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Physical Therapy Provides Great Relief During Pregnancy

by E. Anne Patron, DPT

Pregnancy is one of the body’s best examples of resilience. Your body goes through an incredible journey in 40 weeks (give or take) that spans the physical and emotional limits of the human body. Physical therapy can be very helpful before, during, and after pregnancy. Pre-partum and in between pregnancies, you want to make sure that you are healing appropriately and have adequate strength and stability before tackling the journey ahead of you.

Pregnancy can bring about some unfamiliar pain in muscles you didn’t know existed. You may feel some pain down the back of your leg, like sciatica, pain in the front of your pelvis at the lower part of your belly (near or at an area called your pubic symphysis), low-back pain, or perhaps pain with sex. Each of these pains ­— the weird ones included — are very treatable with physical therapy.

Unfortunately, many people think of physical therapy as focused solely on rehabilitation and recovery. The truth is that physical therapy can be an important part of your prenatal care. Physical therapists can perform manual treatments that can be beneficial in relaxing tight muscles, while also providing therapeutic activities to help stretch muscles that may become tight during pregnancy.

There are also certain modifications to exercise that should take place as you progress through pregnancy. Working closely with your physical therapist will ensure that you stay as safe as possible during exercise throughout your pregnancy. Exercise is perfectly safe to perform while being pregnant and can even help to decrease some of the discomfort you’re feeling by helping to stabilize your core.

Studies show that being fit before and during pregnancy is helpful in reducing the overall duration of delivery, while also improving your ability to recover and get back to normal activity. In fact, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) recommends women exercise 3–4 times per week for 15 minutes at a time while pregnant.

Let us help you develop a safe and healthy exercise program during this happy time. We will do a thorough check of all the supportive muscles in your pelvic floor, as well as the ones in your back, hips, butt, thighs, and the rest of your lower extremity. We can then tailor a program to your specific needs to help decrease your pain and keep you as fit as possible while you progress through your pregnancy.

If you are having any pain or discomfort, or just want to make sure you stay healthy during your pregnancy, come see a physical therapist.