Did you know that 50-70% of pregnant women experience back pain, especially as pregnancy progresses? This is because the hips, muscles and bones and more are all shifting to help make room for a growing baby. The most common area women experience back pain is the lower back. Instead of being in pain for 9 months, use our services such as chiropractic care to help relieve that pain!

 

Why Do You Get Pregnancy Back Pain?

As a baby grows, each week it’s getting larger inside a mother’s womb. That baby has to grow somewhere, so your body shifts around the bigger it gets. This can cause your body to change over time, especially in your hips, back and pelvis. The hips are known to get wider and the weight of a growing baby will constantly place pressure on your lower back. That pressure is a major reason why so many women have lower back pain that becomes more intense with time.

 

Lower back pain is already the leading type of back pain that people experience. The lower back area is the central point of your whole body. Your back and spine are the structures that hold up the rest of your body and are the areas where major body systems reside. There is a lot going on, and the pressure can cause pain and your body may literally shift out of place. However, the shifting with pregnancy is not the only thing happening to cause you pregnancy back pain. Hormones also play a role.

 

Hormones change to support not only you, but another person. Your body creates new blood vessels to pump blood and oxygen everywhere, and your muscles become looser. If you’re experiencing more popping joints, more flexibility and changes to your muscles that weren’t there previously, you can thank those hormones. However, that loosening can also cause pregnancy back pain. Joints aren’t held together as strongly despite growing pressure in the pelvic and lower back areas, which can increase inflammation, misalignment and pain.

 

Remedies for Pregnancy Back Pain

Want to be done with that pregnancy back pain? There are common methods that can help most pregnant women find relief. However, you might have to try a few methods to see what works well for you. Changing your diet can play a major role in how your back feels. If you load up on food every day, you may be gaining too much extra weight. That extra weight will increase pressure on all your joints and your back.

 

Working with your doctor to maintain a healthy pregnancy weight with the right, nutritious foods can help you stay in a healthy range. It will also give your body nutrients to keep muscles, bones, tendons, ligaments and more healthy so you have less inflammation and swelling. Here are some other tips to help remedy pregnancy back pain:

• Try chiropractic care! This is a natural rehabilitative treatment that helps gently realign your back and spine properly. It can gently place your pelvis, back and other joints in their proper positions and adjustments can happen as often as they are needed.
• Sleep smart. Did you know that pregnant women should not sleep flat on their backs? This puts a lot of pressure on the back and spine and can cut off some blood flow to a growing baby. The best way to sleep is on your side with support pillows to prop up your belly and to support your back.
• Wear a maternity belt. Have back pain? Use a maternity belt that helps hold up your belly to relieve some of the pressure on your back!
• Proper exercise. Proper exercise circulates oxygen and blood all over the body. It can help your baby grow stronger and better and helps prevent pregnancy back pain. If exercise is difficult for you, try swimming or getting physical therapy help for customized exercises.

 

Tips to Help Avoid Back and Spine Issues

Pregnancy back pain can happen depending on your daily actions. Do you lift heavier objects (like other children) with your legs or your back? Do you wear good shoes that support your body well? How about your exercise? Is it done correctly? These are questions you want to ask yourself. To reduce back and spine issues both with pregnancy and without it, invest in shoes with great foot support. You’ll avoid both feet problems and can alleviate some back pain problems at the same time.

 

Always lift with your legs and not your back, no matter your age or if you are pregnant or not. Many people injure their backs because of improper lifting and especially turning. When exercising, always find out (or have someone help you with) proper technique so you avoid injury. When doing squats or other movements, your knees should not go out over your toes or you could injure yourself. In the winter and with the elements, make sure you have the right shoes and that you use caution to avoid falls that could lead to injuries. If you have an office job or sit for most of the day, make a goal to stand up more or to get your feet moving. Sedentary lifestyles are ones that lead to back pain.

 

Your Health Consultation

Many women don’t realize that they can get help for the pregnancy back pain they feel, when they definitely can! Lower back pain is incredibly common, and with modern technology, people have been working to help curb that pain for years. Chiropractic care is a great (and did we mention natural) way to help relieve your pain. It can be as gentle as you want it to be, and you can come in frequently as your body grows and changes every week and month. If you are experience back pain or pregnancy back pain (as we can help treat it all), call Spine Correction Center of the Rockies today at (970) 658-5115!