Why a Physical Therapist should be a member of your prenatal and postpartum care team

When most people think of physical therapy, they think of patients doing exercises with a band or on a table at a PT clinic after a knee, shoulder, or other orthopedic surgery. Over the past several years, people have realized there is also benefit in seeing a physical therapist before having surgery (“prehab”) or to help reduce injury risk. When I worked in a hospital based system where we saw a lot of patients after joint replacements, we were often referred patients for prehab exercises before their surgery.

So if patients are being sent to physical therapy to physically prepare for surgery, why aren’t expecting mothers being referred to physical therapy to help them prepare for what will (most likely) be the most physically demanding event of their life?

There are so many benefits to seeing a physical therapist who specializes in treating pregnant and postpartum women, and many of us dream that one day ALL expecting mothers will be encouraged to find a physical therapist for their care team.

Here are just a few ways that seeing a physical therapist during pregnancy can be beneficial.

1) Managing common aches and pains that can occur during pregnancy

There are so many aches and pains that are commonly seen with pregnancy, such as carpal tunnel syndrome, pubic symphysis pain, SI joint and back pain, and foot pain. These are common and some of them will subside postpartum, however you do not need to suffer through your pregnancy. “The pain will go away once you have the baby” is NOT a good enough answer. Physical Therapy can be very effective in reducing pain and helping you stay healthy and active through your entire pregnancy.

2) Helping you stay active during pregnancy

At Absolute Kinetics, we offer pregnancy coaching to help our active pregnant mama’s continue to lift weights, run, or do any other activities they enjoy. Pregnancy isn’t a time to PR, but it is perfectly safe (and actually very good for both mom and baby!) to exercise during pregnancy. Having the right modifications can help expecting mothers stay safe and healthy, and avoid injuries, during pregnancy.

3) Preparing for labor, delivery, and early recovery

Labor and delivery is a major physical event, and there are ways we can prepare for it! Specially trained physical therapists can help with education on how the pelvic floor works during labor and delivery, positions for labor and delivery, as well as what to expect postpartum. There are many things that moms can do in the first couple of weeks to support their recovery, so having that education ahead of time can help you to prepare.

To learn more about the benefits of pelvic health therapy during pregnancy, check out our prenatal physical therapy page here.

So what about postpartum? Should every mom see a physical therapist after having a baby?

In my opinion, this one is a hell yes.

Again, labor and delivery is a major physical event. If you had a rotator cuff repair or knee surgery, you would absolutely be referred to physical therapy. So why aren’t we referring to PT postpartum?

If you had a c-section, you had a major abdominal surgery. That means a scar that can benefit from mobilization once it heals, and many layers of tissues that can benefit from rehabilitation. Also, whether you pushed during your labor experience or not, your pelvic floor has still been under a lot of stress during pregnancy. If you had a vaginal birth, you may have perineal scars that could benefit from mobilization and again, many tissues that were stretched and strained during pregnancy that need to be properly rehabilitated.

A few common postpartum symptoms that pelvic floor physical therapy can help with include back and SI joint pain, urinary urgency or leaking (both with and without activity), bowel abnormalities such as constipation, fecal incontinence, or leaking gas, sexual dysfunction such as painful intercourse or difficulty reaching orgasm, diastasis recti (abdominal separation), and pelvic organ prolapse.

However, even if you feel like everything is “normal” and you aren’t experiencing any of these symptoms, one visit with a PT can be beneficial for learning how to resume activity, how to reconnect to your core muscles, and how to reduce your risk for injury with both exercise and daily life tasks (because lets be honest - being a mom is a strength sport!).

I also want to note that postpartum is forever, and it is never too late to see a pelvic floor physical therapist. If you are expecting, experiencing any of the symptoms above, or just want to learn more about prenatal and postpartum PT, I would love to hear from you! Set up your free 15-minute discovery call here.

Blog post written by Dr. Alexis Hutchison, PT, DPT, OCS