Celebrate Muliebrity with Michelle Lyons Michelle Lyons

Spice Warning! This episode may have you questioning many concepts you once held dear as a pelvic physio!

If you’ve ever taken a course with Taryn, you’ll know she’s an expert when it comes to breaking down the research and exploring what it means!
In this episode, we discuss:
• why the PERFECT score is imperfect for assessing pelvic floor muscle strength
• current understanding of our role in management of stress urinary incontinence
• the importance of the p value
• prolapse - what role does physio play
• hyper mobility and pelvic health
• considerations for running & weightlifting
And much more!
This is a big episode so bring your pens and paper, and stay well hydrated!
You can follow Taryn on Instagram as @whta and you can see her at @pelvicon in September and for info on her courses & research updates, head to whta.com.au
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Want to learn more about women’s health? You can find me on Instagram as @michellelyons_muliebrity and if you’d like to take a deeper dive as a women’s health pro, I have a suite of online women’s health courses covering menstrual to menopausal health, female pelvic pain, bowel health, back pain @ oncology rehab - head to CelebrateMuliebrity.com for all the details!
Until next time,
Onwards and upwards! Mx #celebratemuliebrity

Vulvodynia - is it a mucosal issue, a pelvic floor issue, a psychological issue...or all of the above? That was the question I asked on my Instagram feed recently, paraphrasing the research into this topic by Chisari et al.
So in this week's episode, I'm delighted to welcome Dr Jessica Reale back to the podcast, this time, to discuss Vulvodynia. It can be an intimidating diagnosis for both patient and provider but we explore what it takes to be an effective clinician working with people on this journey.
Some of the topics we talked about - hypermobility, inflammation, dermatological considerations, ruling drivers like hips, spines and nerves in or out as contributors and of course, bowel health gets a mention here too!
Jessica of course, along with Nicole Cozean, is one of the co-founders of Pelvicon and they are running a Vulvodynia Symposium with luminaries such as Stephanie Pendergast, Dr Rachel Rubin, Dr Jill Krapf, Dr Alex Milspaw and more. It's happening July 13 2024 and registration is opening on Tuesday the 9th of July - head over to pelvicon.com for registration info
But also:
Do you want to find out more about working with women living with pelvic pain diagnoses such as Vulvodynia, Endometriosis, IC/ Bladder Pain Syndrome and/or Pelvic Neuralgias? (And get the Functional Female Pelvic Anatomy course FOR FREE?!) My online Female Pelvic Pain Rehab course is available online with evergreen access and membership of a private student support group - you can find all the info on my website CelebrateMuliebrity.com
To stay up to date on all the latest in women's health, make sure you're following me on Instagram @michellelyons_muliebrity
Until next time, Onwards & Upwards! Mx
(and if you enjoy this content, I'd be grateful if you could subscribe, rate & review this podcast wherever you're listening to it!

This is part 2 of my Menstrual Health mini-series (pt1 covered the basics of the menstrual cycle and pt 3 will cover The Missing Menstrual Cycle - stay tuned!) In this episode, we’ll cover dysmenorrhea (from the Greek, meaning ‘painful monthly bleeding’ Did you know that menstrual pain affects 90% of those who menstruate, with 9% of those dealing with severe pain? That endometriosis affects at least 10% of women worldwide? That although meds and surgery are often offered as first line approaches, there’s good evidence to support other self management strategies including a whole person pelvic rehab biopsychosocial approach that includes lifestyle, movement, manual therapy to calm the nervous system and the pelvic floor, tens and pelvic pain education including strategies for bladder, bowel & sexual health. If we remember that lots of things go into the biopsychosocial bucket, including how we move, how we manage stress, how we eat, how we sleep …as well as tissue disorders, then we can provide, in the words of Mardon et al ‘validation, reassurance, education and empowerment’. Have a listen & let me know what you think - if you have any questions you can find me on Instagram as @michellelyons_muliebrity and if you’re a women’s health pro, you can find out more about my online courses at CelebrateMuliebrity.com. Until next time, Onwards & Upwards! Mx

What is good communication and why does it matter when we are working with people dealing with chronic pain?
There are a couple of papers that have caught my attention on this - Kays (2021) paper looking at the lack of empathy and its effects when we work with people who have chronic pelvic pain, but especially Kays (2022) paper 'Effects of Provider Interactions on diagnosis and care of people with chronic pelvic pain’.
These papers discuss the consequences of negative patient/ provider interactions, how it can increase the emotional toll and decrease trust and communication...essentially impeding proper treatment
And so, who better to discuss this with than Nicola Robertson, of Diamond Physiotherapy in Canada, who gave a brilliant presentation on this topic at CSM in Boston earlier this year.
In this episode we explore what communication means (beyond talking), why it matters and what we can/ need to do better.
You can find Nicola as @diamondphysiotherapy on instagram and you can find me there too, as @michellelyons_muliebrity
Want to learn more about a biopsychosocial / evidence based approach to women's health? All the details of my online courses can be found at celebratemuliebrity.com
Until next time! Onwards & Upwards, Mx

Menstrual Cycles - what are they, what do they mean, what happens when they're painful...or when they go missing?
In this short menstrual miniseries, I'm hoping to do some menstrual myth busting and really get to grips with the menstrual cycle so we are starting with an overview of the menstrual cycle & what's happening hormonally
(spoiler: menstruation is only one small part of the menstrual cycle!)
If we want to understand menopause...or return to exercise postnatally...or hormonally driven syndromes like endometriosis, or PCOS or even Irritable Bowel syndrome...then we have to right back to basics!
And of course if you'd like a deeper dive...AND you want to save money & get evergreen access AND the course upgrades coming next month...then head over to CelebrateMuliebrity.com and don't forget to use the code JUNE30 at checkout to save €75! (but only until the end of June!) You can also stay up to date on all my women's health nerdiness on Instagram (@michellelyons_muliebrity)
Stay tuned for the next instalment in this mini series on the podcast, where we'll explore what happens when periods go missing! (and what we can do to lure them back!)

Until next time, Onwards & Upwards, Mx

It is Diabetes Awareness Week...and I'm updating the PCOS modules in my online coursework so I thought we should have a chat about the link between PCOS and Diabetes risk for women.
Did you know that Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome is the most common endocrine disorder affecting females?
That it has implications for the menstrual, maternal and menopausal years?
That inflammation and insulin resistance are the cornerstone of PCOS, not just testosterone dominance?
That lifestyle approaches are the primary management strategy - and there is specific evidence and guidance we need to know about?
That sometimes...there can be concurrent PCOS and Endometriosis?
Want to learn more? Have a listen!
Want to learn even more (and save?!) use the code JUNE30 at checkout on any of my online courses this month and save €75....new extra content & research updates being prepped for upload next month but that will also come with a price increase so you can lock in evergreen access at the current price AND SAVE €75 by using the code JUNE30.
All the course info is here
Questions? Let me know! You can connect with me on Instagram @michellelyons_muliebrity