The pelvic floor helps control the bladder, bowel, spine, and sex organs.​

The symptoms of interstitial cystitis (IC)/painful bladder syndrome (PBS) include:

Bladder

• feeling like you have to pass urine all the time (this is called urgency)
• passing urine more often than normal (this is called frequency)
• pain with passing urine
• burning when passing urine
• pressure in the pelvic region

Bowel (often seen with PBS)

• constipation
• pain with bowel movements
• feeling pressure on the pelvic floor and organs

Sex

• pain in the genital area during or after sex

Spine (if you've had symptoms for a long time)

• pain in your low back, pelvis, or abdomen (belly)

If you have these symptoms, you may have IC/PBS or problems with your pelvic floor muscle.