Pregnancy and Pelvic Floor Dysfunction

Featuring Tamarah Calyniuk, MPT, CAFC

Video Title: Pregnancy and Pelvic Floor Dysfunction Duration: 1 minute, 28 seconds

Pelvic pain can be present pre and postnatally. Prenatally, pelvic pain is quite complex.

It can be due to a number of different issues. The pelvis is like a bowl, and in the pelvis you have some muscles that sit and try to provide stability. And then all around the pelvis, you have different muscles connecting and trying to provide that stability as well. And these create a type of closure.

Now, the other part of closure is created by the ligaments. Now because of the relaxin hormone in the body, the ligaments will loosen, and then the muscles will try to compensate to still create that amount of stability in your pelvis.

So the issues that pregnant women can have can be through the SI joints, through the pubic symphisis at the front, or just muscular as in in the pelvic floor and these all can create pelvic pain which also can refer to the back. So it's multifaceted and difficult to diagnosis what the issue is.

Postnatally, pelvic pain may linger for about six weeks. If women continue to have pain after six weeks, we recommend that they go see their local physio or care provider to address these issues.

If you have questions about pelvic pain before and after pregnancy, contact a local physiotherapist.

Presenter: Tamarah Nerreter, Physiotherapist, Surrey, BC

Local Practitioners: Physiotherapist