Pre / Post natal

A woman’s body goes through significant changes during and post pregnancy. Let us support you during this incredible chapter of your life.

Are you pregnant and want to know how to exercise safely? Are you experiencing leakage or heaviness symptoms after having your baby?

• Pelvic floor concerns during pregnancy

  When you are pregnant, a hormone called ‘relaxin’ is released throughout your body which softens the tissues in your body. This allows your body to expand as your baby grows. The softening effect of relaxin combined with the increasing weight of baby places pressure on your pelvic floor muscles and can lead to pelvic floor weakness. Your pelvic floor muscles are very important muscles which hold your organs in their correct position and help control your bladder and bowel.

  Therefore pregnant women can experience bladder and bowel control concerns during pregnancy. Some women may also experience symptoms of a prolapse such as a bulge in the vagina, heaviness or pressure in the vaginal area (see prolapse page).

• Pregnancy and exercise

  Exercising during pregnancy has benefits for both mum and baby. Regular exercise which is done correctly during pregnancy can help reduce back pain, reduce leg cramps, constipation and improve sleep. We can provide guidance around starting a new exercise program or support you with continuing with your current exercise program during pregnancy.

• Post natal concerns

  During childbirth, the pelvic floor muscles and tissues that support your pelvic organs are stretched and can lead to weakness post delivery. Some women are more at risk of pelvic floor problems during pregnancy and childbirth than others. These include women who have had:

  • multiple births

  • instrumental births (using forceps or ventouse)

  • long second stage of labour / active pushing phase (over 1 hour)

  • significant perineal tearing

  • large babies (over 4Kg)

  As a result of pelvic floor weakness, it is common for many women to experience leakage and prolapse symptoms.

• Returning to exercise after birth

  Returning to running, sport or high impact exercise too early after childbirth could lead to pelvic floor issues and cause further bladder / bowel problems or even prolapse (see prolapse page). We highly recommend a postnatal pelvic floor and abdominal muscle assessment before returning to sport or exercise after the birth of your baby.

• Tummy muscle seperation / DRAM (Diastasis of the Rectus Abdominis Muscle)

  Abdominal muscle separation or DRAM (Diastasis of the Rectus Abdominis Muscle) is common and completely normal during pregnancy. This is where the connection tissue between your ‘six pack’ muscles weakens and thins so the ‘six pack’ muscles shift to the sides of your belly to accomodate for your growing baby. This can leave an area of weakness and sometimes bulging in the middle of your belly. Symptoms can include:

  • a visible and palpable ‘gap’ which runs vertically down the centre of your abdominal wall

  • a ‘bulge’ in your abdominal wall when you try to sit up

  • abdominal and / or back pain

• Pregnancy related pain

  Pregnancy related back pain and pelvic girdle pain is common but not normal. Many women think they just have to put up with their pain during pregnancy, but in fact there can be many strategies that we can show you which can help improve your pain. We can also help support women experiencing middle back pain, wrist pain (carpal tunnel) and tailbone pain during and post pregnancy.

How can Advance Pelvic Health help you?

We understand there are many changes that are happening to your body and we have many years of experience in supporting women pre and post delivery.

We will throughly assess your condition using various assessment strategies including: full body musculoskeletal checks, abdominal muscle assessments with ultrasound, internal pelvic floor examinations and external assessments of the pelvic floor via our ultrasound technology.

Our treatment strategies will be tailored around what we find in our detailed assessment of your symptoms and what you want to achieve. We will provide education about your condition and create an evidence-based personalised program that fits into your lifestyle. Let us guide you to achieving your best self during and post pregnancy.