In the Media

Explore my expert features, interviews, podcast appearances, and educational webinars where I’ve shared clinical insight and thought leadership on pelvic health, women’s health, and evidence-based care.

The Pelvic People •

5 Best Sex Positions for People with Endometriosis

By Emma McGowan
If you’ve found your way to this article, chances are you’ve already gotten an endometriosis diagnosis. That’s great! Because while it’s certainly not great to have endo, getting a diagnosis is the first step toward taking back control of your body and your sex life. 
If, on the off chance, you haven’t gotten a diagnosis yet — or you’re just curious to learn more — let’s do a quick refresher. Endometriosis occurs when tissue similar to a person’s endometrium (or the lining of the...
The Pelvic People •

Can sexual trauma cause painful sex?

By Emma McGowan
CW: Sexual assault, sexual trauma
The aftereffects of an assault can last way beyond the assault itself. For many, there is the initial “acute” injury — physical injuries that occur during the assault and persist for a relatively short time after — as well as long-term physical, psychological, and physiological effects. And while every survivor is different, one of those effects may be pain during sex. 
“Trauma can cause painful sex in many different ways, in the sense that your...
BabyCenter •

I had "mommy wrist" and didn't even know it existed. Here are some ways to find relief

Feeding, carrying, and changing your baby can place major strain on your wrists. Here's how to ease the discomfort.There are a lot of weird and random things that can happen with your body in the postpartum period. While some symptoms get more attention than others, we don't talk enough about "mommy wrist," a painful condition that impacts the tendons in the thumb side of your wrist. Recently, actress Kaley Cuoco opened up about her experience with it on Instagram stories, sharing a photo wearin...
Women's Health •

Peeing Your Pants? New Study Shows This Low-Impact Exercise Is As Good As Meds

Urinary incontinence can strike at different points in your life, but it tends to be more common as you get older. Now, new research has found that the condition may be managed by doing regular yoga classes.That’s the major takeaway from a study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. The study’s researchers note that this can be done by just about anyone, making treatment for urinary incontinence more accessible. But why might yoga help with urinary incontinence, and should you start doin...
The New York Times •

Why Is My C-Section Scar Painful, Itchy and Sometimes Smelly?

Q: I had a C-section about a year ago, but my scar still sometimes hurts, itches and even smells. What’s going on?If you’ve had a cesarean section, you may have expected your wound to be healed and relatively pain-free after a few months. But an estimated 7 to 18 percent of people develop chronic scar pain after a C-section, and symptoms like numbness, itching and odor can be common, too — sometimes for months or even years after the surgery.About 30 percent of births are via C-section, said Kat...
Well+Good •

‘I Wore Bala Bangles on My Walks for 30 Days to See if My Arms Would Actually Get Any Stronger. Here’s What Happened.’

If you’ve encountered the Bala Bangles online—most likely on TikTok—I wouldn’t blame you for writing it off as another workout fad. For decades, there has always been some new and improved way to tone your arms—remember shake weights?—that only made you feel stronger by lightening up your wallet.Now, the concept of a wrist weight isn’t new, but those I’ve encountered have either been too light, too ugly, too uncomfortable—or all of the above—for me to want to wear them consistently, let alone in...
Parents •

Everything You've Wanted to Know About the First Time You Have Sex After Birth

If you've recently given birth, you might have some questions about postpartum sex. It's normal to wonder when it's safe to orgasm after delivery, and what sex will feel like going forward.

It's important to know that most health care providers recommend people wait approximately six weeks before having sex after birth; in some cases, the recommendation might be longer, depending upon your birth circumstances and any complications. That shouldn't be surprising given everything stacked against...
Expectful •

Not All Third Trimester Body Changes Are Obvious

It’s pretty obvious that your body has gone through a transformation on par with an HGTV home renovation when you can no longer see your feet (slip-on shoes for the win) and you start having to pee every half hour. Welcome to the third trimester.

Massive changes are a given in the homestretch of pregnancy. Some of the ways your body is adapting as it prepares to give birth are well-known, while others are a little less obvious.

During this time, your baby is growing from the size of the head o...
Expectful •

The Second Trimester Body Changes You Just Can’t Ignore

So you’ve arrived at the glorious second trimester, or so they say. Hopefully, any nausea has left the building (aka your body) right around the 13-week mark, you're feeling more energized, and you’re out of that weird stage where your clothes are too tight, but you don’t exactly look pregnant.

And here's the really fun part, you might start to notice that your future baby is really exploring the space in there. From the beginning to the end of the second trimester, the baby will go from the si...
Well+Good •

What Really Happens to Your Pelvic Floor During Pregnancy and Childbirth?

You’ve probably heard at some point about the importance of having a strong pelvic floor—that is, the muscles that support your bladder, uterus, and bowels. There’s also a lot of chatter online about how pregnancy and childbirth can weaken your pelvic floor, potentially creating issues for you.Those problems can include struggling with incontinence (i.e. peeing yourself), holding back gas, and, in more severe cases, dealing with a health condition called uterine prolapse, which is where the uter...
Oprah Daily •

Thank You for Not Sitting

Are you sitting down? The answer, in all likelihood, is yes. After all, we’ve been parked on our butts at desk jobs for generations—and have sat even more in the past decade as we’ve become increasingly glued to our computers and smartphones for all basic functions: shopping, socializing, streaming, therapy-ing, zooming. “Many people’s lives require them to sit for hours at a job, then they hop in a car and head home, where they plop down on the couch to decompress from their day,” says Nichole...
Cosmopolitan •

Asking for a Friend: What Even Is Pelvic Floor Therapy?

The powers of Google likely led you here because it's 2 a.m. and everyone in the group chat—aka the sacred space for you and your girls' most personal and dire questions—is already asleep. Sigh. Maybe you're suddenly having pain with sex and wanna know WTF is going on down there. Or maybe you're pregnant for the first time (yay!) and your docs (and mom) keep saying something about doing your kegels. Or maybe you're recently postpartum and after giving birth, people have been telling you not to i...
Forbes Health •

How To Strengthen The Pelvic Floor Pre And Post Baby

What Is the Pelvic Floor?

The pelvic floor is made of muscles and connective tissues that support the organs in your pelvic region, including the bladder, urethra, vagina, uterus, anus and rectum. The pelvic floor muscles form a hammock that stretches from your pubis (in front) to the spine (back), and are located between the sitting bones.
The pelvic floor muscles have the following functions:

Excretion: Because the pelvic floor encompasses the anal, urethral and vaginal sphin...
Livestrong.com •

Pelvic Floor Physical Therapists Swear by These 4 Products for Better Pelvic Health | Livestrong.com

"Ask any pelvic physical therapist and they will tell you that sex shouldn't hurt. Even though pain during sex is common, it is never normal," she says." We also know that fear of and the response to pain (i.e. tensing your muscles further) will often worsen pelvic floor dysfunction."

"Ask any pelvic physical therapist and they will tell you that sex shouldn't hurt. Even though pain during sex is common, it is never normal," she says." We also know that fear of and the response to pain (i.e. te...
Oprah Daily •

What Are Kegels and Why Every Woman Should Be Doing Them

There are certain things in life you know you should be doing regularly, like drinking eight-plus glasses of water a day and getting outside for fresh air, but you just don’t always find the time or know-how to actually make it happen. Kegel exercises are one of those things for many women. Also known as pelvic floor exercises, kegels can be done to tighten your pelvic floor—the muscles that surround the openings of your urethra, vagina, and rectum—for sexual benefits. They can also strengthen t...
Well+Good •

If You Feel the Urge To Pee Right After Going, ‘Double Voiding’ Could Be Your Saving Grace

When it comes to annoying things in life, having to pee right after you just went is up there, but one pelvic floor physical therapist says she has the solution to this issue: double-voiding. Marcy Crouch, DPT, dropped the tip on TikTok in late October, and the technique is pretty simple: It shows Crouch hanging out in a bathroom next to the words, “Do you have to pee even though you just went? When you are done, stand up, move your hips around, and then try to go again.” Cue Crouch standing up,...
Well+Good •

5 Kegel Exercise Mistakes You Might Be Making, According to Pelvic Floor Specialists

There’s a strong chance you’ve been encouraged to do regular Kegel exercises for years, but, unfortunately, there isn’t an easily accessible master class you can take on them. So, you are often left to Googling videos and reading information online to try to piece it all together. Surprisingly, it’s easy to make Kegel exercise mistakes, and plenty of people do, says Ashley Rawlins, PT, DPT, a pelvic floor physical therapist at Origin. “It’s common to think you are doing a pelvic floor muscle con...
Well+Good •

5 Stretches To Try When You’re Constipated, According to Pelvic Floor Physical Therapists

You might not spend much time thinking about, ahem, “going number two,” until you suddenly can’t—and then it becomes hard to think about much else. Luckily, there is a range of hacks you can try if you become backed up, including pressure points for constipation as well as stretches for relief. One thing to keep in mind, though, is that there’s isn’t one set treatment that will help get things moving again. Claudia Sanmiguel, MD, a gastroenterologist at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in S...
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