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What is Wholeness and Why Pursue Wholeness ?

Definition of Wholeness :A thing complete in itself, or comprising all its parts or elements.

This is the first and an introduction  in the series to explore the deeper meaning of  wholeness, the practical aspects of it and the importance of wholeness. I started to become sensitive of what wholeness is the older I got and started to focus on the deeper things of life, you know  the things of lasting value and things that really matter. Whatever you see is temporal but what you cannot see is eternal. 2Cor 4:18

Have you ever been in pain ? Be it physical or emotional ? I have more times than I would like to. I hated that season of pain, oh how I wished that the pain would go away and my tears would stop! but in hindsight I see my greatest growth came in this season of pain. Growth, be it my  faith or new heights of emotional fortitude, was birthed  because and in spite of pain. The next time painful season rolled around  I sought to seek the life lesson hidden in that for me. 

It is impossible to avoid pain.especially emotional pain in this  life, so my response to that has been to be  a whole me, the highest and best version of myself, content in who I am and in my purpose on this planet. Thus started my journey of pursuing wholeness and helping people in my circle of influence to in turn also be whole and this is the reason my blog is  named  be whole creations. I desire to help people be whole in all their being , not just the physical body but mind and soul as well.

Brokenness is the opposite of wholeness and is rampant in our  current society, Brokenness leads to sabotage of relationships, careers and ultimately a dissatisfied and unfulfilling life. 

Seek and ye shall find

The turn around to seek wholeness comes when 

  • One has reached the end of themselves.
  • Desires to live a life that is different from their current  and seeks to improve their lives.Seek and ye shall find .Mt.7:7

In the next post I will discuss some practical steps towards wholeness. I would love to hear from you, your life experience and your thoughts on being whole. Please share in the comments below.

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Can deep breathing help pelvic pain?

Most of us probably  heard of the diaphragm that lives under the lungs and helps us breath right? But have you heard of the pelvic diaphragm ? The 2nd layer of the pelvic floor muscles  is referred to as the pelvic diaphragm. Both these structures are anatomically positioned to be parallel to each other .

Now let me talk a little bit about pelvic pain. Pelvic pain can be due to many reasons. Irrespective of the underlying pathology the common finding as a response to pathology  is a tight or shortened  pelvic floor. When PFM (pelvic floor muscles ) are tight  the functions of the pelvic floor are hampered so the person may have complaints of 

  • constipation  ( can include men )
  • difficulty with initiating urination
  • pain with intercourse 

Now let’s connect breathing and pelvic pain ! Yes deep  breathing can help pelvic pain and here’s what happens when you take a diaphragmatic ( deep belly breath ) breath , the abdominal diaphragm contracts and pelvic diaphragm relaxes .The two diaphragms are positioned in such a manner that when doing deep breathing the abdominal diaphragm contracts and causes the abdominal contents ( intestine and stomach)  to descend into the pelvis  and in turn will cause the pelvic diaphragm/ the muscles  in the pelvis to lengthen/ relax .The opposite happens when we exhale , the diaphragm relaxes and the abdominal organs move up and away from the pelvic floor and the pelvic floor contracts.

 Repeating this as an exercise for 5 to 10 minutes for about 1-2 x /day is a good start to start learning to relax the pelvic floor. This is excellent to relax your mind as well, prior to mediation or in conjunction with mediation .

In my experience I see people who carry their stress and tension in two places. In their shoulder ( upper trapezius muscles) and in the pelvic floor! Yes ! you read that right !  in the Pelvic floor !. This is my finding in my practice ,when I teach patients to correct their posture and relax their shoulders this helps with the pelvic pain as well over time.

Sit comfortably with hands positioned as in the pic.

So how is this Diaphragmatic breathing done ?

  • Start by laying down ( with knees bent ) or sitting down comfortably .
  • Place one hand on the chest .
  • Place the 2nd hand on the abdomen around the belly button .
  • Take a nice deep breath in through your nose, your hand on the chest should not feel much movement but the hand on your belly should rise up slightly .
  • Do not forcefully push your belly out .
  • Gently breath out through pursed lips.
  • Wait for about 1 min and repeat slowly for about 5 min.

Some final thoughts This kind of breathing might feel awkward if you are used to shallow breathing using the upper chest , it will take some time to retraining . 

This is also a good exercise for people with COPD ( chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases) and can help lung function .If you experience lightheadedness , discontinue the deep breathing consult your PT to be trained to do the exercises appropriately .

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Why Subscribe to My Blog?

True wholeness radiates from inside out

Be whole creations is a blog for the pelvic health  related issues primarily and it will also include posts on overall well being such as and ,including matters of emotional well being from a faith perspective because I believe that true healing should include mind , body and soul.  Some of the topics of my blog are going to be ,Incontinence ,pelvic pain , Pelvic floor dysfunction ,Sexual dysfunction, Pregnancy and post Pregnancy related issues of pain and muscle weakness.

The free gift you received as my thank you for subscribing has been a step by step guide that I put together after having tried it with many of my patient’s with about a 95% success rate . It is the culmination of my practise and wealth of knowledge .Subscribing to my blog will automatically qualify you to receive valuable free gifts such as this and many  more ,which is exclusive to my blog only.

Free is a good thing !

Do you want to have resources to begin you on the journey  of being truly whole in all your being , body , mind and soul ?  

Be whole creations is that place .

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How to get rid of Incontinence

Urinary incontinence is a very common but not a normal experience seen in both males and females .As a mother of 2 and a pelvic specialist I speak from personal experience. The solution to overcome this and live a normal life again ( and yes it’s possible ! ) is so simple that most of my patients when I teach them this technique respond saying “ That’s it?” . The key lies in the doing and being consistent with instructions given.

Bladder control is a complex synchronization between the brain and pelvic floor .Urinary incontinence generally is seen in people with weak pelvic floor , characterized by frequent urination “ just in case “. Normal duration between urination ranges on an average from 2 to 3 hours .

Avoid running to the bathroom

Applying the  following technique which my patient’s report about 90% improvement in their symptoms when being constient .

When you feel the urge to use the bathroom to urinate .

  1. Question yourself :”When was the last time I used the bathroom ?” If it was 30 min  ago , you have probably not formed enough urine to justify using the bathroom and the urge is  because you formed a habit.See if you can hold off for a little bit longer .The urge usually subsides .
  2. After attempting to postpone the bathroom use for as long as you can comfortably and when the urge gets  stronger , practice 5 quick contractions of the pelvic floor either sitting or standing .
  3. Proceed to the bathroom , but walk no running or hastening to the bathroom at all.If in mid walk you start to lose bladder control , stand wherever you are and perform 5 quick pelvic floor muscle contraction , and 5 deep breaths . The urge should subside adequately  to  safely reach the bathroom .

The loss of control can happen in any stage  of the journey to the toilet including even when undoing the clothes to be positioned on the toilet , at that time stop and do the 5 quick contractions and 5 deep breaths and this will not allow the pelvic floor to relax prematurely.

Celebrate small victories

There may be times when you are not successful but do not give up , another chance is coming soon! . Incontinence usually is years in the making so be patient with undoing all those years .If there are no other underlying comorbidity ,this technique  I found to be very effective in retraining your bladder. Let the bladder know you are in control of the bladder and that the bladder is not in control of you.You got this .! You can start practicing as soon as you finish reading this .Please share your thoughts in the comments section of my blog .

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How soon can I see results?

The most common question asked of me by my patients is “How Soon can I see results ? “ Majority of us  want quick results .

Results in my line of work as a pelvic therapist , comes as improved function and decreased pain ,these are the most frequent measures of progress.If I can sum up the most progress in one sentence it is this “ Persistent constitency “ , that is barring any underlying comorbidities  that may affect outcomes  . Results are outward changes in the body due to inward discipline of regularly loading the body with the exercises and stretches instructed and resulting in anatomical and physiological changes of improved strength and decreased pain.The pelvic floor muscles are a combination of the slow twitch and fast twitch muscles but nonetheless respond in the same fashion  as working the biceps or triceps .

Exercise is the path to improve your quality of life

This blog would be incomplete without the mention of the role in the mind  in bringing about the results . Positive self talk and believing that the person can achieve their goal is half the battle .Like once said by Wille Nelson.” Once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones you will have positive results .” This in turn fuels the persistent consistency and before long results are evident .Let me remind you to celebrate the small victories and to encourage yourself as you march on towards your goal .Write it down and keep of log of your mini successes , these are like the small drops that form the water in the bucket .

Pelvic floor issues generally are chronic in nature meaning they have been many years in the making , It will take more than a mere few days to start seeing results to the prescribed exercises. I recommend exercising patience and keeping at it despite initial failure. 

Finish strong never give up

In closing a person who is diligent in doing their exercises may see results in about a week to 10 days .It is certainly a journey and the rewards of which are for those who do not give up . What are the challenges you face in being consistent with exercises ? Please leave your thought sin your comments , any questions are welcome too.