Ilana Glazer Says She Suffered from Intense Chronic Pelvic Floor Pain for 20 Years
Ilana Glazer described the discomfort as “one of the deepest sources of pain in my life”
Ilana Glazer is opening about her health.
The Broad City alum, 35, revealed in an Instagram post Wednesday that she suffered from chronic pelvic floor pain for over two decades. Mayo Clinic describes chronic pelvic floor pain for women as pain in the area between the hips and below the belly button that lasts for longer than six months.
Glazer, who welcomed her first child with husband David Rooklin last summer, posted a throwback mirror selfie showing her baby bump and began her story.
“OKAY WOW so this is an intimate a– (but actually, pelvic floor) journey for me to share. It’s been one of the deepest sources of pain in my life — I suffered from intense chronic pelvic floor pain for 20 years. Damn writing that out is wild — 20 yrs!” she said.
“I found relief and release in a multi-faceted approach to healing, and one very important mode was physical therapy. When I was pregz, I continued my pelvic floor physical therapy education to prepare, and I went to @theoriginway. When I tell you I was taken!!!” she continued.
View this post on Instagram
Praising the specialized pelvic floor physical therapy center’s “mission and vibe,” plus priority to take insurance, the star said going to Origin was a game changer for her pregnancy and birth plan.
Sharing more about her health journey in an essay for Vogue, Glazer revealed that her pelvic floor pain began in early childhood.
“I started experiencing pelvic pain at a very young age, which is four,” she wrote. “That’s when I remember first experiencing it, and it was chronic pain from ages four to 24.”
Misdiagnosed by doctors for years, Glazer said the shame of one especially frustrating experience stuck with her.
“I remember being 15 years old and my mom and I sitting there and this doctor telling me that my problem was too problematic for him, and just feeling laughed at and so angry,” the comedian wrote.
Eventually, she connected with her current clinician, Dr. Emma Kaeser, who works with Origin, and everything finally clicked.
“There was something about the empowering engagement with my physical journey with pregnancy that allowed the disempowering part of it to feel lighter,” she said of getting the right treatment.
“Being ashamed of our bodies has been thrust upon us, and having a support network around being a female reminds you that that shame is a construct,” Glazer added.
Now, she looks forward to teaming up with Origin in a formal role, which the center celebrated on their own Instagram page Wednesday.
“Welcome to the team, @ilana. We’re elated to announce that this creative powerhouse (and Origin patient) has officially joined us as an advisor, ????” they wrote.
[via]
