Back pain during pregnancy is very common. In most cases it is related to the weight gain,
hormonal changes, ligaments that are relaxed, poor sleep quality or anxiety due to the big life
changes that are about to happen in your life. There are many things that you can do at
home to ease your back pain during pregnancy. Today I will show you simple activity medication
and exercises that you can practice at home. I’ll also let you know when your should go
see your doctor because there might be something more serious going on.
So, let’s talk about back pain during pregnancy today.
BEFORE I CONTINUE, let me remind you that this video is not intended to provide medical advice,
it is for educational purposes only. If you have a medical condition that requires treatment,
please talk to your doctor to get a treatment plan for you. And if there is any emergency,
please go to the nearest emergency department or call an ambulance.
There are some symptoms that your back pain can be a sign of a serious condition:
- If your back pain is accompanied by vaginal bleeding, that might
be a sign of a preterm labour. - If you have fever or burning
sensation when passing urine, it might be a urinary tract infection
- If you have tried home based remedies, posture and exercise and your back pain is getting worse,
then go talk to your doctor, as you may need a painkiller like acetaminophen.
Here are some precautions with using medications for pain during pregnancy:
- Do not use non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or NSAIDs, during pregnancy. Some of them
are related to birth defects or premature labour. - Avoid opioids during pregnancy. They may
predispose the newborn to neonatal abstinence syndrome
What you can do to relieve your back pain during pregnancy?
The first thing is to reduce your anxiety levels around the pain itself. We know that
pain is an alert in our brain that there is some danger in our body.
This is usually true if there is a fractured bone, a heart attack or an infection. During pregnancy,
these pain signals are not really helpful. The body is not at danger. Pregnancy is not
a disease that needs to be treated. So the brain might be giving you signals of danger,
but in this case, hurt does not mean harm. Just by thinking differently about your pain,
telling your brain that these sensations are normal, expected and they will eventually stop,
that is enough for your brain to stop these danger signals and the pain will
decrease in intensity and duration. Try some breathing techniques to
relax. See my other videos about square breathing and vagus nerve exercises.
You may do these exercises as a preventive measure or to try to reduce the pain when it is hurting.
Another technique is to try to get your mind away from the pain. Use distraction, music, watch a
movie, talk to a friend, go for a walk, prepare the baby’s nest and do some crafts. When the brain
is distracted with other meaningful activities it does not get too anxious with the pain itself.
Do not rest too much. Try to be as active as possible.
When lying down, it is better to lie on your side. Avoid high heels or flats. Use
a medium or low heel shoes. When the pain is very intense, try a
warm water bath. Do not put the water temperature too hot as your blood pressure may drop too fast.
Go for a massage session. You may also try acupuncture or spinal manipulations.
Try an ice pack or a hot pack to your lower back area.
Buy a lower back support, especially if you spend too much time in the car.
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If you are interested in home-based exercises.
Here is a list of excellent exercises for you to do at home:
Warm-up. You can use a stationary bike or a treadmill.
You may also put some music and dance for a few minutes.
If you are on your first trimester, do these exercises on the floor:
- Pelvic tilt - Cat-cow
- Bird dog - Dead bug
- Planks: front and side planks - Side-lying leg raises
If you are on the second or third trimester, avoid exercise lying flat on your back because
the uterus will put pressure on the on the inferior vena cava and this may impede the
venous blood to reach your heart. Then you may feel dizzy, lightheaded and short of breath.
If you are on the second or third trimester, you may do sitting or standing exercises:
- Pelvic tilt on the wall - Squats
- Lunges - Side bending to
stretch the quadratus lumborum muscles - Rotation to stretch the multifidus
and rotators muscles
Aquatherapy and hydroginastics are excellent options for exercises during pregnancy.
If you know a pregnant woman, send this video to her using this share button here.
I created a handout that summarizes all of these exercises. You can download
all of them for FREE. Go to my website www.doctorandreafurla.com / pregnancy
When home-based exercise are not possible, or are not helping to reduce the pain, it is advisable
the woman to go see a physiotherapist. These professionals are trained to examine, make the
diagnose and treat low back pain during pregnancy. Some
conditions cause pain during pregnancy and they need a specific treatment.
Meralgia paresthetica is a compression of the lateral femoral cutaneous nerve
and it causes burning pain on the side of the thigh. Check my other video about this.
Coccydynia is pain in the buttock area caused by a problem in the tailbone. In this case there might
need to do an injection or manipulation of the tailbone to alleviate the pain.
Lumbar disc herniation may occur during pregnancy, and in complicated cases it might cause cauda
equina. When there is cauda equina the woman loses the sensation in the perineal area,
and has incontinence of bowel and bladder. This is an emergency situation and she
needs to go to emergency department. There might be laxity of the pelvic
ligaments. This is normal during pregnancy because the body is getting ready to labour.
However, when the sacroiliac joint ligaments get too relaxed there might be movement between the
bones of the sacrum and iliac bone and cause pain there. The pain may radiate to the groin and hip.
A woman with previous back pain problems may have her symptoms aggravated during pregnancy.
In this case, she might need to continue the same treatments she was receiving before
pregnancy. It is important to check with the doctor if they are safe for the baby.
I hope you enjoyed this video.
Here are other videos from my channel that you can watch.
See you next time. Goodbye!