This episode is a 'resource' one!

Whether you have just started out in your pelvic health physiotherapy career or have been around a while and want professional support in an inclusive and safe environment, mentoring programs can be an excellent way to stay connected, bounce ideas of others and know that you are all in the same boat if you are in need of some confirmation.

But how do you find the right program for you? How do you know what to expect?

Meet Tamara Woods who runs a brilliant mentoring program called The Pelvic Health Community based in Australia although membership is open worldwide.

Tamara's way of explaining concepts in an easy to understand way, along with her legendary hand drawn diagrams can help make sense of even the most complex issues.

But that's not all. The forum is open 24/7 for you to post questions and bounce ideas off colleagues; there are monthly inservices delivered by experts in the field, live weekly Q&A and a catalogue of videos and lessons on pelvic health conditions.

All of these are recorded to be watched at your leisure if you can't attend the live sessions. There is never the fear that a question may be a silly one within the group.

Join me as I chat to Tam about her program and community which is extremely supportive and inclusive.

Fiona x

Episode summary : Christine Goudie : GranvilleBiomedical : Venus

Do you know what your anatomy looks like? Are you fearful of how to insert a pessary or tampon? Are you a health professional looking for an accurate model to demonstrate examinations and pessary fittings to your patients?

This is the podcast episode for you!

What stood out from my conversation with Christine :

• Empowering women’s choices

• Reducing fear

• Normalising the human body

• Foster understanding of your body

The first seeds for creating the Venus and Iris models were planted when Christine was on medical outreach mission to Bangladesh. She identified the need for women’s health education tools after seeing a lack of hands on training tools. It all started as a project which developed into the creation of the models we see today with Venus being launched in 2021. and Iris this month.

The team consulted with health professionals about the need for a vulval model with a vaginal canal and cervix. Hear the process of how they set about developing something that was as life-like as possible which involved actuator tests of organic tissue against the silicone recipes to develop the most accurate texture. They aimed for representation by skin tone, so it looks like or similar to you, being inclusive and culturally appropriate and to normalise the human body.

The models can be used as a visual aide to help educate and reduce fear, making the insertion of pessaries, tampons and menstrual cups less intimidating.

Femtechs are using the models to demonstrate their devices.

If you would like to know more, or are interested in becoming a distributor in your country you can contact Christine via:

Website: https://www.granvillebiomedical.ca

Email: info@granvillebiomedical.ca

Instagram: @granvillebiomedical

In Australia you can purchase Venus and Iris models from pelvicfloorexercise.com.au

My guest, Christine Goudie is a Canadian entrepreneur with in-depth experience designing medical devices and educational tools within the health tech space. She is currently a PhD student and Co-Founder of Granville Biomedical, which specializes in the design of anatomical pelvic health models to enhance clinical training and advance patient education within women’s health.

In this episode hear how being a visual learner  led to MJForget to draw diagrams for her own learning and the pathway to the brilliant idea of turning them into a foldable laminated model to allow clinicians and patients a better understanding of their pelvic floor muscles which are now used world wide in our clinics and hospitals to educate clinicians and patients on the anatomy of their pelvic floor.

We discuss the pelvic floor and how these models can help in many settings.

These are the original models, now sold across the world.

In Australia you can buy them from:pelvicfloorexercise.com.au  or  outside Australia direct from her online store www.totalpelvichealth.ca 

She is also happy to discuss use of images if youcontact her for permission.

(Please don’t do so without permission orcontravene copyright by trying to copy them)  

MJ graduated in 1995 at the University of Ottawa,has been a physio for 30 years and a pelvic health physio for 27 years!

She started a pelvic health clinic in Northern Ontario(North Bay) back in 1997 when nobody knew anything about pelvic health and moved to Ottawa 2 years ago to work in downtown Ottawa to be closer to family and her kids.

MJ is an instructor with Pelvic Health Solutions(owned by Nelly Faghani) teaching the level 1 (incontinence), level 2 (pelvic pain) and pregnancy/PGP courses and has also participated in research with Sinead Dufour on pelvic dysfunctions and lower back pain. 

I hope you enjoy our chat

Fiona

If you have endometriosis or you are a health professional treating people with endo this conversation is for you.

I chat with Felicity and Jess, the co-creators of Endo Online which is  a platform providing practical helpful strategies for self -management within a positive environment.

Endo Online was born from their desire to provide education and support to anyone with endometriosis wherever they are on their journey, and for those who suspect they may have it or any other type of pelvic pain.

The website has a section with free resources in the form of videos and blogs, a section for health professionals and also hosts their flagship program Evolve.

Evolve is an 8 week/ 8 module  program covering 25 hours of video content.

Each module has an educational lecture, exploratory tutorials (on how to do practical treatments like using wands and dilators ) and guided practices to help you find safety in yourself as well as building your own personal toolkit of endo-management techniques.

It gives lifetime access and a supportive closed Facebook community.

You can find the website here

Felicity and Jess post loads of great free information on their Instagram page

Health Professionals can use the code  HP50 for 50% off access to the Evolve course

BIOS: 

 Felicity and Jess are both passionate pelvic health physiotherapists who came together to create Endo Online, an online education platform making evidence-based and holistic self-management strategies accessible to people with Endometriosis anytime and anywhere. 

 Jess is an experienced pelvic physiotherapist with her own lived experience of Endometriosis, Adenomyosis and Crohns disease, which has deeply informed her practice. She shares in the frustration of so many of her patients - that Endo is still under-diagnosed, takes far too long to diagnose, and that the repercussions of this delay without adequate care leads to high rates of chronic pain, which often persist even after the excision of Endo. Jess’s vision is to ensure Endo Warriors are supported in managing their Endo journey through whole body treatment, education and exercise, to assist them in living the lives they were meant to live.

Jess works as a Pelvic Health Physiotherapist at Limitless Physiotherapy in Bronte, Sydney, Australia.

Felicity is a pelvic physiotherapist with a background in chronic pain management and mental health care, and combines skills in pelvic health with yoga and mindfulness to offer trauma-informed holistic care. She loves empowering patients to explore ways to release tension, connect with relaxation, sleep better and move with greater ease through their journey with endo and persistent pain. Felicity’s vision is to help every Endo Warrior access support to build their own bespoke toolkit of strategies to address their unique experience of Endo. She practices at Beaches Pelvic Physio on Sydney’s Northern Beaches. 

If you always thought vibrators were phallic and too scared to try one – Eleanor debunks these myths as she talks us through the vibrator she developed as a beginner one and for those pelvic health issues like pelvic pain and dyspareunia (painful penetration) which are often secondary side effects of a primary condition and often not talked about but we are here to do so!

Vibrators can be scary, shopping for one even more so. We take away the fear as we discuss just how beneficial using the correct one can be for all stages of hormonal changes whether it be postnatally, perimenopause, menopause or following surgery or cancer treatments.

Eleanor talks us through the design of hers and why its teardrop shape allows for different sensations and focusses on different areas and how it fits in palm of your hand.

Kaito fits beautifully between medical devices and pleasure products meeting you where you are on your intimate health journey and as an entry point into sexual awareness and rehab.

We discuss how research shows that vibration can be helpful for muscle relaxation and improving blood flow – both often being aims of treatment for pelvic health conditions.

We talk about lubricants, oestrogen, changes in sensitivity with hormonal changes and more and finish with some very interesting chat about vaginal microbiome and a new product she is involved with in this space.

Eleanor's biography

Eleanor Gardner MSc Physiotherapy, is the founder of www.pelvicrelief.co.uk, a platform dedicated to accessible, evidence-based solutions for a wide range of intimate health conditions.

Recognising the need for high-quality products, Eleanor acquired www.vjjhealth.com in 2024, and its transformative vaginal probiotics. Bringing VJJ Health under the Pelvic Relief umbrella furthers her mission to empower individuals with the knowledge and tools to confidently manage their pelvic and intimate health.

You can also find Eleanor on Instagram

In Australia you can see Kaito here

What does a waterslide have to do with a vibrator? Ever wondered how a vibrator is made? what is on the inside and how it works?

Join me as I chat to the founder of Elixir play, Lara Pack. We dive into Lara’s lived experience of pelvic pain, how that led her desire to create better options for those affected by pelvic pain, vaginismus and vulvodynia and what her hopes are for others and her daughters in the future when it comes to normalising sexual health .

We talk about the concept of 'from failure comes success'

We bust some myths about female pleasure.

We talk about how vibration can help with pelvic pain.

You will also learn why the shape of a vibrator is important and what you should look for when choosing one. Her range includes Amethyst, Garnet and Ruby. Which one might best suit you?

Whether you are just looking for a high quality toy or need some guidance on how vibration and pleasure can help you through your pelvic pain journey this is the episode for you and I highly recommend that you watch this one and not just listen ;-)

Some facts about Elixir play products

You can find Elixir Play products on Lara's Australian website or US website

and at Pelvic Floor Exercise (Australia)

Follow Lara on Instagram

and whilst you are there - please follow Pelvic Health Product Podcast and consider sharing us with your friends.

Thanks for joining me

Fiona x

Join me as I chat to well-known pelvic health physiotherapist from Brisbane Sue Croft OAM. We discuss her books Pelvic Floor Recovery (which has also been translated into German) and Pelvic Floor Essentials. Both are written to help patients navigate their way through their pelvic health journey but are equally useful for health professionals as a reference. We also talk about her wonderful blog which now numbers at .....posts. Sue is a natural author and easy to listen to with her vast knowledge of all pelvic health conditions. You can find her blog here You can buy her books here or from Pelvic Floor Exercise You can find it all in on place here

SUE CROFT BIO Sue is a dedicated and accomplished physiotherapist for over 47-years, working in Pelvic Health for the past 36 years. She was awarded the Order of Australia Medal in 2023 for contributions to the community and the physiotherapy profession in pelvic health. Sue has authored three books on pelvic health physiotherapy including the recently published updated 5th Edition of Pelvic Floor Recovery: Physiotherapy for Gynaecological and Colorectal Repair Surgery (which she has also translated into German) and Pelvic Floor Essentials (4th Edition). She also writes a pelvic health blog with over 400 published blogs. Sue Co-Chaired the Scientific Committee of NCOI2020 with Urogynaecologist, Dr Peta Higgs. In March, 2024,Sue sold her practice to John and Nicole Fitzgerald to create Active Women’s Health and now works half-time for them at the same Highgate Hill address. She is enjoying seeing her patients and mentoring the physios at this new centre of excellence for Pelvic Health Physiotherapy.

 Did you know that research showing TENS can help period pain first emerged in the mid 1980’s! It has become mainstream in recent years, giving millions of people with painful periods and endometriosis some relief as part of their self- management plan.

Maxine Orange, the creator of Tap 2.0, is on Occupational Therapist with lived experience of pelvic pain which led her to create her company.

Lots of background  work went into developing and testing it.

Fiona and Maxine chat about how she did this, demystifying what TENS is and how it can work for you and your pelvic pain. 

TENS can be used for period pain(dysmenorrhea), endometriosis and other pelvic pain conditions. 

TENS is often claimed to ‘block pain messages’ is this true? How does it REALLY work? What does it feel like?

Not all pain is the same so having options of different programs that work in different ways helps tailor pain management.

Pain can be exhausting so being in control and using your TENS device when and where you need it can make a huge difference in how you feel.

Tap 2.0 is simple and easy to use – no wires means it can be comfortably worn under your clothing allowing you to get back to doing what you need to do, or just pop it on and have a rest.

Maxine and Tap have an exciting development coming next year and you heard it first here on the Pelvic Health Product Podcast!

Where can I buy Tap?

Taphealthnz

In Australia pelvicfloorexercise

I first met Claire at a conference not long after she launched Olive and Bee – watch how far she has come with this simple and innovative product made from 2 natural ingredients : EVOO and beeswax. Sounds simple? It took 26 formulas to develop just the right consistency. What is Olive and Bee? Is it the right product for you and how should you use it? Learn what a comedogenic rating is and why it is important for an oil-based lubricant. Learn when and how to best use Olive and Bee . There are many applications! Is it safe to use with silicone devices? (yes!) Is it condom safe? (no it has not been tested but oil based products are not compatible) Olive and Bee is an excellent personal moisturiser for peri and post menopause - use on alternate days to hormonal vaginal moisturiser. It is a great alternative for those who have been medically advised not to use an hormonal based moisturiser eg during and following cancer treatment. Clinicians can use it for internal examinations esp on patients who are sensitive. and .....you heard it here first! - watch out for Olive and Bee lip balm under development! How to get in touch with Claire and Olive and Bee: Website: oliveandbee.com.au Email: hello@oliveandbee.com.au Instagram: @olivebeeandme Thanks for watching. If you enjoyed the interview - hit subscribe and share with a friend who may benefit. Yours in pelvic health.....Fiona 