If you are in a hurry and just want to find out our top pick for best pelvic floor massager, we recommend the Intimate Rose Pelvic Wand.
Pee-Sneezes Suck!
Did you know? One in four women struggle with pelvic floor disorders, and research shows, as women age, this percentage increases.
The common advice for women struggling with pelvic floor issues is to “do Kegels”.
BUT…this assumes that all women with PF issues have underactive pelvic floor muscles (a.k.a muscles on permanent vacay).
This is simply untrue.
Many women who struggle with pelvic floor issues have the opposite issue – overactive muscles.
Traditionally, women with overactive muscles would have to seek the help of a physical therapist to release those muscles. But today, there are a number of Pelvic Floor Massagers available so you can release your pelvic floor muscles from the comfort of your own home.
We’ve rounded up the best pelvic floor massagers on the market and include our top pick.
Here are the pelvic floor massage tools we reviewed:
WHAT ARE HYPERACTIVE PELVIC FLOOR MUSCLES?
Hyperactive pelvic floor muscles are muscles in a constant state of contraction.
The constant activity of the muscles leads to weakness and difficulty contracting fully.
It can lead to a number of issues including incontinence, pelvic or tailbone pain, pelvic instability, and hip pain.
WHAT ARE SIGNS OF OVERACTIVE PELVIC FLOOR MUSCLES?
The best way to confirm overactive pelvic floor muscles is by seeing a pelvic floor physiotherapist.
However, there are indicators that can help you know whether or not your pelvic floor is overactive. In general, individuals with overactive pelvic floor muscle tend to experience one, or more, of the following:
- When trying to kegel, they don’t feel much engagement (because the muscle is already engaged!),
- Difficulty taking a deep, full breath,
- Peeing with exertion (a.k.a. pee-sneezes),
- Pelvic pain or tailbone pain,
- Pain with intercourse, or
- Trouble emptying bladder fully.
These individuals may also be more of a “type A” personality.
WHAT IS INTERNAL PELVIC FLOOR MASSAGE?
Women struggling with hyperactive pelvic floors, often have trigger points in their pelvic floor. These trigger points are areas of muscular tension or fascia constriction that prevent the muscles from working properly. They often feel tender to the touch and result in muscles that don’t work effectively.
Internal pelvic floor massage relaxes and lengthens the muscles and fascia of the pelvic floor to change how they work and reduce pain. This is done internally through either the vagina or rectum.
It can be done manually with a finger (as is typically done at a pelvic floor physiotherapist) or with the use of a tool, like a pelvic floor massager.
Pelvic Floor Massage helps the muscles relax and the body feel better in two ways:
- By lengthening the muscles through physical manipulation, and
- By changing the way that the brain is interacting with the muscle (similar to when you have a headache and distract yourself from the pain by pinching your arm).
The end result: Better working muscles and less pain and discomfort.
We share additional ways to release overactive pelvic floor muscles in this blog post.
HOW DOES A PELVIC FLOOR MASSAGER WORK?
Most pelvic floor massage tools are small, curved wands. They come in a variety of materials.
These wands are inserted into the vagina or anus, about an inch deep, with the help of lubricant.
Once inserted, you gently press the wand into the internal muscles of the pelvic floor.
HOW TO USE A PELVIC FLOOR MASSAGE TOOL
For vaginal insertion, you will want to be lying on your back, with your knees bent.
This guide provides visuals/explanations for the areas you will want to target.
Visualize the pelvic floor like a clock, with the pubic bone at 12:00 and the tailbone at 6:00. Once inserted gently massage the areas from 6:00 to 1:00 (Starting from the anus, along the right side of the pelvic floor, ending to the right of the urethra). And then return to 6:00 and massage from 6:00 to 11:00 (along the left side of the pelvic floor).
Avoid the area from 11:00 to 1:00 (the area directly behind the urethra). Direct pressure on that area is uncomfortable and can cause injury.
This video gives a nice explanation of the pelvic floor and how to use a pelvic floor massage tool.
Once you are finished, wash the tool with soap and water and store it in a clean location.
WHO CAN BENEFIT FROM PELVIC FLOOR MASSAGE
A wide range of women (and men…but that’s another post for another day) can benefit from pelvic floor massage.
You may benefit from pelvic floor massage If you:
- Experience the signs of overactive pelvic floors, mentioned above.
- Experience unexplained pelvic pain that is unrelated to infection or gynecologic conditions like endometriosis or fibroids, or
- Hold chronic tension in your deep hip rotator muscles (e.g. piriformis and obturator internus).
If you suspect that you have overactive pelvic floor muscles, it’s always a good idea to get confirmation from a pelvic floor physiotherapist before beginning any treatment.
PRECAUTIONS TO TAKE WHEN USING A PELVIC FLOOR MASSAGE TOOL
When using a Pelvic Floor Massage Tool make sure you follow all usage instructions from the manufacturer.
WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN USING A PELVIC FLOOR MASSAGE TOOL
When using a PF massage tool, it is common for it to feel very intense at the beginning. These muscles can hold large amounts of tension. Releasing that tension can feel similar to foam rolling tight muscles.
You may also experience MORE incontinence issues at first. As the muscles release, they must re-learn how to engage properly. In the interim, you may find that you are leaking more often. This should resolve over time.
PELVIC FLOOR MASSAGER REVIEWS
We’ve reviewed the majority of the available pelvic floor massage tools on the market (there aren’t that many!).
Take a look through the pros/cons of each to find your best Pelvic Floor Massage Tool.
The Intimate Rose Pelvic Wand is a beautiful product designed by a doctor of physical therapy and a certified pelvic floor rehabilitation specialist.
A strong feature of this product is its design. Its unique shape allows you to reach both superficial and deep pelvic floor muscles. Many users noted that they could tell the tool was designed by someone with a good knowledge of pelvic floor muscles. And many reported that the tool reduced their pelvic floor tightness symptoms quickly.
One user indicated that they could not reach the piriformis muscle with the tool, but others did not report that issue.
This product also has the lowest price of the tools we reviewed, making it a great value for the money.
Pros:
- Designed with BPA-free, medical-grade silicone, so that it feels soft and smooth
- Designed with a unique shape that helps the tool reach both superficial and deep pelvic floor muscles. This helps to better relieve pelvic pain deep within the pelvis.
- It has two different sized/shaped ends, to suit your particular anatomy.
- Both ends can be used vaginally or rectally to reach many of the pelvic floor muscles.
- Easily cleaned with soap and water.
- Most affordable of the tools reviewed (at the time of this writing).
Cons:
- Silicone coating can be damaged if left in a heated environment
- Must avoid using silicone-based lubricants. Water-based lubricant is recommended to ensure the silicone doesn’t get damaged.
The Intimate Rose Pelvic Wand With Vibration is the exact same size and shape as the Original Intimate Rose Pelvic Wand, with the added feature of 10 speeds of vibration.
Like the original wand, the vibrating pelvic wand is a beautiful product designed by a doctor of physical therapy and a certified pelvic floor rehabilitation specialist. It has the same unique design so that you can reach both superficial and deep pelvic floor muscles.
The vibration feature is designed to improve circulation in the pelvic floor, vaginal, and vulvar area. This makes this tool particularly useful for women who can benefit from increased blood flow to the area. This includes women who:
- Experience chronic long-standing pelvic pain,
- Are recovering from vaginal surgery,
- Are post-cancer treatment (both pelvic and breast cancer)
- Experiencing menopause
- Experienced a significant tailbone injury
Pros:
- Designed with BPA-free, medical-grade silicone so that it is soft and smooth to the touch
- 10 speeds of vibration
- Designed with a unique shape that helps the tool reach both superficial and deep pelvic floor muscles. This helps to better relieve pelvic pain deep within the pelvis.
- Has two different shaped ends, to suit your particular anatomy
- Both ends can be used vaginally or rectally to reach many of the pelvic floor muscles.
- Easily cleaned with soap and water.
- Rechargeable with a USB wall charger
Cons:
- Silicone can be damaged if left in a heated environment
- Must avoid silicone-based lubricants. A water-based lubricant is recommended to ensure the silicone doesn’t get damaged.
- Higher price because of the vibration feature.
Although this wand can be used both vaginally and rectally, the manufacturers recommend another wand, their LA Wand, for rectal massage.
This product seems to work well for pelvic floor massage, with a few users indicating they no longer need to see a physical therapist for manual treatment. One user mentioned that the acrylic material is quite hard, so it is important to use gentle pressure while using it. A few users mentioned that they did not receive instructions with the tool.
Pros:
- Designed with input from pelvic floor therapists.
- Two different sized ends so that you can massage a broad area or more targeted trigger points.
- Easily cleaned with soap and water.
- Designed to allow you to control the exact amount of pressure and location of the massage
Cons:
- Some may find it too large for rectal usage (the company recommends their LA Wand for this).
- Can not clean with alcohol.
- Harder material (acrylic) might provide too much pressure for some.
Our Choice For Best Pelvic Floor Massager
When it comes to pelvic floor massage tools, there are only a few high-quality tools available to choose from.
Of the three products we reviewed, the Intimate Rose Pelvic Wand is our choice for best pelvic floor massage tool for most people.
With a beautiful design that gets the job done, many users appreciate this tool. It helps users relax and release their pelvic floors resulting in less pain and better functioning muscles.
And, at the lowest price of the tools reviewed, it is an excellent value for money.
Looking for more guidance on creating a healthy, balanced, pelvic floor?
Join me in my Pelvic Floor Pick-Me-Up System!
