You have been told the aches, the leaking, and the exhaustion are just part of getting older.
They are not, and most of it is treatable.
Dr. Arti Thangudu sits down with Dr. Alexis Shoope, board-certified orthopedic and pelvic floor physical therapist and founder of Pioneer Physical Therapy in Houston, on what standard care keeps missing in women's bodies, and what actually helps.
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## 🔍 This episode explores:
• 🧩 What pelvic floor PT actually is, and the symptoms it treats that no one talks about (leaking, pain with sex, prolapse, constipation)
• 🧩 Why midlife joint pain is often hormonal, and how estrogen shifts show up in your tissues
• 🧩 Why "just do your kegels" is the wrong advice for many women
• 🧩 The two muscle groups that protect your pelvic floor most (glutes and adductors)
• 🧩 How insurance visit limits quietly shape the care you are offered, and what cash-pay really means
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## 👩 This episode is for you if:
• You have been told your symptoms are normal aging
• You are navigating perimenopause and new aches or changes
• You leak when you run, sneeze, or lift
• You want a real clinical conversation, not wellness theater
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## ⚖ The bottom line
Most of what women are told to live with is treatable.Strength is medicine, and the right specialist can change your life. Your symptoms are real. The explanation you were sold may not be.
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## 🎙 About the Host
**Dr. Arti Thangudu** is a board-certified endocrinologist specializing in women's hormonal health, thyroid disease, metabolism, and menopause. She is the founder of Complete Medicine and Hey Healthy and the host of Endocrine Matters. She practices evidence-based medicine and sees the patients who have been told their labs are fine when they do not feel fine.
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## 🎤 About the Guest
**Dr. Alexis Shoope** is a board-certified orthopedic and pelvic floor physical therapist and the founder of Pioneer Physical Therapy and Wellness in Houston. (pioneerpt.com)
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## 📚 Resources Mentioned
• Pelvic floor physical therapy: for leaking, pain with sex, prolapse, and constipation
• Glutes and adductors: the muscle groups that support the pelvic floor
• Estrogen and joint pain: the perimenopause connection worth raising with your doctor
• Finding a pelvic floor PT who treats the whole system, not one symptom
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## 🔗 Learn More / Connect
🩺 Complete Medicine
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Dr. Thangudu's clinical practice. Evidence-based endocrinology and women's hormonal health.
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Deeper dives on perimenopause, thyroid health, metabolic medicine, and more.
🎤 Guest
. Dr. Alexis Shoope, Pioneer Physical Therapy. pioneerpt.com
Subscribe, leave a review, and share this episode with a woman who has been told it's just aging.
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## 🎙 About Endocrine Matters
*Endocrine Matters* is a weekly podcast hosted by Dr. Arti Thangudu, board-certified
endocrinologist. Each episode brings evidence-based medicine to the questions patients are
actually asking. No hype. No misinformation. No "heal your hormones naturally" shortcuts. Just
the clinical clarity you deserve. New episodes drop every Wednesday.
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## ⏱ Chapters
00:00 - Intro and meet DrAlexis Shoope
05:00 - The gaps in women's care she kept seeing
11:00 - What pelvic floor PT actually is
22:00 - The diagnoses she sees most
26:00 - Root causes: tightness, stress, and under-training
32:00 - Perimenopause, joint pain, and estrogen
36:00 - Her top three at-home priorities
40:00 - Where to find her
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