Finances & Beyond: The Hidden Cost of Pelvic Floor Therapy

In this eye-opening episode, Amanda sits down with Jen Lormand, co-founder of Tighten Your Tinkler, to talk about pelvic floor dysfunction—how common it is, how it affects our emotional and financial lives, and what healing can actually look like (without invasive treatments or endless Kegels).

Jen shares her personal journey of healing prolapse, the $900/year hidden costs most women never think about, and the clinically-backed protocol helping women feel stronger, freer, and more confident—in just 10 minutes a day

Get $50 OFF the Signature Program with code WALLETWIN
👉 https://www.tightenyourtinkler.com/signatureprogram

🔍 Resources Mentioned:

💡 Root Cause Quiz: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/tinklerquiz
🛠️ Decompression Position for Back/Hip Relief: https://www.tightenyourtinkler.com/backandhiprelief

“I didn’t expect this to be part of my story.”

That’s how I began this episode—and I know many women will resonate.

Pelvic floor issues are common, expensive, and rarely talked about. In this powerful and eye-opening episode of The Catholic Money Show, I sat down with Jen Lormand, co-founder of Tighten Your Tinkler, to talk about how pelvic floor dysfunction impacts women’s lives—physically, emotionally, and financially.

We talked about:

My own medical journey and the cost of surgeries and therapy
Jen’s diagnosis of stage 2 prolapse at 36
Why surgery isn’t the only option
How women are spending up to $900/year just managing symptoms
And what healing actually looks like—with a simple 10-minute-a-day protocol

Some expenses are easy to plan for.

Others quietly become part of life before you ever realize how much they are costing you.

In this conversation from The Catholic Money Show, Amanda sits down with Jen Lormand, co-founder of Tighten Your Tinkler, to talk about pelvic floor dysfunction: how common these issues are, the emotional toll they can carry, and the financial costs that can add up when women spend years managing symptoms instead of addressing the underlying problem.

We’re revisiting this conversation because it remains an important one—especially for women who may have missed it the first time around.

The Costs Women Don’t See Coming

Amanda begins by sharing some of her own experience.

After multiple surgeries over the course of 20 years, she eventually found herself needing pelvic floor therapy to address some of the lasting effects.

The surgeries were expensive.

Then came the cost of trying to repair the damage afterward.

It is the kind of expense many women never expect to include in their financial lives.

Jen’s own experience began after significant birth injuries following her first child. Additional pregnancies and physical complications eventually led to stage-two pelvic organ prolapse.

At 36, she was told that pelvic floor suspension surgery might be her primary option—and that she could potentially need the surgery again years later.

Instead, she began investigating other treatment options with her business partner, physical therapist Christina Walsh. That journey eventually became the foundation for Tighten Your Tinkler.

Managing Symptoms Can Get Expensive

Pelvic floor dysfunction can show up in ways that gradually become part of a woman’s normal routine.

Bladder leaks.

Frequent trips to the bathroom.

Buying pads or other products regularly.

Recurring appointments.

Difficulty exercising or participating fully in daily life.

And sometimes pain or difficulty with intimacy.

Jen references research in the episode estimating that women dealing with urinary leakage were spending around $900 per year managing related expenses such as bladder-control products, medical appointments, and other ongoing care.

The important distinction is that those expenses may help manage the symptoms without actually resolving the underlying issue.

Over several years, those seemingly small purchases can become a significant financial cost.

There Is an Emotional Cost Too

The impact is not only financial.

Jen talks about women organizing their days around bathroom access, worrying about leaks when they sneeze or move a certain way, or quietly avoiding activities because they are embarrassed by what their bodies are doing.

Those experiences can affect confidence, relationships, intimacy, work, and family life.

For women who have already carried other difficult experiences involving their bodies, pelvic floor problems may bring an additional emotional burden.

One of the reasons Amanda wanted to have this conversation was simply to make the topic easier to talk about.

These issues are common enough that many women have experienced them—or know someone who has—even if nobody is saying it out loud.

Do Kegels Fix Everything?

For years, many women have heard the same advice when pelvic floor issues come up:

Do more Kegels.

Jen explains why that may not always be the complete answer.

The pelvic floor does not work in isolation. It functions alongside the abdominal muscles, back, hips, glutes, and respiratory diaphragm.

According to Jen, repeatedly tightening an already tense pelvic floor can sometimes contribute to additional problems rather than solving them.

The approach she and Christina developed focuses instead on training the pelvic floor as part of a larger functional system.

Small Habits Can Matter

Jen also shares several everyday habits women can consider when thinking about pelvic floor health.

She discusses avoiding the habit of pushing urine out, paying attention to overly compressive clothing, staying hydrated, getting enough fiber, and using a toileting stool to make it easier for the pelvic floor to relax during bathroom use.

The larger takeaway is not that every woman should diagnose or treat herself.

It is that becoming aware of how your body is functioning can help you recognize when something deserves more attention.

How Do You Know When You Need Help?

That is often the hardest question.

Is this something minor?

Should you see a pelvic floor therapist?

Is there something you can begin doing at home?

Jen recommends starting by understanding where your symptoms fall on the spectrum.

Tighten Your Tinkler offers a free pelvic floor quiz based on information gathered through their research. The quiz places women into different categories and provides guidance about potential next steps.

They also offer free resources organized around specific concerns, including bladder issues, pain with intimacy, and back or hip tightness.

For many women, gathering information is a more manageable first step than assuming they immediately need the most intensive—and most expensive—treatment available.

A Different Approach to Pelvic Floor Therapy

For women who are a fit for their program, Tighten Your Tinkler also offers an at-home protocol designed to take about 10 minutes per day.

The program is digital and includes an external exercise tool, allowing women to work through it on their own schedule without an internal device.

Jen explains that the protocol grew out of the work she and Christina were already doing with women in person and was later studied through formal research.

For women who are experiencing more severe symptoms, Jen is also clear that other medical interventions—including surgery in some cases—may still be appropriate.

The goal is not to pretend there is one solution for every woman.

It is to understand the options available before assuming that years of symptom management are simply unavoidable.

Your Health Is Part of Your Financial Life

Health and money rarely stay in separate categories for long.

An untreated or poorly managed health issue can create recurring expenses, missed work, appointments, products, procedures, and a tremendous amount of mental energy.

That is why conversations like this belong on The Catholic Money Show.

Good stewardship includes paying attention to the resources God has entrusted to us—including our bodies—and making informed decisions about where our time and money are going.

If pelvic floor issues have quietly become part of your normal life, this may be a good time to learn more about what is happening and what options are available to you.

👩‍⚕️ About the Guest: Jen Lormand

Jen is a clinical exercise physiologist and co-founder of Tighten Your Tinkler, a company committed to helping women heal their pelvic floor without invasive procedures or shame. She and her business partner, Christina, have published peer-reviewed clinical research showing their method works—especially for women in stages 0–2 prolapse.

Together, they’ve helped thousands of women regain control, dignity, and confidence.

💸 The Hidden Costs You’re Probably Ignoring

A 2005 study found that women dealing with incontinence and pelvic floor dysfunction spend $900 annually on:

Poise pads
Antibiotics for recurrent UTIs
Doctor visits
Devices and tools that only manage—not solve—the issue

Those costs are only rising—and often continue year after year.

As Jen says:

“Most women don’t realize they’re organizing their life around the restroom.”

This isn’t just a financial issue—it’s emotional, spiritual, and deeply personal.

💡 Can You Actually Heal Without Surgery?

Yes. And Jen did.

Instead of undergoing surgery (which her doctor said she’d likely need again in 10–15 years), Jen created a holistic approach based on core strengthening, posture, breathing, and pelvic floor alignment. She teamed up with Christina Walsh to research and refine what became the Tighten Your Tinkler Signature Program.

It’s:

100% digital
Only 10 minutes a day
Done fully clothed, from home
Backed by clinical studies

🧠 Not Sure If You Need Help? Start Here:

Jen recommends two simple steps to assess your pelvic floor health:

✅ Step 1: Take the free Root Cause Quiz
✅ Step 2: Browse their free resource library by symptom (pain with intimacy, frequent urination, back/hip tightness, and more)

And if you’re struggling with pelvic organ prolapse, constipation, leaks, or recurring UTIs—this episode is a must-listen.

🎁 Special Offer for Listeners

Jen and her team have generously offered a $50 discount on their Signature Program for all Catholic Money Show listeners!

🛒 Use code WALLETWIN at checkout →
👉 Claim your discount here

This is an affiliate link. If you make a purchase using this code, I may receive a small thank-you commission—at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting the podcast!

📺 Watch & Follow Tighten Your Tinkler

💬 Share this with a friend

If you know someone dealing with pelvic floor symptoms—or just starting their postpartum recovery—please share this episode with them. Healing is possible, and they deserve to know about it.

🎵 Music Credit

Music in this episode is by Dylan Gardner.
🎶 Check out his album Almost Real on iTunes, Spotify, or wherever you stream music.