Coop definitely got more and more sensitive to HeartGuard so we switched to something else Intercept (maybe?) and gave it to him with probiotics and that seemed better. Of course we changed both at the same time so can’t say which one actually helped. Does lil pup have any food sensitivities? Our vet said that whatever meat is in there to make them want to eat it can sometimes be the culprit and one of them has beef in it and the other has chicken (can’t remember which was which).
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No food sensitivities, I think she’s on Intercept now. Hmm good reminder there’s multiple meds though.
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Question for people who have switched to shampoo bars–how long did it take you to adjust (or give up)?
Context: A friend gave my a sampler pack of Ethique shampoo/conditioner bars for my birthday last month. I only started using them a week or so ago, but thus far I am not impressed with the state of my hair. It’s straight, just shy of waist-length, and on the oily side normally, and while I make no claims to personal style (is it mostly combed when I leave the house? Great), I don’t like the vaguely greasy/wet feeling it seems to be picking up. It sort of reminds me of the time in college when my roommates and I tried the no-poo thing for a month which went great for two of them, meh for one, and for me was the Experiment That Shall Never Be Repeated.
One good thing about working from home is that I can take more time to adjust if that’s the issue, and I could also wait until my hair hits waist length/annoys me/gets cropped back to my shoulders and try again if that makes the process easier, but curious about the experiences of people who have made the switch…google is mostly just telling me all about how great it is for the environment which is great, but I also need to be fit to be seen in public on occasion.
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My hair took about the same amount of time to adjust as to a normal shampoo, so like a week and a half.
I don’t use conditioner bars though. I have pretty greasy hair and have to be very careful to only condition the ends of my hair, not the roots or it feels greasy. Also what kind of shampoo? If it’s “hydrating” it might not be the right kind, bar or not.
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Usually two or three washes.
For me, the lush bars are amazing and sometimes I can get by with a different detergent based bar. Soap based bars I sometimes survive one wash. Conditioner bars have never worked the same as liquid for me. There is a super scented lush one that I can handle the results, but the scent is too strong for daily use.
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Bodily functions, maybe pelvic floor stuff?
For years if I had a really big cough or sneeze I would sometimes pee a little. But I’ve noticed lately that my threshold for pee-inducing coughs and sneezes has gotten substantially lower. I am a 45 year old cis women who has never had kids.
Is this because of my pelvic floor? I’m not sure what my pelvic floor actually is, now that I think about it. Do you have any favorite exercises to help with this?
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Agree with the lush shampoo bar rec, they suds up /clean way better than ethique! Lush conditioner bars suck though IMO.
My perfect combo is a lush shampoo bar and ethique conditioner bar. But my hair is a little more on the dry side, so your results may vary
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Idk but I’ve had this issue for years too and 
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Paging @Elle the body wizard haha. And @LadyDuck
Summary
Yes sounds like pelvic floor to me, and you do NOT need to have had a baby to have pelvic floor dysfunction going on. I highly recommend a women’s pelvic floor/women’s health PT. I wouldn’t jump straight to kegels- it’s way more complicated than strengthening one set of muscles. You can be holding your body in a way that shortens one set and makes them stiff, or you could have overly strong muscles in one area compensating, all sorts of stuff can be going on. Having someone experienced examine you and determine what’s up in your particular situation can help a lot. In the meantime or in addition to, Katy Bowman is a biomechanist who has a book about diastasis recti- and while that’s not what’s going on, all the core stability principals are the same and it gives you a run down of all the physiology interplay in there, so that could be a good place to start (I got it from my library).
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Summary
Seconding @Bracken_Joy a pelvic floor PT would be a great place to start. I have other pelvic floor issues, and it has been very eye opening and educational for me to work with a PT because everyone’s anatomy/issues are so different! For instance, I was always told “do kegels” but it turns out I have a hypertonic pelvic floor aka I’m basically in a perma kegel at all times! So my PT helps with muscle lengthening/relaxing specifically.
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@mountainmustache29 and @Bracken_Joy, can you elaborate a bit on what a pelvic floor PT would be like? Like, is it a more like a gynecologist exam where I can expect to be naked with my feet up in stirrups? Or more like PT for a sprained ankle where you’re fully clothed in a room with a bunch of other people doing exercises?
I do have my annual physical with my doctor in about a month so I can ask her about this and if she has a referral/suggestions, too.
(And thank you!)
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- I wouldn’t wait a month, the longer you wait the more likely you are to have months of gyno style physio and less ankle style.
- the pelvic floor physios I worked in did intake in a separate room, they spent a very long time on the interview. You likely need to be in underwear for the physical assessment, because a lot of the external palpation is in the groin. Then only if it’s needed there might be an internal exam. For internal treatment they focused much more on teaching skills and giving homework. Externally there might be massage etc.
- urinary incontinence might be treated early on with a lot of yoga looking clothes on exercises. Later on it might involve biofeedback devices up the whazoo. Both are good, but I’d choose the less invasive where I could
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Just another vote for, talk to a pro before starting any kind of exercises. Depending on what’s going on you can make the underlying issue worse.
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Honestly, I switched a couple of months ago and I can’t really tell any difference. I only wash my hair twice a week, though, and if anything it’s a bit dry.
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@Ramona I am piling on to the recommendation to consult with a PT that focuses on at least functional fitness with experience/training in pelvic floor before just trying stuff, given how active you are. Kegels for example typically make things worse for people who have long term/chronic pelvic floor issues because you’re training the wrong muscles and causing greater imbalance in the muscle groups that are the problem.
If you want a general idea of what PT exercises might look like, my current favorite PT with an online presence (if you have time to scroll a bit in Instagram) is Jill Zimmerman.
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I haven’t used ethique, but I’m also someone who doesn’t use a conditioner bar. Most brands I’ve looked at recommend only using the conditioner on the very ends of hair and when I’ve accidentally used one on my whole head, my hair feels icky. It did take me a few tries with different brands to find the right one for my hair and scalp, and now my hair is always super soft and shiny. When I actually wash it, that is 
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Took me a second to relealize we weren’t still talking about pelvic floors
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I appreciate all the pelvic floor advice. I’ve had the same issue for years and I’m 30! Always just inconsistently did kegels about it and didn’t know that could make it worse!
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I got a batsignal and looking at responses I’m no longer needed but I’m piling on anyway. If you have more than one pelvic floor/women’s health PT in your area, see if you can get recommendations because even the first visit is going to be a bit invasive. That said, I’ve found them far more comfortable and extremely professional and no “feet in stirrups” and much more “I’m going to prod you in this delicate area while you lie back and put your knees this way or that way”. They should show you how to do a lot of it yourself too. I had to do a lot of the more invasive kind in my early 20s.
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I have a few site questions.
1- Is there a way other than scrolling forever, to get to the current post in a thread? (Actually, I just found that.)
2- Is there a way to eliminate/edit items in my self-description?
3- Is there a better place, than this, to post questions like this and get answers?
It isn’t an emergency that requires immediate concern of a moderator. It isn’t something is broken, someone is being rude, or anything like that.
The scrolling thing just takes a lot of time and makes me reluctant to respond to things. (I think I found it.)
And, while, I appreciate the free-form sort of feel to the site, sometimes I just don’t bother because it’s too bothersome. Editing my profile is one of those.
So, I’d like to be less annoyed. Can someone help me out please?
TIA -
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