The Vitalist Prolapse, Pee Leaks & Core Weakness: The Truth About Your Pelvic Floor with Dr. Jocelyn Connolly
This week on The Vitalist, I sat down with Dr. Jocelyn Connolly, Co-founder of The Vagina Doc to talk about the part of our body we've been taught to whisper about, ignore, and tighten.
The pelvis is a place where we hold our stories, our stress, our pleasure, our fear… and our power.
Dr. Jocelyn is bold, brilliant, and refreshingly honest about pelvic health and she's on a mission to help women understand that their pelvic floor is not meant to be "tight." It's meant to be responsive, alive, and in relationship with your breath.
In this conversation, she shares the moment everything changed for her, an emotional first pelvic exam with her mentor that helped her release years of shame and finally reconnect with her body. It's the kind of story that makes you realize why so many women struggle with this area of their body.
Here's what we talked about:
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Why stress is the #1 reason pelvic floors go out of balance
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The difference between a "deep core" and the six-pack culture we grew up with
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How birth, posture, breath, and even personality types shape pelvic tone
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Why so many women who look "strong" on the outside feel weak on the inside
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How sensation training can actually enhance orgasms
If you've ever dealt with leaking, pain with sex, disconnect, shame, birth trauma, or just the quiet belief that "something is off," this episode goes right to the truth.
BIO:
Our guest is Dr. Jocelyn Connolly, PT, DPT, is a Doctor of Physical Therapy, Pelvic Health Specialist, and Co-Founder of The Vagina Docs, a bold, feminist-forward practice redefining how we talk about and treat pelvic health. Her mission is to help people reconnect with their bodies through education, movement, and honest conversation. Known for her "Own It" approach, she blends science, storytelling, and humor to make pelvic health accessible, empowering, and deeply human.
HIGHLIGHTS:
Dr. Jocelyn shares her experience with being active, peeing her pants and pain with sex that led her to pursue a pelvic floor physical therapy. (2:08)
How she connected the dots from her past symptoms to her pelvic floor while enrolled at Washington University in St. Louis. (4:08)
Her fear and shame around having her pelvic floor examined until she met her mentor Katie, a pelvic floor PT. (5:13)
Her fear of a pelvic exam and how meeting her mentor, Katie, changed everything. Their first exam together became the emotional turning point that put her on this path. (6:08)
The role of the pelvic floor: from holding organs, movement, sex, lymphatic and brain (7:58)
How the pelvic floor and core are connected to our breath. (9:30)
The deep core explained: The diaphragm as the roof, the core muscles as the walls, and the pelvic floor as the foundation. (10:08)
Stress is the most common cause of an imbalance of the pelvic floor because we breathe with the wrong muscles. (11:38)
The common reasons people seek pelvic floor therapy… and the subtle dysfunctions most women ignore. (13:38)
Pelvic floor therapists can catch things before a gynecologist, and provide alternatives to pelvic floor health that are more natural. (15:08)
The culture of "tightness," the Kegel-only misconception, and why so many women are actually over-tightened, not weak. (16:08)
Her cue for "taking up the slack," evaluating movement patterns, and identifying the pattern of being strong on the outside but weak in the deep core. (18:08)
What "strong on the outside and weak on the inside" looks and feels like and how to check your deep core activation. (20:38)
How vaginal vs. c-section births impact the pelvic system, and how labor positions change pelvic dynamics. (24:17)
Male vs. female pelvic floors; the two layers of the pelvic floor and what each one does for sexual function and support. (27:33)
How the pelvic floor changes over time especially with hormonal changes. (31:23)
How to prime your body for a sneeze or cough to optimize pelvic floor engagement. Called the "knack" which prevents leakage. (33:28)
How males can engage the pelvic floor with penis and scrotum cues. (35:18)
How increasing sensation of the pelvic floor, enhances orgasms. (36:17)
Dr. Jocelyn's DIY pelvic floor exam you can do on yourself. (38:38)
What "owning it" means in terms of our life in relationships and boundaries. (39:48)
A cue for type A personalities, and Type B personalities for their pelvic floor. (41:20)
LINKS:
https://www.vaginadocs.com/pelvicfloor-diy-exam
https://www.instagram.com/vaginadocs/
https://www.youtube.com/@vaginadocs
https://www.tiktok.com/@thevaginadocs
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