Pelvic Pain Treatment
There's a Reason You're Still in Pain
Expert pelvic floor therapy for women who are tired of being told nothing is wrong — delivered to your home in Utah Valley.
The Pain Nobody Talks About
Have You Been Told “Nothing Is Wrong” — But You’re Still in Pain?
You shift in your chair at work because sitting hurts. You avoid intimacy with your partner because you’re afraid of the pain—or exhausted from pretending it doesn’t hurt. You’ve stopped exercising, stopped going out, stopped doing the things that used to make you feel like yourself. You’ve seen doctors, had tests, maybe even had surgery—and you’re still in pain.
The worst part? Being told “everything looks normal.” Being told to “just relax.” Being made to feel like it’s in your head.
It’s not in your head. Pelvic pain is almost always related to pelvic floor muscle dysfunction—something that standard imaging and exams don’t show. Pelvic floor physical therapy is highly effective at treating it, and most women see significant improvement.
Dr. Danaya experienced pelvic pain herself. After her first baby, she had pain with intercourse—along with stress incontinence and urinary urgency. She was in PT school at the time and discovered pelvic floor therapy. Within three to four sessions, she was symptom-free. It changed the course of her career, because she realized most women don’t even know this kind of care exists.
For conditions like endometriosis, there’s a 98% correlation between oblique trigger points and visceral abnormality. Treating the secondary pelvic floor tension makes a huge impact on pain, even when the underlying disease is still present. Read more about PT for endometriosis →
The Missing Diagnosis
Why Does Nothing Show Up on Tests?
Most pelvic pain is caused by pelvic floor muscles that are too tight—not too weak. Standard imaging doesn’t show muscle dysfunction, which is why so many women are told “nothing is wrong” after ultrasounds, MRIs, and even laparoscopies.
Your pelvic floor muscles can develop trigger points, go into spasm, or lose their ability to relax properly—and none of that shows up on a scan. That’s why a hands-on assessment from a pelvic floor specialist reveals what years of testing couldn’t.
What’s Actually Causing Your Pain:
- Hypertonic Muscles: Pelvic floor muscles that are chronically tight, contracted, or in spasm—creating constant pain, pressure, or aching
- Trigger Points: Knots of tension within the pelvic floor muscles that refer pain to the vulva, rectum, abdomen, or thighs
- Nerve Sensitization: Irritated or compressed nerves (like the pudendal nerve) that create burning, electric, or stabbing pain
- Scar Tissue: Adhesions from surgery, tearing, or endometriosis that restrict tissue mobility and create pain
- Visceral Tension: Tension from organs (bladder, uterus, bowel) that pulls on surrounding muscles and connective tissue
Here’s what surprises most women: if your pelvic floor muscles are already too tight, doing Kegels makes your pain worse. Think of making a fist and then trying to squeeze harder—you can’t generate more force from a muscle that’s already clenched. What tight muscles need is to learn how to relax and lengthen before they can function properly. Learn the difference between a tight and weak pelvic floor →
This is exactly why a proper assessment matters before anyone tells you to “just do Kegels.” Dr. Danaya evaluates whether your muscles are too tight, too weak, uncoordinated, or some combination—and then treats accordingly.
You don't have to keep living with this. Schedule a Free Consultation →
Types of Pelvic Pain
What Kind of Pain Are You Experiencing?
Pelvic pain shows up differently for everyone. You might recognize yourself in one of these—or several. Each one is treatable.
Painful Intercourse
Pain during or after sex—whether sharp at penetration, deep aching with certain positions, or burning that lingers for hours afterward. One of the most treatable pelvic pain conditions.
Learn more about painful intercourse treatment →Vulvodynia & Vaginismus
Chronic vulvar burning, stinging, or rawness that makes even sitting uncomfortable. Or involuntary tightening of vaginal muscles that makes penetration feel impossible. Both respond very well to pelvic floor PT.
Learn more about treatment options →Endometriosis-Related Pain
Deep, cyclical pelvic pain that gets worse around your period—plus the muscle guarding and tension your body develops to protect itself. PT breaks the pain-tension cycle that endometriosis creates.
Learn more about endo & pelvic floor PT →Pudendal Neuralgia
Burning, electric, or stabbing pain in the pelvic region—often described as feeling like you’re “sitting on a golf ball.” Can radiate to the rectum, genitals, or inner thighs.
Learn about pudendal neuralgia treatment →Tailbone, Hip & Back Pain
Pain in or around the tailbone, hips, SI joint, or low back that’s connected to pelvic floor dysfunction. Often missed by traditional PT because they don’t assess the pelvic floor.
Learn more about hip & back pain →Bladder Pain & Urgency
Pelvic pain accompanied by bladder pressure, urgency, or constant feeling of needing to urinate. Often overlaps with interstitial cystitis and pelvic floor tension.
Learn more about bladder pain treatment →How Treatment Works
What Does Pelvic Floor PT for Pain Actually Include?
Pelvic floor PT for pain focuses on releasing tight muscles, calming irritated nerves, and retraining your body to relax—not just strengthening. Dr. Danaya looks at everything that attaches to and affects the pelvis: your back, hips, core, diaphragm, and movement patterns—then assesses whether your pelvic floor muscles are doing what they’re supposed to be doing.
Treatment Includes:
- Internal Manual Therapy: Gentle hands-on treatment to release tight muscles, trigger points, and fascial restrictions inside the pelvic floor—most patients are surprised that it actually feels relieving, not painful
- External Manual Therapy: Treatment of hips, lower back, abdomen, and thighs—areas that often contribute to pelvic pain but get overlooked when treatment focuses only on the pelvis
- Dry Needling: Trigger point dry needling to release deep muscle tension and reset overactive muscles—one of the most effective tools for stubborn pelvic pain. Learn more about dry needling →
- Relaxation & Lengthening: Teaching your pelvic floor how to relax and lengthen—the opposite of Kegels, and exactly what tight, painful muscles need
- Breathing & Nervous System Work: Using breath and relaxation techniques to calm the pelvic floor and down-regulate your nervous system’s pain response
- Desensitization: For nerve-related pain, gradual exposure to touch or pressure to retrain your nervous system so normal sensations stop registering as pain
- Education: At least 50% of treatment is helping you understand what’s happening in your body so you can manage symptoms at home and don’t need Dr. Danaya forever
The Cost of Not Getting Treatment
- Financial: Specialist visits, medications, procedures, and surgeries add up—often thousands of dollars chasing a diagnosis that imaging can’t provide
- Physical: When movement and intimacy are painful, women stop doing both—leading to deconditioning, relationship strain, and worsening symptoms
- Emotional: Isolation from your partner, avoiding social situations, depression, loss of identity—pelvic pain affects every aspect of your life
It doesn’t have to be this way. Read why women wait years for pelvic floor help—and why you don’t have to →
What to Expect
What Happens at Your First Pelvic Pain PT Visit?
Your first visit is a dedicated 60-minute evaluation where Dr. Danaya personally reviews your history, assesses your whole body, and evaluates your pelvic floor function. You will never feel rushed, and you will leave with a clear understanding of what’s causing your pain and how to treat it.
Before your visit, you’ll fill out a health history form so Dr. Danaya understands your full picture before meeting you. During the visit, she’ll assess your posture, breathing, core activation, hip and back mobility, and pelvic floor function. She’ll explain exactly what she’s looking for at every step.
Many women with pelvic pain have had negative medical experiences or carry trauma. Dr. Danaya is trained in trauma-informed care. She is aware of sexual trauma, emotional trauma from surgeries or diagnoses, and is careful with language and touch. She explains every technique before and during, you can stop at any time, and the internal exam is always optional. You don’t have to do anything you’re not comfortable with—ever.
You are always in charge.
Treatment comes to you. Dr. Danaya provides in-home visits throughout Utah Valley, so you can receive care in the comfort and privacy of your own space—no waiting rooms, no rushing. Learn more about what to expect →
Your Specialist
Why Dr. Danaya Understands Pelvic Pain
Dr. Danaya Kauwe is a board-certified Pelvic Rehabilitation Practitioner (PRPC)—a certification that requires over 2,000 hours of direct pelvic patient care, 500 in the last two years alone, and a comprehensive proctored exam covering everything from hormones to surgical complications to complex pain cases.
She understands pelvic pain personally. After her first baby, she experienced pain with intercourse—something she didn’t expect and didn’t know how to fix. Discovering pelvic floor PT changed everything for her, and it changed the direction of her career. She knows what it feels like to have your body betray you in the most personal way.
What breaks her heart most is seeing women in their 40s, 50s, and 60s who lived with pelvic pain for decades because nobody told them help existed. Women who were told “this is just how it is” or “it’s in your head.”
It’s common. But that doesn’t mean you have to live with it.
Dr. Danaya also knows when to refer out. For severe pudendal neuralgia that isn’t responding to PT, she’ll coordinate with specialists for steroid injections or nerve blocks. For stage 4 prolapse, she’ll refer to a trusted pelvic surgeon. She has a referral network because she believes in the team approach—your care isn’t limited to what one provider can offer. Learn more about Dr. Danaya →
Patient Stories
What Does Getting Better Actually Look Like?
One of Dr. Danaya’s patients came to her with interstitial cystitis—bladder pain so severe it controlled her entire life. She loved rock climbing, but the pain made it impossible. After three months of pelvic floor PT, she was 80–85% better. She was sleeping through the night again. She was making plans again. She was reaching for her goal of climbing without bladder pain.
That’s what treatment looks like when someone finally addresses the muscles, not just the diagnosis.
“When I started seeing her I was having horrible kidney/abdominal pain. A kidney doctor wanted to perform surgery, and I didn’t feel good about it. After several months of appointments I can say I’m nearly free from all the pain. She listened to my concerns and I’m so grateful I listened to my gut and tried her first. I couldn’t recommend her highly enough!”
— Jordyn K. — Abdominal & Pelvic Pain
*Verified Google review for Radiant Pelvic Health & Wellness. Patient stories are shared with permission and may be anonymized.
Your Questions Answered
Common Questions About Pelvic Pain
Will internal exams or treatment make my pain worse?
Not if done correctly. Dr. Danaya uses gentle, gradual techniques and always works within your comfort level. She explains everything before and during every technique—you are never surprised by what’s happening. Many patients are surprised that internal treatment actually feels relieving, not painful, when done by a specialist who understands pelvic floor tension.
I’ve been told “nothing is wrong” by multiple doctors. Can PT still help?
Yes—and this is one of the most common things Dr. Danaya hears from new patients. Most imaging and exams don’t show pelvic floor muscle dysfunction because they’re looking at structures, not muscles. Ultrasounds, MRIs, and even laparoscopies can all come back normal while your pelvic floor muscles are in spasm, full of trigger points, or unable to relax. A hands-on pelvic floor assessment reveals what scans can’t.
How long until I see results?
Most patients notice some improvement within 4–6 sessions. Significant relief typically comes around 10–12 sessions. Full resolution can take longer for chronic, long-standing pain—especially if you’ve had symptoms for years. Progress isn’t always linear, but consistency with treatment and home exercises pays off.
Will this help me have pain-free sex again?
For many women, yes. Painful intercourse caused by tight pelvic floor muscles, scar tissue, or nerve sensitivity responds very well to PT. Dr. Danaya works gradually—starting with external techniques and progressing at your pace. Many patients who thought pain-free intimacy was impossible have been able to return to it through treatment.
Can Kegels make pelvic pain worse?
Yes. If your pelvic floor muscles are already too tight—which is the case for most women with pelvic pain—doing Kegels is like making a fist and trying to squeeze harder. What tight muscles need is to learn how to relax and lengthen before they can function properly. That’s why assessment matters before exercises.
Do I need to stop having sex during treatment?
No. Dr. Danaya works with you on modifications and strategies so you can maintain intimacy during treatment if you choose to. For some women, certain positions or timing adjustments make a significant difference. The goal is to help you get back to comfortable, enjoyable intimacy—not to put your life on hold.
What if my pain is from endometriosis—can PT still help?
Absolutely. While pelvic floor PT doesn’t treat endometriosis itself, it treats the secondary pelvic floor tension that endometriosis creates—and that tension is often responsible for a significant portion of the pain. Research shows a 98% correlation between oblique abdominal trigger points and visceral abnormality in endo patients. Many women experience dramatic pain reduction through PT, even when the underlying disease is still present.
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Ready to Find the Cause of Your Pain?
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Dr. Danaya personally listens to your story, evaluates what's actually causing your pain, and explains exactly how to treat it — no pressure, no commitment.
Or call/text: (385) 204-4135
In-home pelvic floor physical therapy throughout Utah Valley