's letter to the Oprah Show....

[Guest guest]

I would like to preface this by saying that Physical Therapists end up treating many people that have had previous surgery. PT's spend a lot time trying to help people get past the pain that surgery may induce. If you feel that surgery was your best option and you are happy with your choice, that is truly great, and there are times when it may be impossible to avoid. It's good to know that there are practitioners out there trying to help women avoid surgery if possible. Hugs, Chelle is truly an advocate for those of us with pelvic floor conditions! Dear *, I was given your name by * from Microsoft. My name is Prendergast and I am a co-owner of a private practice in San Francisco dedicated to the treatment of complex pelvic pain disorders, including Vulvodynia. It has

been brought to my attention by Christin Veasely, an executive at the National Vulvodynia Association, that Oprah is taping a show about this condition on Thursday. I welcome the opportunity to help support the cause in any way I can and to share my knowledge about successful conservative treatments to encourage the millions of suffering women this show is going to reach. Most patients are unaware that there are many treatments avaiIable, ranging from conservative physical therapy to invasive surgeries that may do more harm than good. Unfortunately, there is much debate in the medical community about how to treat these women and it is important for women to know all of their choices before undergoing major invasive (and often without successful outcome) surgery. I am a strong advocate of starting with the least invasive and most conservative therapy first and providing my patients with all of their choices. The

reason why I feel so strongly about coming to the show is because the New York Times recently (1/31/08) published an article on Vulvodynia highlighting the surgical procedure as the primary treatment. This article upset many medical professionals and patients across the country (including several hundred women I have successfully treated without surgery). I am sure the Oprah Winfrey show would not want to endorse a highly controversial surgical treatment without at least providing audience members with enough information about alternatives to make informed decisions. I am considered an international authority on the topic. I lecture at conferences around the world, have published several articles, and teach courses to medical professionals on how to perform evaluations and treatment. I have been solely committed to treating patients with pelvic pain for the last 8 years. I am willing to do whatever it takes to

get to Chicago by the taping if there is any chance I can participate on the panel. If this is an impossibility, I would be willing to be an audience member. I have tremendous compassion for these women and I would love to help their cause. In addition, I know you are gathering patients to appear on the show and one of my patients is very eager to share her story and her successful outcome if you would like another guest. You can reach me at this email address or on my cell at . Sincerely, A. Prendergast, MPT Partner Pelvic Health and Rehabilitation Center

[Guest guest]

I had surgery done six months ago and I am back in PT. I

mentioned in a previous post that and Liz are giving a lecture for

PT’s in the New England area at the end of March. Along with their

lecture, my doctor who did my vestibulectomy and my pudendal decompression

surgery will be speaking along with my pain management doctor. is the

only PT who has developed a post surgical protocol for pudendal patients. I feel

very lucky that I live in the area where I have the advantage of excellent

medical advice. But it is really becoming a small world, and the word is

getting out. I have seen tremendous changes in the knowledge of vulvar

conditions just in the last year. The PT that I see (Raquel Perlis) has spoken

with regarding my treatment and she has also taken classes from

Rhonda. Even if surgery is your choice because of necessity, PT is still a big

part of after care, and I will be going for a long time.

nne

From:

VulvarDisorders [mailto:VulvarDisorders ] On

Behalf Of Chelle

Sent: Saturday, February 16, 2008 8:18 PM

To: happypelvis

Subject: 's letter to the Oprah Show....

I would like to preface this by saying that Physical

Therapists end up treating many people that have had previous surgery.

PT's spend a lot time trying to help people get past the pain that surgery may

induce. If you feel that surgery was your best option and you are happy

with your choice, that is truly great, and there are times when it may be

impossible to avoid. It's good to know that there are practitioners out

there trying to help women avoid surgery if possible. Hugs, Chelle

is truly an advocate for those of us with pelvic

floor conditions!

Dear *,

I was given your name by * from Microsoft. My name is

Prendergast and I am a co-owner of a private practice in San

Francisco dedicated to the treatment of complex pelvic pain disorders,

including Vulvodynia.

It has been brought to my attention by Christin Veasely, an

executive at the National Vulvodynia Association, that Oprah is taping a show

about this condition on Thursday.

I welcome the opportunity to help support the cause in any

way I can and to share my knowledge about successful conservative treatments to

encourage the millions of suffering women this show is going to reach. Most

patients are unaware that there are many treatments avaiIable, ranging from

conservative physical therapy to invasive surgeries that may do more harm than

good. Unfortunately, there is much debate in the medical community about how to

treat these women and it is important for women to know all of their choices

before undergoing major invasive (and often without successful outcome)

surgery. I am a strong advocate of starting with the least invasive and most

conservative therapy first and providing my patients with all of their choices.

The reason why I feel so strongly about coming to the show

is because the New York Times recently (1/31/08) published an article on

Vulvodynia highlighting the surgical procedure as the primary treatment. This

article upset many medical professionals and patients across the country

(including several hundred women I have successfully treated without surgery).

I am sure the Oprah Winfrey show would not want to endorse a highly

controversial surgical treatment without at least providing audience members

with enough information about alternatives to make informed decisions.

I am considered an international authority on the topic. I

lecture at conferences around the world, have published several articles, and

teach courses to medical professionals on how to perform evaluations and

treatment. I have been solely committed to treating patients with pelvic pain

for the last 8 years.

I am willing to do whatever it takes to get to Chicago by

the taping if there is any chance I can participate on the panel. If this is an

impossibility, I would be willing to be an audience member. I have tremendous

compassion for these women and I would love to help their cause. In addition, I

know you are gathering patients to appear on the show and one of my patients is

very eager to share her story and her successful outcome if you would like

another guest.

You can reach me at this email address or on my cell at .

Sincerely,

A. Prendergast, MPT

Partner

Pelvic Health and Rehabilitation Center