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Pelvic pain is a discomfort or ache felt in your lower abdomen or pelvis. It can be either short-term (known as acute), or long-lasting (known as chronic). In women, pelvic pain is often linked to problems with your reproductive organs, urinary system, and digestive tract. There are many different types of pelvic pain caused by a variety of conditions.
If you’re struggling with pelvic pain – you’re not alone. In women who have not children – up to 60% will have some significant bladder/bowel or pain symptoms. Some common symptoms of pelvic floor disorders include:
- Chronic pelvic, lower back, or tailbone pain
- Pain during sex (dyspareunia)
- Pain when inserting tampons
- Aching or heaviness in the pelvic area, worse at the end of the day
- Difficulty starting urine flow or controlling it once started
- Uncoordinated tightening or relaxing of your pelvic muscles
While living with pelvic pain can be challenging both physically and emotionally, it’s important to know that a wide range of treatment options exist, including tailored physiotherapy. With the right support and guidance from your physiotherapist, in combination with other forms of treatment such as medication, many women find ways to manage their symptoms and improve their quality of life.
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 women’s health, from pregnancy, to chronic pelvic pain conditions found in women, to menopause. We’re here to get you back on track and doing the things you love.
Our highly skilled and experienced physiotherapists specialise in the treatment of chronic pelvic pain caused by a variety of gynaecological health problems. This includes conditions, such as:
Hyperactive or hypertonic pelvic floor dysfunction
Hypertonic pelvic floor dysfunction in women refers to a condition that causes the muscles of your pelvic floor to excessively tighten or become unable to relax fully. This leads to symptoms such as pelvic pain, urinary urgency or frequency, constipation, pain during intercourse (dyspareunia), and sometimes difficulty initiating urination or bowel movements. Unlike weakness-related pelvic floor disorders, hypertonicity involves overactivity and muscle guarding, often triggered by factors such as chronic stress, trauma (including childbirth or surgery), poor posture, or prolonged muscle strain.
In physiotherapy, treatment focuses on restoring normal muscle tone and function through evidence-based interventions to release muscle tension, targeted breathing and relaxation techniques to downregulate your nervous system, biofeedback for improving awareness and voluntary control, and gentle stretching or mobility exercises to reduce overactivity. With a tailored, patient-centred approach, physiotherapy can significantly reduce your symptoms and improve your quality of life by teaching your pelvic floor not just to contract effectively, but to let go.
Pelvic organ prolapse
Pelvic organ prolapse occurs when the muscles and connective tissues of your pelvic floor lose their optimal support, allowing one or more pelvic organs, such as the bladder, uterus, or rectum, to descend into your vaginal space. You might notice a feeling of heaviness or pressure in your pelvis, a visible bulge at the vaginal opening, or difficulty with bladder or bowel emptying, and symptoms often worsen after prolonged standing, lifting, or at the end of the day.
Physiotherapy can help you strengthen and coordinate your pelvic floor muscles to better support your organs, using targeted exercises (often guided by real-time biofeedback), breath training to reduce downward pressure, and postural strategies to optimise load distribution.
Overactive bladder syndrome
Overactive bladder syndrome happens when your bladder’s signalling system becomes overactive, making you feel the urge to urinate more frequently and often urgently, even if your bladder isn’t full. You might find yourself rushing to the toilet, waking up multiple times at night to urinate, or feeling anxious about not being near a bathroom.
Physiotherapy offers effective, non-invasive ways to retrain your bladder and regain control. You’ll learn urge-suppression strategies, such as timed voiding and breathing techniques, to calm the urgency. We’ll work on pelvic floor muscle coordination to help you control and delay urges and might use biofeedback so you can monitor and improve how your muscles respond.
We offer physiotherapy to help you recover after surgery for pelvic pain.
Physiotherapy after pelvic surgery is about helping you recover safely, restore function, and prevent future problems. This includes surgery such as a hysterectomy, pelvic organ prolapse repair, 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 hysterectomy, pelvic organ prolapse repair, 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 if you are pregnant.
Pregnancy care physiotherapy focuses on supporting your body as it adapts to the physical, hormonal, and postural changes that occur throughout pregnancy, helping you stay comfortable, active, and prepared for birth.
During sessions, your physiotherapist will assess how your joints, muscles, and posture are coping with the extra load, and address common issues such as back or pelvic pain, pelvic floor concerns, or swelling. You’ll learn safe, pregnancy-specific exercises to maintain strength and mobility, improve circulation, and reduce discomfort, as well as pelvic floor techniques to support your bladder, bowel, and birthing function. If needed, we can also teach breathing and relaxation skills to prepare your body and mind for labour and guide you on postpartum recovery planning. The aim is to keep you moving well, reduce pain, and help you feel confident in your body’s ability to adapt and thrive during each stage of pregnancy.
We offer physiotherapy for post-pregnancy recovery.
Physiotherapy after pregnancy (often called postnatal or postpartum physiotherapy), supports your recovery from the physical demands of pregnancy and birth, whether you had a vaginal delivery or a caesarean section. In the early stages, the focus is on gentle, restorative exercises to help your pelvic floor and core muscles reconnect, reduce discomfort, and promote healing.
Your physiotherapist will assess for common postnatal issues such as pelvic floor weakness or overactivity, abdominal muscle separation (diastasis recti), scar sensitivity, and changes in your bladder or bowel control. You’ll learn safe ways to lift, carry, and feed your baby without straining your back or pelvis, along with strategies to manage fatigue and restore posture.
As your body recovers, your program will progress to rebuild strength, stability, and endurance so you can return to daily activities, exercise, and intimacy with confidence. With the right guidance, postnatal physiotherapy not only helps you heal, but also lays the foundation for long-term pelvic health and overall wellbeing.
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 women's health physiotherapists and see a specialist within just 48 hours.
