janine mccarthy ortho-bionomy

// the path to natural pain relief //

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Relieving pelvic pain with Ortho-Bionomy

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Do you suffer from period pain, organ prolapse or other pelvic issues?

I recently held a workshop in Hobart, Tasmania on restoring pelvic health with Ortho-Bionomy. We discussed the cult of ‘core strength’, the myth of the ‘pelvic floor’ and why women (and men) should consider not doing pelvic floor ‘strengthening’ exercises. The pharmaceutical and surgical ‘solutions’ women are offered for pelvic pain and dysfunction can often make things worse or give only temporary relief. But restoring your natural pelvic alignment can bring long-term relief – I’ve seen this happen for many women, including myself.

Embrace your rounded belly to allow your pelvic organs to rest naturally in the pelvic ‘bowl’ to prevent or relieve period pain and other menstrual issues, stress incontinence, organ prolapse, even hormonal imbalance. Avoid the ‘flat belly’ obsession and get your real body back.

Begin with these simple techniques:

When you sit, sit on your ‘sit bones’. What are they? They’re the big bone in each of your buttocks. They form the base of your hip bones/pelvic are are made for taking your body weight – made for sitting on! If you’re sitting on your sit bones you’re not sitting on your little coccyx or tailbone – that’s what you sit on if you slouch backwards to curl your low spine backwards. Your tailbone wasn’t made for sitting on! You know this if you sit like that for a while – it hurts when you stand up. When you sit on the sit bones though, your spine can align itself above the solid foundation of your pelvis, and you’ll be able to sit more comfortably.

Next, try this: now that you’re sitting on your sit bones, begin to roll your hips (as if they were 2 wheels) forward as far as comfortable, then roll them backward as far as comfortable. Do this SLOWLY and carefully so that your nervous system pays attention to how you’re making the movement. Your head may go slightly up and down but your upper body shouldn’t move forward and back. Then gradually reduce the distance between the forward point and the backward point until you reach the centre, then sit still on that ‘centre point’ for a few seconds to recalibrate your body’s understanding of centre or balance.

It sometimes takes only a few sessions to relieve this pain and dysfunction and restore natural pelvic alignment. If you need help with these issues book a consultation with me – call 0422 266 190. And if you’re not in Melbourne, find your local Ortho-Bionomy Practitioner at ortho-bionomy.org.au to get help soon!

Pelvic girdle pain relief

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Do you suffer from “pelvic girdle pain”? Many women suffer intense pelvic pain both during pregnancy and post-natally, making walking, standing and even sitting extremely uncomfortable. Conventional medicine offers pain-relief medication and not much else. But Ortho-Bionomy helps reduce this pain dramatically by assisting the body to regain its natural pelvic alignment, relieving tension and pain and allowing comfortable movement to return.

One of my clients, Lee W., suffered from this condition after the birth of her baby, along with a partial prolapse, diagnosed by her obstetrician. She couldn’t stand or walk for more than 10 minutes without intense pain. She followed the physiotherapist’s advice for some exercises but after 7 weeks had minimal improvement. She wanted to walk to help her body recover from the pregnancy and birth, but she couldn’t even walk around the house much. Her frustration level was pretty high! She visited me for Ortho-Bionomy and noticed a reduction of pain the same day. I gently worked to encourage her pelvis to remember its natural alignment, and she found the work comfortable and relaxing. It took only 2 sessions of Ortho-Bionomy for her to be virtually pain-free. She is now able to go for daily walks with her baby in the pram and her prolapse has resolved. That’s better for her mental health and her baby as well as her body. Lee wrote “I would not have recovered so well and so quickly without you. Thank you for everything, you’ll see me again!”

Another client, Alicia H. experienced severe low back and hip pain during the late stages of her pregnancy. She describes her experience here:

“At 35 weeks of pregnancy I came to Janine for help with excruciating sciatica & lower back pain. As this had been a recurring condition for the past 10+ years it did not surprise me that it had returned at a time when the body is under such pressure, but the intensity was like I had never experienced before. Shooting pains down to the calf, I could not walk further than the mailbox and spent the majority of the day on hands & knees, it was pretty bad! It took a couple of sessions to feel some results, as everything was so jammed up and tight. [In fact, Alicia had improved enough after 2 sessions to walk to my clinic for her third visit. – Janine] However, slowly & gently, after 4 sessions and with practice at home all symptoms had cleared up entirely; my back was actually better than at the start of the pregnancy. I really had not anticipated such a result, to say I was delighted to be pain free is an understatement. The treatment is very gentle, I felt completely safe at all times, my body felt wonderfully light at the end of each session. I would not hesitate to recommend Janine to anyone experiencing similar symptoms.” Alicia visited me 4 weeks after her baby was born because her back was uncomfortable with the new routines of feeding and carrying her baby, but her other conditions had not returned.

Because Ortho-Bionomy provides natural pain relief, it provides the perfect alternative to taking pharmaceutical drugs, especially when you want to avoid sharing those drugs with your baby through the placenta or your breast milk. Many women put up with this kind of pain during and after pregnancy because we believe we can’t do anything about it, but Ortho-Bionomy has a wonderful way of helping our bodies remember how to find comfort and return to balance, even through the most extreme experiences.  Don’t just put up with this kind of pain, find an Ortho-Bionomy practitioner in your area; once the pain has gone you will be able to enjoy your pregnancy or your newborn baby, and every woman deserves that!