Get Relief From Pelvic Girdle and Lower Back Pain
It’s a common belief among pregnant women that they have to put up with this during pregnancy… BUT there is a lot that can be done to help.
Whilst it may be common, it doesn’t mean it can’t be treated to give you immediate pain relief and prevent it resurfacing in the future.
What is pelvic girdle pain:
Pelvic Girdle Pain is commonly seen in pregnancy in 56%-72% of women. The most common time to notice PGP is the 14-30 week mark.
Pelvic girdle pain is characterised by any pain in the front or the back of the pelvis, buttocks, groin and/or radiating into the thighs.
The shaded areas are where pain commonly occurs.
What causes Pregnancy Pelvic Girdle Pain?
An increase in pregnancy hormones cause the ligaments and soft tissues around the pelvis start to relax to allow the widening of the pelvis for birth. This is a good thing (although it may not feel that way at the time!). Your body is starting to prepare your pelvis for labour and childbirth.
An increase in weight during pregnancy and altered posture can result in an increased load through joints. This increase in load can cause the muscles that help support your pelvis to become overworked – resulting in the muscles feeling tight and uncomfortable.
What are the Symptoms of Pregnancy Pelvic Girdle Pain?
Symptoms can be a combination of the following:
- Shuffling gait
- Difficulty weight bearing on one leg
- Difficulty climbing stairs
- Pain turning in bed
- Poor sleep with difficulty getting comfortable because of hip pain
- Sciatic type pain down the leg
- Pain with long periods of sitting or standing
- Difficulty going from sit to stand
- Increased discomfort with routine daily activities
How can physio help?
While symptoms can be similar from person to person the underlying cause can be very different and thus treatment must be tailored to the individual. There are many treatment options and it is important to get assessed by a physiotherapist to find the best treatment option for you.
Our Pregnancy Expert Stef treating our client experience officer Nicole in her 1st Trimester.
Exercises for relieving Pelvic Girdle Pain
https://www.instagram.com/p/CAv95c0jgkj/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
What does a Pelvic Girdle and Lower back Pain Physio treatment look like?
- Education about appropriate postural changes/positions to relieve pain and what to avoid. We don’t want to keep aggravating an already grumpy pelvis by doing the things that are aggravating it.
- Expert hands on treatment (including massage, trigger point release) to relieve stiff painful joints and muscles.
- A specific exercise program to strengthen muscles that help support your pelvis such as your gluteals and deep abdominal muscles. There is fantastic evidence to support the use of exercise to heal pelvic and back pain during pregnancy.
- Our exercise sessions may also be recommended to you as a way of addressing any muscle weakness of asymmetry once your original symptoms have improved.
- Expert advice around compression garments or external supports such as taping, Tubigrip, pelvic belts or compression shorts to give the lower back and pelvis additional support.
You don’t need to put up with a grumpy Lower Back or Pelvis – Book Online for fast pain relief and a plan to keep you pain free (You Deserve Both!)
We’d love to hear from you! If you have a pregnancy related question and would like to have a chat to one of our expert pregnancy physios, you can call our friendly staff at the clinic on 8490 0777.