During pregnancy, it is standard for women to experience back pain or back discomfort. It can happen at any time during pregnancy, but it is more common during the later stages when the baby is more significant in size.
Back pain can dampen the wonderful pregnancy experience and disrupt your day-to-day life and sleep. However, it gets better as several ways help manage any back pain during pregnancy.
Here's what you can do to relieve back pain:
Think about what you wear
Ensure the clothes and footwear you wear give you adequate support. Avoiding wearing shoes such as high heels and other shoes that don’t provide enough support will help minimise the amount of back pain you experience. Shoes with good arch support will help avoid back pain. If you are in a lot of pain, it might also be helpful to wear a support belt around your waist to give that extra support to your back.
Be mindful when lifting things
Make sure that if you have to lift anything, you are doing it correctly. For example, instead of bending at the waist to pick something up or lift something, make sure you squat down to minimise any impact on your back.
Massage the painful area
An ice pack or heating pad to massage against your back can often help with back pain. It might be worth doing this every evening at the end of a long day to help try and soothe the back pain you are experiencing.
Try and sleep on your side
Sleeping on your side with your knees bent and not on your back can help make sure that any back pain your experience during pregnancy is minimal. It can also be helpful to use pregnancy support pillows and place them behind your back or between your bent knees to try and relieve any pressure from your back.
What’s the bottom line?
These are just a few things that will help ease your back pain during pregnancy, however regular appointments with a chiropractor would also be hugely beneficial. Please contact us for more information on how our experts at the Wimbledon Chiropractic and Sports Injury Clinic can help you.