What Are The Benefits of Prenatal Rehab?
It’s no secret that being pregnant isn’t easy. In fact, 50-70 percent of pregnant women experience chronic back pain (defined as pain that lasts longer than 2-3 months) during their pregnancies, and many simply tolerate the discomfort.
Because of the added stress, weight gain, hormone increases, and changes to the body’s posture and center of gravity, pregnancy causes a slew of aches and pains.
It’s not uncommon for pregnant women to experience decreased physical activity. It can feel challenging to get active while experiencing discomfort and while juggling the responsibilities of preparing for a new life. However, a lack of physical activity can make pregnancies more difficult and leave a mother’s body unprepared to give birth.
Contact our office today for more information on how we can help alleviate your pregnancy discomforts and prepare your body for birth.
What does prenatal rehab look like?
When most people hear the term “rehab,” they immediately think of recovery. That is not always the case, however. Specific rehab treatments can be used to prepare for a physically demanding event, such as childbirth or surgery.
Prenatal rehab can help your body cope with the stresses it is currently experiencing and better prepare it for birth. You can make pregnancy, birth, and recovery much easier on yourself if you participate in prenatal rehab.
Prenatal physical therapy treatments can address all of the factors contributing to your pain and discomfort. These treatments are aimed at improving posture, flexibility, muscle strength, joint alignment, and nerve involvement. When all of these factors are operating at peak efficiency, your stress, fatigue, and achiness will begin to fade.
What can I expect from prenatal rehab?
Your physical therapist will conduct a thorough evaluation during your initial visit. To determine the best course of treatment for you, they will examine common problem areas such as gait, range of motion, posture, and overall mobility. Following your evaluation, your physical therapist will develop a customized treatment plan based on your medical history and any health constraints you may have.
Neuromuscular re-education is an important part of prenatal rehab. Essentially, your physical therapist will assist you in re-training specific muscles to function as they should. Pregnancy has a significant impact on your body, especially when exercise is limited, and muscles may need to be retrained on how to function properly.
Back and core exercises, as well as pelvic floor strengthening, may be included. Unless your obstetrician advises otherwise, exercise is essential during pregnancy. Women who exercise during pregnancy recover much faster, and their babies are healthier.
Other forms of treatment, such as manual therapy to mobilize joints and relieve stress and inflammation or ergonomic training to simplify your numerous daily responsibilities, may also be included in your treatment plan.
Your physical therapist may also recommend some helpful home remedies to alleviate discomfort and promote a healthy pregnancy. Overall, prenatal rehab will aid in the improvement of the factors that may be impeding your progress.
What treatments are available to me in prenatal rehab?
While pregnancy pain is common, it shouldn’t be viewed as normal. Pain is frequently caused by increased elasticity in the body’s soft tissues and postural changes as the baby grows.
Physical therapy or prenatal rehab are excellent tools used to treat pregnancy pain. Our skilled physical therapists assist women in stabilizing their pelvic floor and abdominal muscles, improving their body mechanics, and reducing pregnancy-related pain.
Examples of therapeutic treatments you may encounter include:
- Manual Therapy to treat musculoskeletal pain and disability
- Myofascial Release techniques to increase soft tissue flexibility and mobility
- Aquatic Therapy to assist in patient healing and mobility
- Strength and mobility exercises, as well as postural alignment and balance exercises
- Proper body mechanics and positioning suggestions to reduce pain and discomfort
Our comprehensive prenatal rehab program also includes breathing and relaxation techniques to assist you in preparing for your delivery.
Schedule your appointment today!
Pregnancy is a lot of work and you don’t have to go through it alone. To learn more about our prenatal rehab services, make an appointment with one of our physical therapists today. We’ll make it as easy as possible for you to prepare for your new bundle of joy!