Choose To Thrive: Women's Health: Recent Episodes
Michelle Leonie Murphy
Anal cancer is something you may have never thought about and may even make you feel a little uncomfortable. Despite being a relatively rare cancer, up to 25% of those diagnosed lose their lives to this disease which is easily missed or misdiagnosed. Most people are not aware that ~90% of anal cancers are related to Human Papillomavirus (HPV) which is the most common STI and which almost all sexually active adults will have at some point in their lives.
For this episode I am joined by the delightful Mary Jo Murphy, advocate for and survivor of anal cancer. Find about more about her and the work she is involved in via IANS (https://www.iansoc.org).
This episode I am joined by Taryn Anderson, a colleague of mine in the Women's Health physio world and mother to four young children including triplets. She’s an absolute dynamo of a woman, incredibly smart, passionate with incredible strength and resilience.
In our discussion we cover topics including:
- Her experiences of pregnancy and delivering her triplets
- The challenges of those first years as a new mum
- Her journey with pelvic organ prolapse and associated hormonal changes
- How using a vaginal pessary has changed her outlook on her symptoms, prognosis and ability to exercise at a high level.
If you’ve ever had a baby then this episode is definitely for you!
Taryn is currently working at Physio Inq in Manning, Perth WA and her Instagram handle is fit.triplet.mum
Enjoy!!
Heard of the pelvic floor but only have a hazy idea of what it is and what it does? This super simple outline of the key facts will increase your understanding of this amazing and super important part of your anatomy. Yay!
What is it? What does it do? What can impact it's function over a lifetime? What can we do about it? I'll cover all this and more.
Oh! And for this episode I'm goin' solo.
This episode I am joined by Emma, single mother of four sons aged 21, 6,4 and 1, three of whom have been formally diagnosed with autism.
Emma kindly made time for me in her very busy schedule to come into her home for a relaxed conversation about how she manages her family in all it's complexity. The ambient background noise includes children, a baby, support workers and dogs - I love it!
Emma has such a pragmatic approach to life and parenting and I really admire her strength and resilience. It's clear that her priorities are very much her children and the safety and happiness of her family as a whole. And somehow she holds it all together and makes it work.
Enjoy!
This episode I am joined by children's author Jevita Nilson who published her first children's picture book called "Happy Hearts" after the death of her beloved mother, who was her greatest friend and source of support. The book features her mother and her son and provides a way for children to gain greater understanding of grief, loss and death, simultaneously providing comfort and age appropriate answers to tricky questions.
Jevita is yet another example of an 'ordinary' person creating something extraordinary within their lives. I found Jevita's story to be incredibly inspiring, primarily because of it's simplicity. She felt inspired by an idea and she made it happen, and in doing so created a priceless tribute to her mother's life and impact.
Find out more about Jevita and her books at her website: www.jevitanilson.com
Love this episode with my gorgeous little sister Tanya who lives in Cairns, Queensland and who had to do some serious career pivoting in light of the near decimation of the tourism industry impacting her scuba diving/musician vocations.
Like myself, Tanya has always had an adventurous spirit and an open mind to opportunity. Our conversation covers concepts such as adventure, the power of rites of passage in changing perception, and having an open mind when opportunities knock. We ponder how our parents and our upbringing in a small, landlocked wheat and sheep farming town shaped the lives we have chosen today.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I enjoyed having it. For me it was nourishment for the soul.
It was a privilege to spend time recently with Irena Nurkic, specialist physiotherapist in Women's, Men's and Pelvic Health (recently awarded by the Australian College of Physiotherapists) with over 20 years experience in the field at Royal Perth Hospital. Irena is also a lecturer and clinical tutor at Curtin University for the postgraduate Continence and Pelvic Health Masters course.
Irena is a highly respected figure in the physiotherapy world and renowned for her knowledge, experience and passion for her field. In our discussion we cover how we define our profession, what conditions we treat and who we can help as well as the best way to access these specific services in the private and public health systems.
It's likely that pelvic health will be relevant to you or someone you love at some point in your lifetime so I highly recommend this episode as a comprehensive overview of how physiotherapy fits into the picture.
At the time of recording, Irena had recently lost her brother (who was not living in Australia) to coronavirus despite not having any pre-existing medical conditions. As she so poignantly urges, please take care of yourselves, each other and heed the medical advise we are given as it is all we have to prevent further devastation caused by this terrible pandemic.
This episode I am joined by powerhouse businesswoman and mother of two under five Taryn Watson, Director of the fabulous FitRight Physio - a business focussed on providing pelvic floor friendly exercise classes for women as well as a plethora of information and resources on all things relating to women's health.
We explore Taryn's personal journey to how she got to where she is today and the ongoing and evolving challenges of trying to find personal balance whilst running a business. We talk about the importance of increasing awareness of pelvic floor health, the importance of being pro-active and how women's health physiotherapists are such a great resource for this.
Taryn has so much knowledge and experience on all things women's health - I hope you enjoy our chat. The documentary Taryn refers to is The Bleeding Edge and it's currently available on Netflix.
This 'episode' is a body scan meditation which, as the title suggests, and which all my body scan audio recordings will do, includes the pelvic floor. This audio is appropriate for any women who wishes to use it as part of a mindfulness practice. Keep in mind that in this form it is a general resource only and you should always seek professional advice for any specific issues, problems or symptoms you are experiencing as an individual.
This episode covers a topic I am passionate about which is the importance of having a mindfulness practice in your life and how it can help us live a more empowered life. I have found a simple daily 10 minute meditation practice has literally changed my life. It is now something I enjoy, crave even, and I feel the difference in my day and life in general if I miss a day through extenuating circumstances. If you stop and think about that......it's pretty phenomenal! That's only TEN MINUTES of my day. Even I, a busy working mum of two can manage that and to say it's changed my life, lets just say I'm not exaggerating and have no hidden agenda there.
The ability to become aware of our own thoughts and how our thoughts and emotions are manifesting physically, and then how these physical manifestations (ie. tension and tightness) then further wind up our emotional state is SO powerful! Because becoming aware is the first step in having the ability to make a decision about how we respond, the ability to make changes to habitual responses and lifelong conditioning that are not serving us. We can learn to use our breath and our body to self calm and self regulate to prevent the spiralling into anxiety and stress that occurs when we fail to be aware of the signs our body is sending us. Anyway, it's pretty important people!
This episode also serves as an introduction to a series of audio recordings I plan on publishing to the podcast such as body scan meditations that include (rather than avoid completely as most do) the very important and relevant pelvic region.
Have a wonderful day x
This 'episode' is a body scan meditation which, as the title suggests, and which all my body scan audio recordings will do, includes the pelvic floor. This audio is appropriate for any women who wishes to use it as part of a mindfulness practice. Keep in mind that in this form it is a general resource only and you should always seek professional advice for any specific issues, problems or symptoms you are experiencing as an individual.
This episode I am joined by the divine Zoe who has generously shared her experiences of anxiety which for her have a very physical, embodied flavour in that they result in her feeling ill, an experience she recalls from a young age. We all know having kids is a rather big change in ones life and for many women can trigger anxiety (qui moi) and depression, so I was curious to hear Zoe's insights into how having her children impacted her experience of anxiety.
Our flowing conversation also dives into the mindblowing experience of childbirth as well as some of the more troubling aspects of motherhood in an Instagram society.
P.S - I did my research! Zoe used to play bass and sing in a band called the Emperors who were Triple J Unearthed winners and opened at the Big Day Out in 2010!!! Ummmmmm......cool.
This episode is all about food, a topic I find endlessly fascinating so bear with me and my endless questions :) I am joined by Dr Marita Wallace (who was heavily pregnant at the time of interview) who is a skeletal muscle biology/physiology researcher and the founder and director of CellMet Performance Health. Her research has focused on understanding the role of nutrition and exercise in improving health and performance. Marita has personally experienced the many positive health effects of adapting to a low carbohydrate/ ketogenic diet and this has motivated her to investigate how this diet may improve health and performance as well as its potential therapeutic use for a range of chronic conditions.
We cover topics such as the low fat fad I was raised on (how did we go so wrong there?), food intolerances, how market forces influence how we eat and what to focus on when it comes to diet and exercise.
On a personal note, I feel a sense of profound grief when I contemplate the role that food inadvertently plays in fuelling self abuse with respect to self-esteem and body image, particularly for women and girls but increasingly for men and boys too. Let's do better people by not buying into the myth of perfection and teaching our children through positive modelling i.e. look at yourself with love and appreciation in the mirror (especially whilst naked!!! woo!)
I'm so excited about this episode with the beautiful Emily who is passionate about sharing her story to help raise awareness and support women going through similar experiences. So inspiring! Embarking on a new intimate relationship, Emily came to the realisation that something was 'wrong' when sex was not how she had imagined it should be. Eventually building the courage to seek professional medical advice she was (eventually) diagnosed with vaginismus and dyspareunia. This was after the first GP advised her there was no cure and she would probably not be able to have children....... high five doc.
Vaginismus is defined as muscle tension/spasm in the pelvic floor muscles preventing penetration during sexual intercourse or pap smears or even using a tampon. Dyspareunia is painful sex and may be the result of vaginismus.
I wonder whether perhaps all women have experienced less than blissful sex at least occasionally in their lives. Certainly I've met countless women who tolerate it or do it to keep their partners happy rather than as something wonderful for themselves in partnership. At worst it can make women feel broken and damaged and 'less than' which is heartbreaking because the truth couldn't be farther from this.
Regardless of your history and experience with sex, I truly believe everyone will learn something from Emily's story, particularly if you look between the lines at what this says about issues relating to our expectations and misinformation relating to sex, the impact of pornography, consent - both explicit and implied and personal boundaries.
If you haven't guessed, I'm pretty passionate about this topic! I hope you enjoy the podcast. Apologies in advance for my very loud stomach rumbling about midway through the podcast. As I said to Em, our discussion was really hitting me at a gut level!
Thanks for listening. Questions, feedback or suggestions always welcome at www.michelleleonie.com.au
This episode I am joined by Associate Professor Kenneth Nathan, an OBGYN with 27 years experience in the field of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. Dr Nathan is a passionate about his field and is a strong advocate for vaginal delivery and VBAC (Vaginal Delivery after Caesarean) and has equally strong opinions regarding the current state of obstetrics particularly in the private practice setting. A fascinating, potentially controversial conversation not to be missed by anyone who has had, or is planning on having a baby.
You can get in touch with Dr Nathan at his clinic COGSS here.
This episode I am joined by Ari who reached her mid 30's and realised she had to make some tough decisions if she wanted to achieve her goal of becoming a mother. Well....she made it! And her story is both inspiring and insightful.
Here are some links you may find useful if you are thinking of embarking on a solo motherhood journey:
- Solo Mums by Choice
- Co-parent Match.com
- Sperm Donation Australia Facebook Group
For this episode of the podcast I am joined by Jo, mother to Matilda who had a very challenging journey with breastfeeding experiencing 5 episodes of mastitis in the first 5 months of motherhood. Her story is an inspiring perspective on listening to your gut and persevering (even when things aren't going your way) if there's something you really want to achieve.
For more info about breastfeeding head to the Australian Breastfeeding Association website.
This episode I am joined by Naomi, whose son was diagnosed with cancer at the age of five. Her story is not easy to tell and it's heartbreaking to listen to. However it's a story about survival, resilience and finding meaning in our struggles. It's about finding reasons to celebrate life in all it's complex, contradictory glory.
Join a Yoga Class with Naomi at Tamara Yoga.
Find out more about Dr Edith Eger and her book "The Gift" here.
As a Women's Health Physiotherapist I have the privilege of working with women experiencing common issues such as pelvic floor dysfunction, continence issues, prolapse, painful sex, endometriosis, pregnancy related pelvic girdle pain and postpartum abdominal separation. In connecting with these women I find other recurring themes arise relating to motherhood, relationship, juggling career and kids and body image. This podcast came about as a result of my desire to share the stories of these beautiful women, because I believe the power of positive human connection and shared experience can change lives. Remember, no matter what's going on in your life, you are not alone. I hope you enjoy these conversations.
www.michelleleonie.com.au