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May 2022 Volume 2

Message from Mitzi - Women's Health Month May is women’s health month and the month we celebrate mothers. This year, it’s also the month we learned that our rights to make decisions about our own bodies could be taken away with one judicial decision; one that could take away women’s choice as to when they wish to become a mother.

I created Beyond the Paper Gown to address all the factors that impact on women’s health, and in the coming weeks we’ll talk about the impact of policy and politics. I’m sure you’ll understand when I say that I need a moment to gather my thoughts and my strength to address the numerous ramifications of such a profound change of policy.

It's fitting perhaps, that this newsletter highlights pelvic health. As one of our guests says,” it's the machinery that builds the human race from scratch.” But what is also complicated is that a vast number of women suffer from long-standing symptoms of pain, incontinence, and other related issues and they find it hard to find a solution or even a health care provider who can help. Lack of research, lack of medical training, and lack of taking women seriously have all contributed to the challenge. But there is growing awareness and more resources becoming available; we highlight the role of the urogynecologist and pelvic PT, for example. If you are suffering from any of these issues, I hope you’ll find some answers through our podcasts and articles.

And we’d like to hear from you about your experience so please share with us on the forum. I’m also going to open a forum topic about reproductive rights, so I invite you to share your thoughts as I organize mine.

Featured Podcast - Part 1: A Woman’s Guide to Pelvic Floor Health - Incontinence and Bladder Issues

When you gotta go, you gotta go! But what happens when you just can’t seem to control your bladder urges like you used to? Or you leak a little–or a lot? Dr. Jocelyn Fitzgerald, a urogynecologist and pelvic reconstructive surgeon at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and host Dr. Mitzi Krockover, candidly addresses the frequent issues many women experience involving the pelvic floor and pelvic floor problems that may cause incontinence. Women may not always feel comfortable discussing these frustrating problems, but understanding why this happens and your options can help you feel more empowered in your health care decisions. We invite you to listen to part one of the conversation with Dr. Fitzgerald, where she goes into more depth about the pelvic floor, pelvic physical therapy, and incontinence.

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Featured Article - Women's Guide to Pelvic Health

Pelvic health/dysfunction covers a broad spectrum of disorders and issues, including incontinence, endometriosis, sexual health, and interstitial cystitis. Many women go decades without relief from their symptoms because they haven’t been diagnosed, let alone treated. In this post, we’ll go over the basics of the pelvic floor and common pelvic health issues so you can get the help and treatment you need.