Persistent pelvic pain · Assessment-led massage therapy

Pelvic pain that won't settle needs a deeper assessment — not more Kegels.

You understand pelvic pain. You want to understand yours.

When pain persists, the useful question is what may be contributing — and which of those factors can be changed.

Anna Sapershteyn, RMT, assesses muscle tenderness, movement, breathing and healed scar sensitivity to explore where hands-on care may help. Findings are explained. Treatment is tailored. Progress is reviewed.

Call to book your assessment

Initial assessment & treatment · 60 minutes · $150 + HST · No referral needed to book

External assessment and treatmentYour consent at every stepRMT receipts provided

Anna Sapershteyn

Registered Massage Therapist

For the experienced patient

You've put work into getting better. Your next appointment should build on it.

Previous investigations, exercises and treatments provide useful information — even when they haven't brought the relief you hoped for.

Your tests haven't explained the pain

Reassuring results matter. They don't always explain pain during sitting, movement or intimacy. A hands-on assessment can explore muscular tenderness and movement-related symptoms alongside your medical findings.

Strengthening hasn't helped

If contractions aggravate your symptoms, that response deserves attention. Your next step may involve adjusting effort, practising relaxation or reviewing the exercise with your pelvic health physiotherapist.

Relief hasn't lasted

Temporary relief is useful information. We look at what changed, how long it lasted and what happened afterwards — then use that response to guide the next treatment.

It's been months — or years

Time alone doesn't tell us what can improve. The starting point is how you feel and function now, and what you want to be able to do more comfortably.

DEEP

The pattern map

Four areas worth investigating.

More than one may matter.

Persistent pelvic pain can involve overlapping muscular, movement and sensitivity factors. These four areas help organize the assessment; they are not diagnostic categories or a complete explanation of pelvic pain.

Muscle guarding

Pain can be accompanied by protective muscle tension. You may notice bracing through the abdomen, hips or buttocks, or difficulty relaxing after effort.

What we explore: Tenderness, breathing and your response to gentle touch and movement. Treatment may include comfortable soft-tissue work and relaxation strategies.

Scar sensitivity and mobility

A healed surgical scar may feel tender, tight or uncomfortable during certain movements. That sensation deserves assessment without assuming the scar explains every symptom.

What we explore: The healed scar and surrounding tissue, where appropriate and with your consent. Gentle treatment is adjusted to sensitivity and tolerance.

Movement and load tolerance

Symptoms may emerge during lifting, carrying, exercise or prolonged sitting. The useful question is which demands are difficult — and whether changing how you approach them helps.

What we explore: Relevant movements, breathing and muscular effort. Findings can inform practical adjustments and coordination with your rehabilitation provider.

Heightened sensitivity

Persistent pain can make touch and movement harder to tolerate. Sleep, stress and recent activity may also influence symptoms. These changes do not make the pain less real.

What we explore: Your tolerable starting point. Pressure, positioning and treatment duration are adjusted to your response, including how you feel afterwards.

These findings help guide massage therapy. They cannot establish every cause of pelvic pain or replace medical investigation or a pelvic health assessment.

The first visit

A first visit that gives you something to work with.

We make time to understand your history, assess relevant contributors and discuss a practical next step. Timing adjusts to your needs.

0–15

Start with what you already know

Your symptoms, relevant birth or surgical history, previous care and priorities. What helps? What aggravates things? What would meaningful improvement let you do?

15–35

Assess what matters

An external assessment of relevant movement and soft tissues may include the hips, lower back, abdomen and healed scars. Anna explains the purpose of each step and asks for consent before proceeding.

35–50

Begin treatment, where appropriate

Hands-on treatment follows the assessment findings and your tolerance. Pressure and positioning are adjusted with you; you can change or stop any part of the session.

50–60

Make the next step clear

Discuss what the assessment suggests, its limits and what to monitor afterwards. Agree on a practical marker of progress — such as sitting longer or feeling more comfortable during a particular movement.

Why Anna

An eye for movement. Time to understand your experience.

Anna brings a background in competitive gymnastics and a movement-focused approach to massage therapy. Her work includes prenatal and postpartum care, with attention to how the hips, back and surrounding muscles respond to daily demands.

Her approach combines hands-on care with mobility work, adapted to your comfort and response. There is room to ask questions, explain previous experiences and decide together what feels appropriate.

Clear expectations, from the beginning

External assessment and treatment. This service does not include an internal vaginal or rectal examination or treatment.

Findings explained within scope. Anna can discuss muscular and movement-related findings. Diagnosing the underlying medical cause of pelvic pain requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.

Referral when it adds value. If your symptoms call for medical investigation or a different kind of assessment, that becomes part of the recommendation.

The free guide

Make your next pelvic pain appointment more useful.

The Persistent Pelvic Pain Pattern Guide helps you organize what you're experiencing and the questions you want answered.

✓ Understand the four assessment areas described above

✓ Record symptom patterns without trying to diagnose yourself

✓ Recognize symptoms that need medical attention

✓ Prepare questions about treatment, progress and next steps

Use your observations to support a clinical conversation — not to assign yourself a diagnosis.

Get the Pelvic Pain Guide

Free PDF, delivered by email.

We'll email you the guide. You can choose separately whether to receive occasional clinic updates.

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60 minutes

INITIAL ASSESSMENT & TREATMENT

Your first visit

A clearer next step starts here.

Bring the history, the questions and the treatments you've already tried. Your first appointment explores whether massage therapy has a useful role in your care, begins treatment where appropriate, and gives you a plan you can evaluate.

Motherhood at Aches Away Toronto

2 Carlton St, Suite 707 · Above College Station

Pelvic Pain Massage · Initial assessment & treatment

With Anna Sapershteyn, RMT

$150 + HST

60 minutes · $169.50 including HST · CAD

✓ Time for your history, concerns and goals

✓ Relevant external movement and soft-tissue assessment

✓ Individualized treatment, where appropriate

✓ Findings explained, with agreed markers for review

Call to book your assessment

Ask for Anna's Pelvic Pain Massage initial visit. You can discuss clinical details privately during your intake and appointment.

Follow-up appointments: 60 minutes · $140 + HST · $158.20 including HST · CAD

Before you decide

The questions that help you decide.

I've already had pelvic floor physiotherapy. How is this different? +

Pelvic health physiotherapy can include internal and external assessment, exercise, education and hands-on treatment. Anna's service focuses on external massage therapy for relevant muscles and soft tissues.

There may be overlap. The useful question is whether this work adds something to your current plan. Tell Anna what you've already tried and how you responded so the appointment can build on that information.

Do you do internal work? +

No. This appointment includes external assessment and treatment only.

External care also has limits: it cannot directly assess every pelvic floor structure or function. If a pelvic health physiotherapy assessment would be useful, Anna can recommend that next step.

My scans and tests came back normal. Is there anything left to assess? +

There may be. Depending on the investigations you've had, muscular tenderness, sensitivity to touch and symptoms during movement may still warrant assessment.

Normal results do not automatically mean the pain is muscular. Anna considers your medical history and findings while assessing whether massage therapy is appropriate.

How many sessions will I need? +

That depends on your goals, assessment findings and response to treatment.

Agree on what you'll track and when to review progress. Useful changes might include greater comfort during a daily task or better tolerance of movement. If treatment isn't helping, the plan should change.

What if something needs medical investigation? +

Anna will explain when another assessment should take priority. Massage therapy does not replace investigation of new, unexplained or changing pelvic symptoms.

Sudden or severe pain, fever, unusual bleeding, or new bladder or bowel symptoms should receive prompt medical assessment; severe symptoms may require urgent care.

Can I use my benefits? +

You receive a Registered Massage Therapy receipt that you can submit to your insurer. We do not direct bill.

Coverage, reimbursement limits and referral requirements depend on your plan. You do not need a referral to book, but your insurer may require one for reimbursement.