Embark on a journey to well-being with the introduction of Revive Rehab! Nestled in the heart of South Carolina, this gem of a practice is the brainchild of the dynamic duo, Dr. Allie Flowers and Dr. Jenn Farrison.
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Revive Rehab is not your typical healthcare office —it’s dedicated entirely to pelvic floor health!
In this blog, we explore the pivotal significance of pelvic floor care, a crucial aspect often overlooked in the realm of health. Delving into the importance during pregnancy and throughout our lives, we’ve had the privilege of interviewing the visionary minds behind Revive Rehab.
Join us as we unravel the secrets of their practice and discover how it can positively impact lives, just like yours.
Please tell me a little about yourselves & Revive Rehab?
We are moms and doctors of physical therapy specializing in pelvic heath and wellness. We met each other 10 years ago when we worked together in Pawleys Island. Even then we talked about and dreamed of owning our own business to help people in our community. Fast forward two kids each and chance that life brought us back together in Bluffton. After discovering the lack of awareness of the support for women’s health that is available, with each of our own pregnancy and motherhood journeys, we decided now was time to put our knowledge and expertise out there to help our community in the Lowcountry. We wanted our patients to have a safe space to heal their bodies and create a support system to guide them through their personal journey.
Dr. Jenn has been a resident of Beaufort County for 7 years, first calling Beaufort home, and the last 2 years living and loving life in Bluffton. She is a veteran spouse, and is mom to a 4 year old girl and 19 month old boy. Dr. Allie has lived in Bluffton now for 5 years and loves calling the Lowcountry home with her husband and two daughters ages 7 and 4.
What actually is pelvic floor therapy? Why is it so important?
Pelvic floor physical therapy is a specialized rehabilitation focusing on the muscles, tendons, ligaments, nerves, and other tissue of the pelvic floor and core to restore proper movement, function, and quality of life. It’s not all about rehabilitation, though, we pride ourselves on addressing the wellness aspect of pelvic floor health, both for prevention and maintenance.
It is so important because the structures of the pelvic floor help to keep your bladder, rectum, and reproductive organs in place, they helps to stabilize the spine, hips and pelvis. It is involved in sexual and reproductive health and function. It controls bladder and bowel function. It also aids circulation and pumps lymphatic fluid to the heart from the legs. The pelvic floor plays many roles and is often underlooked even though it plays a role in our daily activities and functions.
What are some common things people come to see you for? What conditions specifically linked to pregnancy & postpartum do you help with?
Some common symptoms we help people with are back pain, hip pain, tailbone pain. We help with bowel and bladder dysfunction (think leakage but also urinary frequency and urgency), diastasis recti, prolapse, dyspareunia (painful intercourse), vaginismus, pregnancy, menstrual pain, and endometriosis.
We see a lot of people on their pregnancy journey, whether it’s trying to conceive, pregnant, 4th trimester or 20 years postpartum. They come to us with tightness or pain during intercourse making conceiving challenging. We work throughout their pregnancy to reduce sacroiliac joint pain, back pain, pubic symphysis dysfunction. We can help with symptoms of prolapse, leaks, and issues with scar tissue from c-sections. We also help with birth prep, and help women embrace their changing bodies, maximizing function to live the life they love and deserve
If you had one piece of advice to give to people, what would it be?
Advocate for yourself! Pelvic floor physical therapy should be a standard of care! Our healthcare system gives someone who has a knee surgery 6-12 weeks to recover and heal, but with carrying and delivering a baby regardless of the method (then having to care for baby), having a hysterectomy or mastectomy or other procedures, we don’t have that standardized down time to recover, and the support isn’t always there for us.
So tell your providers you want care, whether it is preventative, a single session to assess how you are healing after these major events, or if you need more consistent care for recovery anywhere along your journey. Nothing is too embarrassing for us, and nothing is too small. Have a leak? Have constipation? Have pain? Having a baby? Even if you feel you are “good” or “okay”, your body goes through so many changes, and we are here to help you learn how to best work with and correct some of those changes!
Is there anything else you feel is important to share with others in this blog?
Often we receive poor advice of “just do kegels”, “drink wine and relax”, or we are told “leaks will be your new normal” with changes in our bodies from pregnancy to trauma, to effects from stress or poor gut health. Problems with our pelvic floor are common but not normal! And everyone is different. We look at you as a whole person, including your whole body and stressors in your life in order to customize your treatment plan! There is is help and hope out there, and you do not have to suffer. We want our patients to know that healing is possible and you can get back to doing what you love!
Be sure to follow Revive Rehab on their Instagram for some fun yet educational content and take a visit to their website to see how they can help you live a better pelvic floor life!
