Why Mums Don't Jump

The gender health gap. It's a phrase we're hearing more and more and is relevant around the world. So what's it all about and what does it mean for those of us with pelvic floor dysfunction? 

Helen chats to the award-winning health journalist, Sarah Graham, founder of the Hysterical Women blog, which looks at inequalities in women's health, and author of a new book on the gender health gap, due out in 2023. They discuss the impact of living with a healthcare system designed 'by men, for men', and how women sharing their own stories is helping to force change.

You can find Sarah on Instagram and Twitter
More on the UK government's Women's Health Strategy here
More on the Scottish government's Women's Health Plan here
Further reading about the gender health gap here
RCOG report on long waits for gynaecology services here

This episode is sponsored by Modibodi, the  go-to brand for any of life’s leaks. They have very kindly given us a discount code! Use WMDJ15 for 15% off your first order excluding sale items, bundles, gift cards and Maxi-24hrs.

Crazy times at WMDJ HQ so no full episode this week, sorry! Instead, here's something to make you smile from a listener, psychotherapist and poet, Jacky Power (aka The Therapeutic Poet). Normal service resumes next week!

Jacky hosts The Therapeutic Poet podcast. Her first collection of poetry is available here.
 

Pelvic floor problems are surrounded by stigma and shame, but have you ever wondered why? Why do we find anything remotely related to our genitalia so embarrassing? And if we didn't, what difference would it make to how we feel?

Helen meets Dr Catherine Blackledge, a scientist, journalist, sex and fertility education advocate and author. In 2003 she published a book to celebrate everything about the vagina, Raising the Skirt: the Unsung Power of the Vagina (originally published as The Story of V).

In this episode, Helen and Catherine explore historical attitudes towards female genitalia and the importance of language, when even the words we use have a literal root in the Latin for ‘shame’. They look back to a time when the vulva was feared and revered and ask 'what changed?'.

You can find Catherine's website here 
You can find out more about Helen O'Connell's pioneering work into the anatomical study of the clitoris here
You can read more about Anasyrma here

This episode is sponsored by Modibodi, the  go-to brand for any of life’s leaks. They have very kindly given us a discount code! Use WMDJ15 for 15% off your first order excluding sale items, bundles, gift cards and Maxi-24hrs. 

Diastasis recti is where the muscles that run down the middle of your stomach separate during pregnancy. It's really common and usually goes back to normal within eight weeks of delivery, but sometimes it doesn't. And it can lead to back problems and hernia - both things that Niki Odogwu has been dealing with since her daughters were born, as well as stress urinary incontinence. 

In this episode, Niki tells Helen how her back troubles got to the point where she couldn't get out of bed and how a postpartum fitness programme changed everything - helping her to manage her back pain and strengthen her pelvic floor. They discuss how a lack of information leaves women in the dark about our own bodies and why we need to do better at postpartum care:

You can find more information about Diastasis Recti here and here

The postpartum fitness programme MUTU System* is here

*This is not an ad, Why Mums Don't Jump has no affiliation with MUTU System.

It's a big day in Helen's pessary saga! After a year-long wait to be fitted for a vaginal pessary, she's offered a private appointment with a specialist in London. 

In this episode, you'll hear what happens at a pessary fitting when Helen visits Tracey Matthews - a women's health physio, former British rower, strong woman, cross fitter and proud pessary wearer. She's passionate about the benefits of pessaries when it comes to helping women with pelvic organ prolapse or incontinence and walks Helen through an assessment. Helen leaves with a cube...but will her pelvic floor be up to the task?

Tracey talks about the shock of discovering her own prolapse after the birth of her first child, her decision to specialise in pessaries and why it's so important to end the stigma around them:

HUGE thanks to Tracey Matthews who is @prolapsestrength Instagram and part of the team at White Hart Clinic in London

For an easy guide to vaginal pessaries, read this blog

For more pessary chat listen to last seasons episode Vaginal Pessaries: A Deep Dive

Check out the new UK guidelines for patients and clinicians, which were mentioned in this episode

For more information about 3D printed pessaries of the future (!) go here

To see a video of a pessary fitting with Tracey go here

Helen is joined by Elaine Miller (aka Gusset Grippers) - a fellow of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy and award winning comedian who's on a mission to tackle your pelvic floor...whilst making you laugh, which sounds counterintuitive but actually makes perfect sense!

They discuss the long-standing evidence behind kegels for stress incontinence (and for prolapse), why pelvic floor problems are a feminist issue and how using humour really can change lives.

Elaine is @gusset_grippers on Instagram

Tickets for Elaine's show at the Edinburgh Fringe are available here
You can find a 60 second pelvic floor squeeze-along here

Returning to running postpartum is one thing. Then add pelvic floor problems to the mix. Now imagine you're an ultra-runner who likes to do 100-plus mile races. This is Sophie Power.

Since a photo of her breastfeeding her baby mid-race went viral, Sophie has been working to empower more women to get active. Then she made a film about her postpartum return to running only to discover - on camera - that she has pelvic organ prolapse.

Helen talks to Sophie about pelvic organ prolapse, incontinence and her journey back to fitness after childbirth - despite being told she may never run again - and how important it is that mums are helped to reach their goals, whatever they are. 

Sophie Power is @ultra_sophie on Instagram
You can watch 'Sophie Power - The Journey from Pregnancy to Performance' here
Find out more about Squeezy App here
For help with your pelvic floor exercises read this
For great advice and info follow physio Emma Brockwell on Instagram
Sophie campaigns for the charity, Women in Sport, which you can find here
Sophie mentioned EVB shorts - find out more here

Helen talks about NHS England's plans to improve pelvic health by 2024, in part by making specialists clinics available to all. You can read more here 

Surgical treatments for pelvic floor problems are many and varied, but with the vaginal mesh scandal fresh in our minds, it's easy to feel lost and unsure. Which specialist should you be referred to? What sorts of conversations might you have? What should your options and expectations look like?

In part one of this two part series, we focus on Colorectal services - where you might be referred if your symptoms affect the bowel - eg faecal incontinence, constipation or rectal prolapse.

Helen speaks to the Consultant Colorectal Surgeon, Julie Cornish, about the kinds of cases she sees and some of the lifestyle changes and treatments that might help. They discuss a lack of knowledge amongst medical professionals, a postcode lottery for care and why we should stop using the loo as a sanctuary.

Julie Cornish is @jules_cornish on Twitter

You can find more about the Bowelle app here

You can find more about the Headspace app here

The Masic Foundation can be found at www.masic.org.uk

Helen is joined by Sara Duckett, a listener and a mum-of-two. Sara has struggled with urinary and bowel incontinence, as well as prolapse, since the birth of her first child in 2016, but says a non-surgical treatment (PTNS) has been life changing . They discuss the mental health impact of pelvic floor problems, the stigma that surrounds them and the importance of never giving up .  

You can find more information about Percutaneous Tibial Nerve Stimulation (PTNS) here

You can listen to the Pelvic Floor Gadgets (Vadgets) episode here

This episode is sponsored by EVB Sport who make engineered clothing which supports women with prolapse or incontinence. They have very kindly given us a discount code! Use whymumsdon'tjump to get yourself 10% off.

Menopause is having a moment, with celebrities, books and TV programmes taking on the taboo that has surrounded it for so long. But what does menopause (and perimenopause) mean for those of us with pelvic floor problems? Helen chats to a self-described ‘pelvic health nerd’ - the physiotherapist Michelle Lyons - about what’s going on, why knowledge is power and how best to manage your symptoms:

Michelle Lyons Website
Michelle Lyons Instagram

This episode is sponsored by Modibodi, the original period and leak-proof underwear brand. They have very kindly given us a discount code! Use WMDJ15 to get yourself 15% off (excluding sale items, bundles, maxi-24hrs and gift cards).

You can find Helen @whymumsdontjump on Instagram and Twitter or at www.whymumsdontjump.com