PREGNANCY AND POSTPARTUM PHYSICAL THERAPY

Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy For Pregnancy And Postpartum

Welcoming a new life into the world is an incredible journey, but it comes with unique physical challenges that deserve expert care. Pregnancy and postpartum are transformative phases, and your body undergoes significant changes that can impact your comfort, mobility, and overall well-being.

At Refine PT, we specialize in pregnancy and postpartum physical therapy, with a strong emphasis on pelvic floor health. Whether preparing for childbirth, recovering after delivery, or managing discomfort, our approach is centered on providing effective pain relief and helping you regain the strength and health you deserve.

Discover how expert guidance can help you regain strength, restore balance, and feel your best during this beautiful yet demanding time. Let us support you on this journey, allowing you to fully embrace time with your growing family.

How Can Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy Be Beneficial During Pregnancy?

Pregnancy is a time of constant physical change, and physical therapy can help you navigate these shifts with greater comfort and readiness for childbirth throughout the evolution of each trimester.

Easing Pregnancy-Related Pain and Discomfort With Physical Therapy

As your body adapts to your growing baby, you may experience aches, pains, and new challenges. Physical therapy can help address:

Pain in areas like the lower back, hips, and sacroiliac joints (SIJ), which often bear the brunt of pregnancy-related posture changes.
Carpal tunnel syndrome in your hands, often caused by fluid retention.
Plantar fasciitis in your feet, resulting from increased weight and pressure.

Even if you feel symptom-free, starting therapy early can promote a smoother pregnancy and minimize discomfort in later stages.

One of the major ways pelvic floor physical therapy is beneficial during pregnancy is that your pelvic floor physical therapist can develop an individualized total body strengthening program. This will help to build a solid foundation of strength and mobility that will prepare you for the marathon of labor and birthing your baby. Pelvic floor, hip strength, and mobility exercises are particularly important for training your body to bear down and push your baby out in the most effective way possible for your body. This training will help to reduce the risk of injury to your pelvic floor and the bones of the pelvis.

Even though the role of pelvic floor physical therapy focuses on labor preparation by addressing the pelvis, hips, and pelvic floor, this is a total body event, so the entire body should be considered. There are body parts and muscles that need to be assessed and trained for your individual needs in preparation for childbirth. All women are going to have specific areas of focus in assisting their bodies with getting the baby out safely. Our physical therapists work to assess how to reduce the risk of harm to you and the health of your pelvic floor. This can include an assessment of your rib cage, spinal mobility, as well as core and hip strength. These are examples of major areas of the body that need to be functioning and coordinating well together to help progress labor and assist your pelvic floor for effective pushing.

Evaluation and Preparation with Your Physical Therapist

Pelvic floor physical therapy plays a pivotal role in preparing your body for labor and delivery. Your evaluation is the first step in understanding how your body moves and functions, enabling your therapist to create a plan that supports your specific birth goals.

At your evaluation, your pelvic floor physical therapist will internally assess your pelvic floor musculature and help to find the most optimal positioning of your body for pushing. This will be tailored specifically for your birth plan and your body, whether you plan for an epidural or an unmedicated birth. Various ways of utilizing your hips, core, rib cage, and breath can be assessed by your pelvic floor physical therapist in conjunction with the internal assessment. This way the lengthening of the pelvic floor musculature can be felt in each position with the breath work and bearing down that works the most effectively for you.

Learning To Balance Strength and Relaxation

Labor requires your pelvic floor to shift seamlessly between strength and relaxation:

Strength: Helps guide your baby’s head through the birth canal and supports your body through each phase of labor.
Relaxation: Reduces tension, promotes efficient pushing, and minimizes the risk of injury to the pelvic floor muscles.

By training these opposing yet complementary functions, your pelvic floor becomes more adaptable and prepared for the demands of childbirth. Your therapist will guide you through exercises to help you engage these functions at the right time, whether you're holding strength to support your baby or allowing your pelvic floor to stretch and lengthen for delivery.

During labor, your body will face significant pressure and discomfort, but knowing how to manage it through pelvic floor training can make a big difference. Your therapist will equip you with various tools and techniques - such as specific movements and breathwork - to help ease discomfort and make the pushing phase more efficient and less overwhelming.

This balanced approach to pelvic floor training allows your body to move with the natural flow of labor, giving you the confidence to trust your body's ability to navigate the experience with strength and ease.

Education and Support During Labor

Pelvic floor physical therapy (PT) provides valuable education and techniques to make your labor experience more comfortable and efficient. By understanding how your pelvic bones move during different phases of labor, you can incorporate targeted mobility activities to ease discomfort and support the progression of labor. Your therapist will guide you through exercises designed to keep you comfortable and help your body adapt to the natural rhythm of childbirth.

Additionally, learning how to calm your nervous system is a powerful tool. This approach helps reduce the intensity of pain and transforms it into manageable discomfort, making the labor process smoother and more focused. Techniques such as breathwork and relaxation exercises play a key role in helping you stay calm and centered during each phase of labor.

If you have a supportive partner, they can also be involved in your care. Your physical therapist can teach them specific techniques to help decrease pain and assist in the progression of labor, both during contractions and in between. This shared knowledge ensures that your partner is equipped to support you effectively, whether through counterpressure, breathing exercises, or offering emotional support. With this additional layer of support, your body will be able to move through labor more quickly and smoothly.

After the birth, whether you’ve had a medication-free delivery, epidural, or C-section, postpartum physical therapy plays a crucial role in your recovery. Therapy helps improve outcomes for getting back to your usual activities safely and efficiently. In the postpartum phase - also known as the "fourth trimester" - your body will undergo significant changes as it adjusts to life without pregnancy. Your postpartum physical therapist will help guide this transition, focusing on healing, strengthening, and supporting your body as it adapts to its new normal.

Postpartum Physical Therapy For The Next Phase

After the delivery of your baby, your postpartum physical therapist can teach you many techniques for helping your pelvic floor to heal in the most optimal way possible. While your body is healing you simultaneously have a new baby to care for which can be additionally stressful on your body when it comes to activities such as lifting and nursing. In addition to rehabilitation specifically focused on the pelvic floor, postpartum physical therapy can also help with other body areas that you may have pain with due to the changing physical body after being pregnant for nine months and giving birth.

Easing Postpartum Pain and Discomfort with Physical Therapy

As your body adjusts to life after childbirth, you may experience pain and discomfort in areas that were affected during pregnancy. Postpartum pain often arises from your body compensating for new postures, movements, and physical changes. Postpartum PT can help address:

Mid-back and lower back pain are common in most women as they adjust to lifting, breastfeeding, and carrying a baby.
Shoulder and neck pain from prolonged feeding positions or carrying your baby.
Hip pain, SI joint pain, and discomfort in other areas affected by changes in posture and movement patterns.
Jaw pain from tension, especially if you're clenching due to stress or discomfort.

Postpartum physical therapy is designed to rehabilitate your entire body, addressing these areas of discomfort and helping you regain strength, mobility, and flexibility. Whether you're struggling with postnatal pain in specific areas or dealing with general discomfort, therapy will support you in returning to your daily activities quickly and safely. Starting therapy early in the postpartum phase can promote a smoother recovery, allowing you to enjoy your new routine without the limitations of pain.

Postpartum physical therapy can also reduce the risk of incontinence, constipation, and pelvic organ prolapse. Strategies can be taught for improving the symptoms of leaking urine and constipation, as well as pressure management for reducing prolapse. Prolapse can occur due to pushing your baby out vaginally because other pelvic organs including your bladder, rectum, and cervix can be predisposed to descending downward into the vaginal canal. It's important to address this early on in the postpartum phase and throughout the first year to optimally position the organs in the pelvis.

The Ongoing Benefits of Postpartum Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy

Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy offers a wealth of benefits that extend far beyond the pregnancy and delivery phases. It's not just something to consider during pregnancy or immediately after childbirth - Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy can help at any stage, whether you're a few months postpartum or even years after giving birth.

One of the most important aspects of Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy is that it’s never too late to seek help. Whether you've just given birth or it's been years since your delivery, your body continues to go through changes. Once you're postpartum, you're always postpartum, and the pelvic floor remains a crucial area of focus for long-term health.

No matter how much time has passed, physical therapy can address lingering symptoms or prevent new issues from arising.
Whether you're dealing with pelvic floor dysfunction, incontinence, or low back pain, therapy can offer solutions to restore function and ease discomfort.

Physical Therapists Who Address A Range of Postpartum Symptoms

At Refine PT, we believe that postpartum physical therapy isn't just about strengthening the pelvic floor muscles - it’s a holistic approach to treating the whole body. Postpartum physical therapy can address various issues that arise after childbirth:

Pelvic floor dysfunction: Includes symptoms like urinary incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse, and pelvic pain.
Pain in the lower back, hips, and SI joints: Common during the postpartum phase due to changes in posture and core strength.
Core weakness: Addressing diastasis recti and other abdominal muscle separations that can occur during pregnancy.

Improving posture and movement: Helping to regain strength and alignment, which may be altered due to pregnancy or the demands of new motherhood.

Improving Your Physical Health And Quality of Life

Beyond physical relief, postpartum physical therapy can improve your overall quality of life by helping you return to your pre-pregnancy activities, reduce pain, and build confidence in your body’s ability to move and function.

Rehabilitation and recovery: Whether you’re hoping to return to exercise, running, or simply lifting your child without discomfort, therapy can provide the tools to get you there safely.
Prevention of future issues: Addressing symptoms early on, even years after childbirth, can prevent chronic issues from developing and help maintain long-term pelvic health.

Pelvic floor-focused postpartum physical therapy is a key resource for women at every stage of their postpartum journey, and the benefits extend far beyond the immediate recovery phase. Whether you’re one year or 15 years postpartum, therapy can help you feel stronger, healthier, and more empowered as you continue to care for yourself and your family.

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