Back pain during pregnancy

Back pain is a very common complaint among pregnant women. In fact, close to 80 percent of pregnant women suffer from back pain. For some women, symptoms may begin before they are actually showing and continue throughout the pregnancy. For others, discomfort may not be felt until the pregnancy advances and the uterus expands.

How does back pain during pregnancy develop?

Mother carrying baby on hip The ligaments between the pelvic bones begin to soften and joints to loosen during pregnancy in preparation for the baby's passage through the pelvis. These changes result in mobility of the joints in the pelvis, joints which haven't moved very much since about the age of three. This movement in the joints can cause considerable discomfort on either side of the lower back, often with walking, and especially when going up and down stairs. During the second trimester, the uterus becomes heavier and changes the woman’s center of gravity. Gradually — and perhaps without being aware of it — women begin to adjust their posture and the way in which they move. These compensations can result in back pain, strain or other injury. The separation of the muscles along the front of the abdomen during pregnancy may also contribute to back pain during pregnancy. These two parallel sheets of muscles run from the rib cage to the pubic bone. As the uterus expands, they sometimes separate along the center seam, which can make the back pain worse.

What are the symptoms of back pain during pregnancy?

The most common place for women to experience back pain during pregnancy is in the lower back. The pain may be constant or intermittent, depending on the task at hand. It is often felt in the sciatica, causing pain down the legs. During late pregnancy, many women feel a sharp pain up and down their back, legs and buttocks, and it is not unusual for women to feel some pain when walking, standing or bending at this point.

Conventional medical treatments may help relieve the symptoms of back pain during pregnancy, but they do not address the root of the problem. By strengthening structural weaknesses in the body, as natural medicine treatments like Prolotherapy do, back pain during pregnancy may be alleviated permanently.

Discover why we believe that natural medicine treatments are the best way to treat back pain during pregnancy.