Pregnancy Care & Pelvic Floor

During pregnancy, a woman's body undergoes significant musculoskeletal and hormonal changes to accommodate for their growing bub and prepare for birth. As the uterus expands, the abdominal muscles and connective tissues stretch, centre of gravity shifts, and posture often changes, placing additional strain on the back, pelvis, and pelvic floor.

As the body prepares for birth, the pelvis becomes more flexible, which can affect pelvic stability and sometimes create imbalances leading to aches and pains. At the same time, the pelvic floor muscles must support the increasing weight of bub, the placenta, the amniotic fluid and breast tissue, which can contribute to weakness and/or tension. Bladder and bowel symptoms if not appropriately managed can be common, however certainly are not normal.

Research shows that pregnant women should undertake supervised pelvic floor muscle training throughout their pregnancy however clinically we see many women do not know how to correctly contract and relax these muscles. In a pregnancy physiotherapy appointment at Flow, we can assess these muscles and teach you how to contract, relax and strengthen them correctly.

Regardless of whether you have any unwanted symptoms, prenatal pelvic floor physiotherapy focuses on prevention of symptoms of pelvic floor dysfunction, preparation for birth and recovery during the early postnatal stages (i.e the fourth trimester).

At Flow Pelvic Physio, our Physios will provide an individualised assessment, prescribe safe and appropriate exercises, education, and strategies to support your changing body and help prepare the body for labour, birth, and postpartum recovery.

Common concerns:

Common complaints in pregnancy that physiotherapy can manage include:

• Pelvic Floor symptoms such as leakage, constipation, pelvic pain and vulvar varicosities

• Low/Hip/Pelvic Girdle Pain and ‘lightening crotch’

• Diastasis Recti ‘abdominal separation’

• Hand, wrist and rib pain including Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and Mum Thumb (DeQuervains)

• Birth Preparation & recovery for both vaginal and caesarean births

• Preparation for the Postpartum period