Reconnecting with Your Pelvic Floor: A Whole-Body Perspective

Michelle Brown
Jun 30
4 min read

Many women struggle to “feel” or connect with their pelvic floor. Whether it’s difficulty engaging during exercise, sensing tension but being unable to release it, or a general feeling of disconnection postnatally or during perimenopause, it can be frustrating and confusing.

The truth is: pelvic floor connection is not just about the pelvis. It’s influenced by everything from your posture to your feet, your breathing to your jaw, and even your emotional wellbeing.

Let’s explore the multifactorial reasons a woman might struggle to connect with her pelvic floor and how the body, as a whole, plays a vital role.

1. Lack of Body Awareness (Proprioception)

If a woman has never learned where her pelvic floor is or how to engage it, she may not know what to feel for.

This is especially common in women who:

Haven’t been taught pelvic floor exercises properly,
Have experienced trauma, surgery, or chronic stress,
Are disconnected from the area due to shame or embarrassment.

What helps: Mindful breathwork, imagery (e.g. “elevator lifting” or “flower opening/closing”), and tactile cues can improve awareness over time.

2. Postural and Alignment Issues

Pelvic floor muscles don’t work in isolation. Their function is deeply influenced by the position of your pelvis, spine, and ribcage.

An anterior pelvic tilt can cause the back line of the body to overwork, reducing effective pelvic floor engagement.
A collapsed ribcage or rounded upper back limits the diaphragm’s movement and disrupts the pressure system between the diaphragm and pelvic floor.

Poor alignment = poor coordination = poor connection.

What helps: Postural retraining, thoracic mobility, and awareness of rib-pelvis stacking.

3. Lack of Mobility — Especially in Hips, Spine, and Ribcage

A mobile body is a responsive body. If joints and tissues are stuck, the pelvic floor can’t move freely.

Tight hips or rigid thoracic spine? These can prevent the natural movement and recoil of the pelvic floor during walking, breathing, and lifting.
A “stuck” pelvis limits the muscle’s ability to relax and contract — both essential for pelvic health.

What helps: Pelvic tilts, cat-cow, hip circles, deep squats, thoracic rotations.

Reference: Lee D.G. et al., The Pelvic Girdle, and Myers T.W., Anatomy Trains.

4. Overactivity or Hypertonic Pelvic Floor

Ironically, tight pelvic floor muscles are often weak and hard to feel. This is especially common in:

Women who chronically “brace” their abs or glutes,
Those with high stress or trauma histories,
Athletes and dancers with high tone throughout the body.

If the muscles are already in a shortened state, they can’t engage further — and often can’t relax either.

What helps: Down-training (relaxation techniques), diaphragm breathing, manual release therapy if appropriate.

Reference: Pelvic Health Research Initiative, 2023.

5. Disconnection Postnatally or After Trauma

After birth, C-section, pelvic surgery, or injury, it’s common to feel a loss of control or awareness in the pelvic region. This can stem from:

Nerve disruption,
Scar tissue,
Habitual compensation patterns,
Psychological trauma or dissociation.

What helps: Gentle reconnection work, soft tissue therapy, pelvic floor-focused rehab, and trauma-informed support.

6. Breathing Dysfunction

The diaphragm and pelvic floor function as a coordinated pressure system. Shallow chest breathing disrupts that relationship.

With proper 360° breathing, the diaphragm descends, the pelvic floor expands and lowers.
On exhale, the diaphragm rises, and the pelvic floor rebounds.

Without this rhythm, the pelvic floor can become disconnected or overly braced.

What helps: Diaphragmatic breathing, rib mobility work, nose breathing, and breath timing with pelvic floor cues.

Reference: Chaitow & Lovegrove, Recognizing and Treating Breathing Disorders.

7. Jaw: Pelvic Floor Connection

Surprising, but true: Jaw tension is deeply linked to pelvic tension.

The jaw and pelvis mirror each other neurologically and fascially.
Clenching the jaw often correlates with holding tension in the pelvic floor.
TMJ (jaw dysfunction) and pelvic floor dysfunction often co-occur in women.

What helps: Jaw massage, awareness of clenching, cues like “lips together, teeth apart,” and integrated fascial release.

Reference: Chicago Pelvic Health Center (2024), PelvicPainRehab.com.

8. Feet: Pelvic Floor Connection

Your pelvic floor responds to what’s happening below in your arches, ankles, and toes.

The feet are part of fascial lines that link to the pelvis.
Overpronation, flat feet, or stiff ankles can lead to compensations that change pelvic positioning.
Your ability to sense pressure and ground through your feet influences pelvic stability and balance.

What helps: Barefoot balance drills, foot rolling, ankle mobility, tripod stance training.

9. Emotional and Nervous System Factors

The pelvic floor is deeply tied to the nervous system. Feelings of fear, shame, or anxiety often manifest in unconscious gripping or holding in the pelvic floor.

Chronic stress = chronic tension.

Past sexual trauma, childbirth trauma, or societal messaging can create a sense of disconnection or avoidance.
Many women carry these experiences silently and don’t associate them with pelvic floor issues.

What helps: Trauma-informed approaches, nervous system regulation (vagal work, breathwork, safety cues), therapy, mindfulness.

Reference: Van der Velde et al., 2001 – co-activation of pelvic and facial muscles under emotional stress.

Sample Routine to Support Pelvic Floor Connection

Try this as a 10-minute daily reconnection flow:

Foot Awareness: Stand barefoot, rock gently side-to-side and front-to-back. Notice your base of support.
Pelvic Tilts: Supine or seated, slowly rock the pelvis forward and back.
Diaphragmatic Breathing: 10 slow breaths — inhale into ribs and belly, exhale with a gentle pelvic floor lift.
Jaw Check: Notice if you’re clenching. Let the tongue rest on the roof of your mouth and gently release the jaw.
Hip Circles or Cat-Cow: Mobilise the pelvis and spine with control.
Pelvic Floor Visualisation: On exhale, gently lift; on inhale, release.

Final Thoughts

Struggling to connect with your pelvic floor doesn’t mean you’re doing something wrong — it means your body might be asking for a whole-body, whole-person approach.

This layered perspective leads to stronger, more intuitive, and more sustainable pelvic health.

References

Myers, T. W. (2020). Anatomy Trains. Churchill Livingstone.
Lee, D. G., Vleeming, A. (2011). The Pelvic Girdle.
Chaitow, L., & Lovegrove, D. (2002). Recognizing and Treating Breathing Disorders.
Van der Velde, J., et al. (2001). Emotional stress and pelvic floor co-contraction. Journal of Behavioral Medicine.
Chicago Pelvic Health Center. (2024). TMJ and Pelvic Floor Connection.
ActivCore Physical Therapy. (2023). The Foot-to-Pelvis Connection.
The Hope Docs. (2023). How Feet Affect the Pelvic Floor.