How can pregnant women relieve back pain? What are the most crucial advices on this subject? To learn more, keep reading.
As the foetus' weight increases during pregnancy and its centre of gravity shifts in relation to the body, back pain is common during pregnancy, especially in the early stages.
The following article lists the top methods to treat back pain in pregnant women because hormonal changes may also relax the ligaments in the pelvic joints and lower back, increasing back pain.
Ways to relieve back pain for pregnant women
Ways to relieve pain during pregnancy include:
- Do some exercise
Exercise improves muscle strength and flexibility, which relieves pressure on the spine.
Safe exercises for pregnant women include walking, swimming, and stationary cycling. The doctor might occasionally suggest yoga or physical therapy exercises.
You can do the following yoga exercise after consulting your doctor to strengthen the muscles of your back and abdomen. The process is as follows:
- Keep your hands on the floor perpendicular to the shoulders, fingers forward, knees under the hips, and lift the abdominal muscles to make the spine straight.
- Lift your back up while keeping your head relaxed and your butt pointing down.
- Wait for a few seconds, then return to the first position, taking care not to hollow the back, but to keep it in a straight state.
- Do this exercise slowly, controlled, and rhythmically, and repeat it 10 times to help strengthen your back muscles.
- Improve body position
When a foetus grows, its weight is concentrated in the front, which forces the pregnant woman to bend over to prevent falling forward, putting strain on her back muscles and contributing to pregnancy back pain. The steps listed below can be used to adjust your body position:
- Stand up straight.
- Make your chest up.
- Keep your shoulders relaxed.
- Don't lock your knees.
- Apply heat and cold
After consulting your own physician, you can use the heat and cold mechanism to treat back pain. To do this, apply cold compresses, an ice bag, or frozen vegetables wrapped in a towel to the painful area for 20 minutes more than once per day.
After two to three days, switch back and lay on your back with a warm compress or a warm water bottle, being careful not to lay on your stomach.
- other ways
Other methods that may help relieve back pain during pregnancy include the following:
- Sleep on your side with one or both knees bent and use pregnancy pillows between your knees, behind your back and under your stomach.
- Resorting to acupuncture after consulting your doctor, as some evidence indicates that acupuncture may help relieve back pain for pregnant women.
- Massaging the painful area can help loosen tight muscles and improve range of motion.
Tips for preventing back pain during pregnancy
The following are some recommendations for preventing back pain in pregnant women:
- Get enough sleep and rest.
- Avoid lifting heavy objects.
- Wear low-heeled shoes to distribute your body weight evenly.
- Bend your knees and pick up something from the ground while maintaining a straight back.
- Maintaining a straight back when sitting by using support pillows.
When do you have to see a doctor?
If any of the following symptoms appear, a pregnant woman should call or visit her doctor:
- Sharp pain.
- The pain persists for more than two weeks.
- Difficulty and pain when urinating.
- Irregular vaginal secretions.
- vaginal bleeding
- Numbness or tingling in the extremities.
- Irregular contractions that gradually get stronger.