Alphabetical Index of Articles on Women's Sexual, Pelvic Floor, and Reproductive Health

Gender Affirming Care at Femina Physical Therapy

What is Gender Health and Gender Affirming Care?

Gender health is a spectrum of multidisciplinary treatments specifically related to a person’s gender. More commonly these treatments are called gender affirming care. Anyone can benefit from gender affirming care, but the term is most commonly associated with transgender and nonbinary people. We’ll outline how our PT services can help those individuals below.

When people think of gender affirming care, they will most commonly think of hormones or surgery. Both of those treatments bring changes to the body that sometimes need to be managed with rehabilitation services. Consultation with a physical therapist can help someone prepare for surgery by improving strength and conditioning. Physical therapists can also support someone recovering from gender affirming surgery. There are several surgical programs, such as OSHU and NYU Langone that have incorporated pelvic floor physical therapy as pre/post surgical care.

Physical therapists can support transgender people that don’t plan to have surgery, or are only on hormone replacement therapy. Changes in urinary and sexual function are common in trans women using estrogen replacement therapy. Pelvic floor physical therapy can help strengthen muscles, improve blood flow, decrease pelvic pain, and address changes in urinary function. Physical therapists can also create custom exercise plans to help reshape the body while improving overall health. Patients that are prepping for, or have undergone gender confirmation surgery (also termed gender affirmation surgery), will require the services of compassionate and skilled pelvic health and orthopedic physical therapists. Physical therapists can be involved to help support someone's transition in a variety of ways to help support specific needs: