STRETCHING: YES OR NO? Is muscle activation better? I’m completely stuck and don't know what to do...
I am completely stuck and honestly don't know which way to go anymore. I’ve been dealing with a hypertonic pelvic floor (along with all the deep tension, urinary symptoms, retention and urgency) for a while now.
I’ve been doing a ton of research trying to figure out how to overcome this, but the more I read, the more confused I get. There seem to be two completely opposing sides.. The Stretching Camp, people who swear that because the pelvic floor is hypertonic (too tight/contracted), the absolute key is to stretch, stretch, and stretch to get it to release. and the Muscle Activation Camp, Professionals who argue that the pelvic floor is tight out of defense and instability because other muscle groups aren't firing properly and doing their job.
In my case, I know for a fact that my core is not activating. The issue is that whenever I try to do activation exercises to wake it up, my symptoms flare up immediately and the whole area tightens up even more. But then, if I try heavy passive stretching, I'm worried of creating more instability in my pelvis. What do you even do first? Do you stretch and then activate? Or is it better to avoid stretching altogether? I really don't know what to do...
The only thing I’m doing right now is using a pelvic wand. The issue is that sometimes it gives me relief and I feel it relaxing the muscles, but other times it feels like it does absolutely nothing, even when I use it on the exact same spots that worked before... I’m also using a vibrating wand to help relax the area, and it’s the same story: sometimes it works a little bit, and other times it’s like it does nothing at all...