Men’s Pelvic Health: What Does That Mean for You?

These muscles have important roles, including:

• Supporting organs: They hold up the bladder, bowel, and the prostate.
• Controlling shiishii, miishii and gas: They keep things closed (prevents leakage) and allow things out when you need to go
• Sexual health: They are involved with sexual function.
• Core Function: They work with your stomach muscles, breathing muscles and back muscles to provide strength and balance.
• Circulation: The muscles act as a ‘sump pump’ to pump blood and lymph fluid back up towards the heart.

When these muscles are weak, tight, or not working as they should, it can lead to problems that are more common than you might think. In fact, people often think that only women are affected. But 1 in 4 men experience pelvic floor challenges!!

Talking about these topics can feel uncomfortable and are often considered taboo, but please know that there is help available. Pelvic health plays a role in the balance of physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health. By addressing these issues, you can improve your health, confidence, and quality of life.

What causes pelvic health dysfunction?

• Prostate surgery
  • For example, after some treatments for prostate cancer, some of the muscles responsible for holding in shiishii gets removed or impacted.
• Chronic constipation or straining or coughing
  • This puts a lot of downward pressure on these muscles.
• How we lift
  • Heavy lifting and straining can put pressure on all the core muscles which aren’t strong enough to withstand it.
• Age
  • As we get older, our muscles can become weaker.
• Injury, Stress or Trauma
  • Emotional, physical and intergenerational stress and trauma can increase tension in the muscles. 

How do I know if I have a pelvic health problem?

You might notice:

• Leaking shiishii when you cough, laugh, sneeze, or exercise.
• Feeling like you can’t fully empty your bladder.
• Difficulty controlling miishii or passing gas.
• Pain in the lower abdomen, groin, tailbone or buttocks
• Pain with sexual activity

What can I do to improve my pelvic health?

Avoid straining: 

• Prevent constipation by:
  • Eating traditional foods like berries, fish, wild meat, and whole grains that provide fiber and nutrients.
  • Drink enough water daily.
  • Being physically active
• Smoking can lead to chronic coughing, which also puts strain on your pelvic floor. Speak to someone if you need support in quitting or reducing smoking.

Physical Activity: 

• Staying active, walking, participating in traditional physical activities, and pelvic floor exercises can all help keep your muscles strong and improve blood flow. 

Maintain a healthy weight: 

• Maintaining a healthy weight can reduce symptoms and reduce pressure on your pelvic floor and core system.

Basic Pelvic floor Exercise - How to Do Them:

Mobilizing your pelvic floor can make a big difference. Here’s how:

1. Sit or lie down comfortably.
2. Imagine stopping the shiishii—those are your pelvic floor muscles.
3. Squeeze and ‘lift inward’ those muscles for 5 seconds, then relax completely for 5 seconds.
   • Make sure you aren’t holding your breath or straining while doing this
4. Repeat up to 10 times. Gradually build up to holding for 10 seconds.
   
    

IMPORTANT: A lot of men activate the buttock muscles instead of the pelvic floor muscles in the front. People also have difficulty relaxing the muscles correctly and that is just as important as lifting and contracting the muscles. If you’re not sure if you’re doing these exercises correctly, a physiotherapist can help guide you.

Pelvic health issues are common. The good news is that with some help they can improve. You do not need to live with these problems. Combining traditional healing with modern physiotherapy can help you feel strong and grounded. If you have any questions or need some advice, ask your doctor or nurse to be seen by a physiotherapist who has advanced training in pelvic health problems for men. 

Or you can contact the pelvic health team directly: 18tcr.pt.referrals@ssss.gouv.qc.ca