Postpartum Physical Therapy

Postpartum physical therapy can be a great way to restore
function and strength in your core and pelvic floor muscles.
Giving birth places a strain on your body and it is no surprise
that many postpartum people experience pelvic pain and discomfort
for weeks to months after delivery. Even after the typical 8 week
recovery time, many women may require more time or a pelvic floor
workout plan to help get them back on their feet, especially
women who delivered via C-section.


Although you may never look how you did before your pregnancy,
physical therapy post pregnancy can help relieve symptoms of
pelvic organ prolapse, diastasis recti, and other postpartum
symptoms.


Physical Therapy After Pregnancy


Physical therapy for pregnancy and after pregnancy can help
strengthen and restore pelvic floor muscle and joint function,
increase body awareness, and also provide education and
instruction on how to modify your daily activities to serve you
in your recovery. Some of the primary physical therapy options
available include:


Pelvic girdle and lumbar spine realignment

Prenatal tissue and joint mobilization

Postpartum external and internal tissue, joint, scar, and
visceral movement therapy

Strength training for pelvic floor muscles

Pelvic floor stabilization and core strength exercises

Proper posture, postural strengthening for back pain

Diastasis recti rehabilitation

Body mechanics training and education

At home strategies and education for self-care



How Do You Know if You Need Pelvic Floor Therapy?


The two most common conditions many postpartum people face are
diastasis recti and pelvic organ prolapse. Pregnancy and delivery
create an imbalance of muscles and ligament tension. This can
leave the pelvic floor and abdominals unsupported potentially
leading to prolapse or DRA. If you are experiencing any of these
symptoms, you may need to consider physical therapy or movement
therapy:


Constipation

Urinary incontinence

Fecal incontinence

Pain during intercourse

Vaginal pain

Rectal pain

Low back pain

Pelvic pain

Diastasis Recti – separation of the abdominal muscles

Pelvic organ prolapse

Pubic bone pain

Pelvic girdle pain



A physical therapist can help you recover from many of these
symptoms with the education and therapy options mentioned above.
If your physical therapist is specially trained to treat pelvic
floor issues, they can help significantly reduce the painful
symptoms you may be experiencing while also strengthening your
core and pelvic floor muscles.


What Helps with Postpartum Pain?


Physical therapy can be a great way to help women recover from
postpartum issues. However, not all exercise routines or core
training workouts are created equal. Restoring your body’s
function is not something to do quickly or forcefully. Exercise
is important, but resting and pacing yourself are far more vital
to your recovery than rushing it. Postpartum recovery requires a
specific re-training of your body to regain strength and
integrity. Long-term functionality is better than getting slim
fast.


Exercise


As you begin to exercise postpartum, it is important that your
focus be on the major muscle groups affected by your delivery.
Short spurts of slow, simple stretches and yoga poses are a great
place to begin. Shoot for around 10 to 20 minutes a day of light
exercise and stretching. Many exercises can be done during your
recovery, but it’s important that you don’t overexert yourself
before the 8 week mark is up (and for some women, even longer).
As you continue to regain strength and functionality, you
can gradually increase your workout time and
intensity.


Rest


If I could have a dollar for every person who wished they had
rested more in order to spare themselves injury. Rest is so
important for healing your body postpartum and ensuring that you
do not damage your core and your pelvic floor. We recommend
getting back into exercise at least 8 weeks postpartum, but even
then, easing into it is key.