As Doctor of Physical Therapy (PT) with a specialty practice in pelvic health I have found that embodiment practices (like yoga, dance, organic movement etc) and mindful physical therapy can heal and radically improve people’s lives. I can tell you with professional certainty that the vulva, vagina, and womb space is an important part of the Mind-Body-Spirit equation and that the health of your Root is imperative to whole system health.  Read on below for 5 reasons you (and your vagina) will love indulging in a pelvic health related retreat. 

I spend a lot of time creating home exercise programs for my pelvic floor physical therapy patients. Lately we have been creating custom videos for my patients as I have found it increases their compliance if they have something that’s been made just for them. While certainly not every exercise is appropriate for every body or diagnosis I’ve decided to share some basic instructions on common exercises in a Home Exercise Program Series. Today’s series is a basic foam roller series for a patient who has been experiencing pelvic pain associated with endometriosis and a coccyx injury. As always please consult with your doctor or physical therapist to see if these exercises might be appropriate for you.

One of my friends just asked me what really happens on Retreat to Your Root. She was on the fence about wanting to come to my next retreat offering (on Sept 27th, 2018!) and a little nervous about what a weekend focused on pelvic health might look like. She was looking for a behind the scenes scoop before she decided if it was a good fit for her. I took a moment to reflect on what is it really that happens on these retreats I hold. I realized it all boils down to: Content, Classes, and Community.

I’m on the last leg of 18 hours of travel. My booty is sore, but my heart is excited to land in Africa to get to my first international yoga retreat which I’m co-leading with the great Brianne Grogan of Femfusion in Morocco! As I sit here stuck in the back row of a packed airplane I’m thinking about the classes I’ll be sharing with women who will assemble tomorrow. There’s woman and her baby spilling half way into my seat on my left and a little boy vomiting into paper bags on my right. Needless to say I am dreaming of these poses right now!

The first half of 2018 has been full of travel as I continue to spread the good word about the pelvic floor across the US… and the world! (cue creepy laughter).  Long flights, cramped train rides, and the occasional gnarly Los Angeles commute has had me looking to yoga for the pain, stiffness, and lack of energy that travel sometime leaves me with. Like many of my patients prolonged hours of sitting can flare my pelvic, back, or hip pain and yoga always does the trick to calm things back down.  

I’m was initially inspired to write this blog while adventuring in Bali researching yoga retreat centers for my next Retreat to Your Root (I know…. it’s a rough job, but someone has to do it).  24 hours on a plane had me and my travel bud/ yoga teacher/health coach extraordinaire, Michele Wilkerson, RYT of Yoga7even (pictured below) feeling tight, stiff, and generally unhappy in our pelvises!

Michele and I decided to each share our favorite yoga pose for travel and pelvic health as of a series of blogs since we both love adventuring the globe and hope that maybe you’ll join us in the near future…. like on Retreat to Your Root: Midwest this fall (or perhaps a more exotic location in 2019)!

I'd like to share a piece from a guest blogger, Julia Soffa. She was a recent teacher trainee in a group I lead through a modified yoga teacher version of my Retreat to Your Root in Nicaragua. I love her thoughtful reflections after our immersion into the multifaceted-ness of pelvic health.  Enjoy!

"What the heck is my "root" and why exactly might I want to retreat to it?" is a pretty common question I've been asked as I've shared about my offerings to my patients, my family, my friends, and random strangers at the coffee shop.  

When I named "Retreat to Your Root (RTR): A Yoga for Pelvic Health Retreat" I felt it important that the title spoke to what the experience itself would entail (the retreat) and the multiple levels of healing that could take place (in the root).  I chose the word "root" for it's complex and multifaceted nature and it's ability to describe all at once the physical, energetic, and emotional components we would touch on.

It's been about a year and a half since the concept of "Retreat to Your Root (RTR): A Yoga for Pelvic Health Retreat" came into my consciousness.  The idea sprang from my Yoga for the Pelvic Floor program which I was implementing in the clinic with my patients and after attending 3 yoga retreats in a 3 month time period.  I knew I wanted to spread the word about yoga for pelvic health to a larger audience and I had just experienced the immense benefits of retreating away from normal life while immersing into a healing experience.  As the concept developed my mission and goals for RTR emerged.  With two retreats under my belt (pun intended), one coming up in the fall, and at least 3 in-store for 2018 the mission has grown and the benefits have revealed themselves.  
I want to share my mission with you as RTR has become an aspect of my personal and professional life which I feel most passionate about and feel incredibly grateful to be able to offer.

I had the great pleasure of acting as right-hand woman to my dear friend and yoga for pelvic health expert, Dustienne Miller, this past weekend.  I got to chime in, answer questions, and lend assists as she led 25 pelvic floor physical therapists in her Herman & Wallace course, Yoga for Pelvic Pain, in Seattle, WA.

One fun thing about the class was that we had women of all levels of yoga experience in the class which allowed us to show up and teach from a beginner’s point a view.  I was inspired to write this blog as a “quick and dirty” reference for the types of yoga one might encounter so that my fellow PTs and potential clients can make appropriate referrals/choices when they choose to seek out a yoga practice.  This list is by no means exhaustive nor is it more than a very basic way of interpreting the types and styles of classes that you may see on a yoga schedule.

Our Memorial Day weekend retreat, Retreat to Your Root: An Immersion into Pelvic Health, is filling up fast, but Dustienne Miller of Your Pace Yoga and I want to continue to share previous retreaters' experiences.    

Today's blog features Sophia's experience which she has graciously offered to share as a glimpse into the retreat experience.