Why Should I See a Pelvic Health Trained Osteopath During Pregnancy?
During pregnancy, your body will undergo one of the biggest changes of your life as you make room for the baby growing inside you. These changes affect your posture, gait (how you walk), how you breathe and how all of the organs in your body function. Sometimes it can be hard for your body to cope with all the changes, particularly in the later stages of pregnancy.
If you have a history of injuries or postural issues it can be harder still. At Pivot Osteopathy, our pelvic health trained osteopaths are here to help your whole body adapt as well as it possibly can as your baby grows. We love helping you prepare for birth, optimise your pelvic floor health, and educate you about pelvic health.
So why see a pelvic health training Osteopath during pregnancy?
Pain Relief
During pregnancy, it is common to experience different aches and pains. We are passionate about helping you feel more comfortable during your pregnancy so you can enjoy this special time.
The team at Pivot Osteo has experience in treating the following:
Pelvic Girdle Pain
Lower back pain
Lightning crotch
Pubic symphysis dysfunction
Rib pain
Pain associated with haemorrhoids
Painful s3x
Headaches and neck pain
Read more about our pregnancy-related treatment areas here.
Optimise Pelvic Floor Health
Please don't feel you need to wait until you've had the baby to improve unwanted urinary leakage, constipation, prolapse or pain. Our Osteopaths are trained in pelvic health and can help create a management plan to help improve your symptoms.
Our Osteopaths have experience in managing the following symptoms during pregnancy:
Incontinence
Urgency
Haemorrhoids
Constipation
Painful S3x
Vulva varicosities
Osteopathic interventions can specifically target the pelvic floor muscles to optimise their function. This is crucial during pregnancy as hormonal changes, and the increasing weight of the uterus can strain these muscles. The Osteopaths at Pivot have been trained to do internal assessment of the pelvic floor, and are able to help enhance pelvic floor strength and flexibility, promoting better support for the growing uterus.
Baby/Maternal Positioning - To help babies get into a good position for birth
Babies need space to get into a good position for birth. Sometimes postural restriction or tensions from old injuries can make this harder for your bub to get into good position. Whether your baby is breech, transverse or spine to spine, reducing tension in your body may create enough space for your baby to get into a better position.
We can work with you to identify and reduce tensions in your body that may be contributing to your baby not getting into an optimal position. We can also assist with preparation for an ECV (external cephalic version, a procedure that a doctor or midwife can do to try to turn a baby around in the uterus).
In our experience, we have the best success rate when people start working with us in their second trimester, however it’s not too late if you’re later in your pregnancy. Sometimes your baby only needs a little bit of support to get into a good position.
We have a wide range of exercises that we can give you for home. Some may be familiar to you if you’ve checked out the Spinning Babies website and some may be new. We find that helping people understand the tensions in their particular body can help them target their time and energy into exercises that may have the greatest chance of helping to give their baby the space it needs to turn.
Labour and Birth Preparation
We are passionate about helping you feel good in your body while also helping you prepare your body, mind and pelvic floor for birth.
Your treatment may include the following, depending on your needs and wishes:
Hands-on therapy to reduce any body tensions and help create optimal space for bub through whole body alignment
Pelvic floor assessment and treatment (not compulsory) to help improve the flexibility and coordination of pelvic floor
Education on breathing and mindfulness techniques, pain management strategies, active birthing positions, and effective pushing techniques
Preparation for a beautiful Caesarean birth
Pregnancy is also the perfect time to prepare for the postnatal period. We will help to educate you on what to expect and how you can optimise your recovery.
Education
We believe education is power. We are passionate about empowering our patients to feel good in their body and prepare for birth, no matter how that looks.
During pregnancy we may offer education on:
Exercise and possible modifications during pregnancy
Mobility exercises to help prepare you body for birth
Way to prepare your pelvic floor for birth
Management of risk factors for incontinence and prolapse
Labour and birth preparation
Reducing risk of perineal trauma
Postpartum recovery
We’d love to work with you to co-create an individualised treatment and management plan that suits your individual needs and goals, whether that be to relieve aches and pains, move with confidence during your pregnancy or prepare for a vaginal or Caesarean birth.
Come see us!
These specific reasons highlight the role of osteopathy in promoting optimal pelvic floor function, addressing pain and discomfort, and mitigating common issues associated with pregnancy-related changes in the pelvic region. Make an appointment today to get started!
If you have any questions our team is here to help.
Disclaimer: This blog is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute the practice of medicine, nursing or other professional health care services, including the giving of medical advice, and no practitioner/patient relationship is formed. The use of information on this blog or materials linked from this blog is at the user's own risk. The content of this blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard, or delay in obtaining, medical advice for any medical condition they may have, and should seek the assistance of their health care professionals for any such conditions.