The Pelvic Puzzle Podcast
Your pelvic floor. Your hormones. Your bladder. Your gut health. It can feel like everyone's only looking at one piece of your Women's Health puzzle.
The Pelvic Puzzle is the podcast that puts those pieces back together. Each episode follows a fictional but relatable case study and unpacks it with the physiotherapists, GPs, dietitians and other women's health specialists who help solve these puzzles in clinic every day.
Hosted by Taryn Watson, pelvic health physiotherapist and co-founder of FitRight Women's Health, we cover pelvic pain, prolapse, bladder and bowel issues, pregnancy and postpartum recovery, perimenopause and menopause — and everything in between.
No generic advice. No "just do more kegels." Just honest, evidence-based conversations that help you finally feel like someone's looking at your whole picture.
Listen to The Pelvic Puzzle
Season 1 - The Prolapse Puzzle
In Season One, The Prolapse Puzzle, six episodes come together to explore prolapse from every angle - five different stories, plus a bonus episode all about pessaries. Because prolapse doesn't look the same for everyone, and the right next step depends on the whole picture.
Each story is fictional, inspired by the stories we hear so often in the clinic, walked through with the specialists who help women make sense of them.
Episode 1: 'Sasha'
The New Mum with Prolapse Who Feels Like Her Body Has Failed Her
Four weeks after welcoming her first baby, Sascha notices a bulge and heaviness in her vagina after a walk. She's terrified that she's caused permanent damage, wonders if she'll need surgery, and questions whether she'll ever be able to have another baby.
Episode 2: 'Karina'
The Busy Mum of Three Considering a Vaginal Pessary for Running
Karina is a mum of three who's finally ready to make time for herself again. She wants to get back into running, but every time she heads out, she's met with the familiar feeling of vaginal heaviness. After reading conflicting advice online, she's left wondering whether prolapse means she'll have to give up running forever - or whether a vaginal pessary could help.
Episode 3: 'Natalie'
The Mum Who 'Failed' at Kegels to Help Her Prolapse
Natalie has lived with prolapse symptoms for years, assuming pelvic floor exercises were the only treatment option. But as her symptoms worsen - and opening her bowels becomes increasingly difficult - she realises it's finally time to seek help.
Episode 4: 'Louise'
The 55 year old facing the Mid Life Exercise and Prolapse Conundrum
Louise has spent years avoiding heavy lifting because she was told it might make her prolapse worse. Now she's preparing for life as a grandmother and has recently been diagnosed with osteopaenia, leaving her with a frustrating question: how can she protect both her pelvic floor and her bones?
Episode 5: 'Sue'
The 65 year old woman with prolapse deciding if surgery is right for her
Sue lived with a mild prolapse for 20 years without it bothering her - until new bladder symptoms, recurrent UTIs and a worsening bulge made her start asking whether it was finally time to consider surgery.
Episode 6: Demystifying All Things Pessaries
With Jessica Vanson
Think pessaries are only for elderly women who can't have surgery? Or that once it's fitted, it stays in for months untouched? This episode sets the record straight, and explains how often pessaries can be the missing puzzle piece for prolapse management.
Season 2 - The Perimenopause Puzzle
In Season Two, The Perimenopause Puzzle, we explore perimenopause from every angle - from bladder changes and hip pain to weight, bones and starting exercise, plus bonus episodes on gut health, osteoporosis, and vulval and vaginal health. Because perimenopause is so much more than hot flushes, and the right next step depends on the whole picture.
Each case study is inspired by the stories we hear so often in the clinic, walked through with the GPs, physiotherapists and dietitians who help women make sense of them.
Episode 1: 'Jacinta'
The 46-Year-Old Who Didn't Think Perimenopause Applied to Her Yet - with Women’s Health GP Dr Miranda Quenby
Jacinta assumed perimenopause meant hot flushes. Since she'd never had one - and her periods were still regular - she put her worsening sleep, mood swings, painful sex and dropping libido down to sheer life stress. Turns out that's one of the most common presentations GPs see.
Episode 2: 'Amanda'
The 47-Year-Old Whose Overactive Bladder Won't Let Her Leave the House Anymore
Amanda has never had children, yet for years she's joked about having a "weak bladder." Over the past year, she's developed sudden, overwhelming urges and leaks on the way to the toilet. She's also had two embarrassing accidents, and she's now staying home rather than risk getting caught out again.