Pelvic Health Physiotherapy: Before or After Delivery?

Many people see a pelvic health physiotherapist after giving birth, to help their pelvic floor to heal and to strengthen their core. I have noticed that those who work with me before giving birth seem to have an easier recovery and here’s why:

Becoming acquainted with your pelvic floor muscles during pregnancy allows you to begin softening and activating these muscles as soon as is comfortable after delivery, rather than waiting until 6 weeks postpartum (the typical timing for your first postpartum physiotherapy visit).
The work we do together will allow you to ease pregnancy-related low back and pelvic pain by reducing tension and increasing strength of the most helpful muscles. The added bonus is you will already know what to do after delivery.

Conditions such as haemorrhoids/leg swelling/vulvar varicosities during pregnancy can decrease with easy-to-implement strategies.

Strengthening your wrists before delivery helps you prevent “mum thumb” (stubborn wrist tendonitis that commonly occurs with new parents). All caregivers may benefit from this one!

Posture retraining exercises strengthen the key muscles that help with good posture, so you can breastfeed, lift your baby and perform other physically activities with more ease. 

Labour and delivery can be facilitated with strategies that your physiotherapist can give you to calm your nervous system and to soften your pelvic floor.

Symptoms of prolapse, urinary incontinence, and diastasis rectus can be eased during pregnancy as well as in the postpartum period. 
Experiencing constipation? Your physiotherapist can provide you with practical ideas to help get things moving.

You can continue to exercise safely according to evidence-based guidelines – your physiotherapist can assess your ability to safely exercise before and after delivery. 

Get a head start on your recovery while reducing pregnancy-related symptoms. Visit your pelvic health physiotherapist to achieve your goals before birth and hopefully make for a smoother postpartum recovery. 

Interested in learning more? Contact Michelle at fraser@fraserpelvichealth.com