Can pelvic floor dysfunction affect digestion?

If you’re bloated, constipated, or constantly uncomfortable — your pelvic floor might be the missing link.

You’ve tried adjusting your diet.
You’ve added fibre, cut dairy, taken probiotics, and drank more water.
Still:

• Bloating
• Constipation
• Straining to go
• A constant feeling of pressure or “unfinished business”

If this sounds familiar, you might be looking in the wrong place — or rather, not low enough.

Because when digestion isn’t working right, your pelvic floor might be part of the problem.

💡 What Does the Pelvic Floor Have to Do with Digestion?

Your pelvic floor is a group of muscles at the base of your core that supports your:

• Bladder
• Bowel
• Uterus/prostate
• Sexual function
• Breathing mechanics
• Core + spinal stability

It also plays a major role in defecation (a.k.a. pooping).
It’s not just your intestines doing the work — your pelvic floor needs to relax and coordinate to let stool pass efficiently.

🛑 When the Pelvic Floor Doesn’t Work Well…

If those muscles are too tight, weak, uncoordinated, or stuck in a “clench and hold” pattern, it can cause:

• Incomplete evacuation (feeling like you didn’t finish)
• Straining or pushing too hard
• Bloating or trapped gas
• Painful bowel movements
• Rectal pressure or pelvic heaviness
• Constipation — even if your diet is on point

👉 This is known as dyssynergic defecation — when the pelvic floor and abdominal muscles are out of sync.

🔁 The Gut–Pelvic Floor Feedback Loop

Here’s the twist: digestive issues can also cause pelvic floor problems.

Chronic constipation, IBS, or abdominal bloating can lead to:

• Compensatory tension in the pelvic floor and hips
• Guarding or gripping in the abdomen
• Nerve sensitivity that disrupts normal bowel habits

It becomes a cycle: poor digestion → pelvic tension → worse digestion → more tension.

✅ How Pelvic Floor Therapy Helps

At YFS (Your Form Sux), we don’t just hand you a handout and wish you luck. We assess your system and help retrain the muscles and mechanics involved in digestion.

We help with:

• Breath training to reduce intra-abdominal pressure
• Pelvic floor relaxation techniques (yes, sometimes it’s not about strength)
• Coordination drills to retrain proper pushing without straining
• Manual therapy to release tight abdominal and pelvic tissues
• Education on toileting posture and bowel mechanics that actually work

And it’s all done in a way that’s normal, judgment-free, and designed for real life.

Signs Your Digestive Symptoms Might Be Pelvic Floor-Related:

• You poop less than 3x/week
• You strain, push, or sit forever to go
• You feel like you “can’t let go”
• You bloat even when you eat clean
• You’ve had a baby, surgery, or back injury
• You carry a lot of tension in your belly or hips
• You also have urinary symptoms or pelvic pressure

If any of these sound familiar — it’s time to stop treating the symptom and start fixing the system.

Final Word: It’s Not “Just IBS.” It Might Be Your Pelvic Floor.

At YFS, we help people connect the dots between digestion, movement, breathing, and pressure. Because your gut doesn’t operate in isolation — and neither does your recovery.

You shouldn’t have to suffer in silence or keep guessing.

Bloating, constipation, or digestive symptoms that won’t quit?
Book a Pelvic Floor & Core Assessment at YFS and let’s figure out what’s really going on — and how to fix it for good.