Snake Oil For Your Pelvic Floor
I'm feeling particularly fired up about something I'm seeing more and more in women's health spaces: passive "miracle solutions" for pelvic floor issues that promise the world but deliver very little except a lighter wallet.
Let's explore.
Sit Back & Relax… while we zap your insides 💥
Let's get real about these trendy interventions being marketed in doctor's offices and medical spas for everything from vaginal dryness and atrophy to urinary incontinence, sexual dissatisfaction, prolapse and chronic pelvic pain. Below are just a few of these:
MonaLisa Touch is a device that uses a laser to destroy rejuvenate layers of tissue inside the vagina.
ThermiVa is similar to the MonaLisa Touch but uses radiofrequency energy to heat up the tissue instead of lasers.
Esmella is a chair that electrically stimulates the pelvic floor muscles to do “11,000 kegels in 28 min.”
That’s over 6 kegels a second! WOW 😳
Conveniently, these “treatments” all require multiple sessions at upwards of $1000 per session, which might be worth it if they actually worked!
Wait, are these things even FDA approved? 🤔
FDA Status Reality Check ⚠️
Here's what you need to know - These devices are NOT FDA approved for treating pelvic floor disorders. APPROVAL would require actual clinical data from research studies on actual people showing that they actually improved pelvic floor disorders.
Instead these devices are merely FDA cleared because they're similar enough to other devices that have been cleared before and are not likely to be a safety hazard. FDA clearance says nothing about the effectiveness! How confusing, thanks FDA! 😵💫
Meanwhile companies and doctors skirt the line and market these devices for specific pelvic conditions until the FDA issues them a warning! Then they just resort to using disgusting marketing language, calling them “vaginal rejuvenation” treatments to prey on aging women. 🤮
Passive Doesn't Work 😒
These treatments simply don’t live up to their promises.
A 2021 study showed no difference between vaginal laser therapy and “sham” laser therapy at a 12 month follow-up.
A 2021 review demonstrated that electrically stimulated pelvic floor contractions (like the Esmella chair) can provide short term relief, but urinary incontinence returned in the long term.
These “sit back & relax” treatments work well for doctors because they get to hook patients up to a machine, walk away and charge their credit card.
They don’t work for patients, however, because they don’t address the root causes of pelvic floor dysfunction such as:
How your breathing mechanics impact your pelvic floor (see my previous newsletter)
How hip & core weakness influence pelvic floor symptoms (see my previous newsletter)
How bowel & bladder habits play a role (see my previous newsletter)
Active Solutions Work 💪
The truth is that pelvic floor dysfunctions like leaking, prolapse, pain with sex, and chronic pelvic pain require active interventions like:
Lifestyle Modifications — Diet, hydration, sleep, stress management, and bowel/bladder habits
Strength Training — Try my Pelvic Power & Postpartum Strength Programs
Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy — Find one near you
I’ve seen the best results with my patients using a combination of all of the above to fully address the root causes of pelvic floor issues —not by zapping your hoo-ha.
Check out my online learning & exercise programs here
The Bottom Line 🍑
If it sounds too good to be true - IT IS! There are no quick, passive fixes when it comes to your health.
It KILLS me that some medical providers are preying on women’s insecurities about their pelvic health and making bank in the process. Save your time, money, and pelvic floors from these snake oil solutions and see a pelvic floor physical therapist instead!
Yours in pelvic health,
Dr. Chris
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I want you to have the knowledge & tools to make great health choices for yourself. Ideas shared in this blog do not constitute medical advice.
