvic pain following surgery.
Physiotherapy after pelvic surgery is about helping you recover safely, restore function, and prevent future problems. This includes surgery such as a prostatectomy, bowel surgery, and other procedures affecting your pelvic floor and surrounding structures.
In the early weeks of your recovery, the focus is on protecting your healing tissues while gradually reintroducing gentle movement, breathing exercises, and circulation-boosting activities to reduce swelling and support recovery. You’ll learn how to move, lift, and cough without putting undue strain on your surgical site, as well as strategies to manage pain and scar tissue sensitivity.
As healing progresses, physiotherapy shifts towards rebuilding your pelvic floor and core muscle coordination, improving posture, and addressing any bladder, bowel, or sexual function changes.
Physiotherapy after pelvic surgery is about helping you recover safely, restore function, and prevent future problems. This includes surgery such as a prostatectomy, bowel surgery, and other procedures affecting your pelvic floor and surrounding structures.
In the early weeks of your recovery, the focus is on protecting your healing tissues while gradually reintroducing gentle movement, breathing exercises, and circulation-boosting activities to reduce swelling and support recovery. You’ll learn how to move, lift, and cough without putting undue strain on your surgical site, as well as strategies to manage pain and scar tissue sensitivity.
As healing progresses, physiotherapy shifts towards rebuilding your pelvic floor and core muscle coordination, improving posture, and addressing any bladder, bowel, or sexual function changes.
We offer physiotherapy for sexual dysfunction.
Pelvic physiotherapy can be highly beneficial for men experiencing sexual dysfunction, as it focuses on improving the function of your pelvic muscles, nerves, and circulation that are vital for sexual health.
Conditions such as erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation, painful intercourse, or difficulty reaching orgasm are often linked to imbalances in your pelvic floor. This can be affected by whether your pelvic muscles are weak, overly tight, or poorly coordinated.
A your specialist physiotherapist uses targeted exercises, relaxation strategies, biofeedback, and manual therapy to restore balance by strengthening weak muscles, releasing excess tension, and enhancing blood flow and nerve control. These improvements can lead to better erectile quality, greater stamina, reduced discomfort, and improved your overall confidence during intimacy.
We offer physiotherapy for bowel dysfunction.
Pelvic physiotherapy can be very effective in managing bowel dysfunction in men, as it focuses on restoring the proper coordination, strength, and relaxation of your pelvic floor muscles that play a key role in bowel control. Problems such as constipation, straining, incomplete emptying, or incontinence often occur when these muscles are either too weak, too tight, or not working in sync with the rest of the digestive system.
Your physiotherapist can use techniques such as targeted exercises, biofeedback, manual therapy, and education on bowel habits and positioning to improve muscle control and coordination. This helps men achieve more efficient and comfortable bowel movements, reduce urgency or leakage, and lessen reliance on straining. By also addressing contributing factors like posture, lifestyle, and abdominal muscle function, pelvic physiotherapy provides a comprehensive and individualized approach that not only improves bowel health but also enhances overall quality of life.
Getting started with tailored physiotherapy for pelvic pain at Circle Health Group is a straightforward process.
To begin your recovery journey, simply book an appointment online with one of our men's health physiotherapists and see a specialist within just 48 hours.
