Postpartum Series: Part 1
Your body goes through so many changes while your pregnant. After you’ve given birth, you should wait about six weeks to get massage to allow your body and your mind to settle and heal. Once you’ve been checked out by a doctor at six weeks, they can clear you for normal activity and massage. This may take time depending on how your labour went, so don’t be discouraged if it takes a few extra weeks.
Today we are discussing some of the physical changes that occur while you’re pregnant, how some of these changes persist beyond pregnancy, and how massage therapy can help.
DIASTASIS RECTI
During your pregnancy, your uterus grows and starts to put pressure on your organs and muscular layers of your abdomen. As it continues, it is very normal for your recuts abdominis (your ‘6 pack’ abs) to separate. Along with this, the connective tissue that connects the two is unable to maintain its normal structure as it tries to hold the two sections of the muscle group together. All of this is a normal process of your body adapting and giving your growing baby space to thrive. However, once your baby is born, this space does not always come back together on its own.
If this is you, I highly recommend working with a postpartum physiotherapist (message me if you’re looking for one!) but massage therapy can also help to allow the layers of fascia, muscle and connective tissue to return your abdominal muscles back into place.
Not sure if you’re struggling with this kind of issue? You will often see a gap in your stomach when you try to do a task which requires your abdominal muscles. You can ask your doctor if you’re unsure, but a massage therapist or physiotherapist can also identify this issue.
LOW BACK PAIN
Postpartum low back pain is a common issue for clients whether or not they had low back pain in pregnancy. As we described above, your abdominal muscles have spent several months being stretched and sometimes relocated. Furthermore, your hips and your pelvis have widened and often will remain a little wider. Without your abdominal muscles to support you, and your hips widened, your back is suddenly having to manage and support a lot more than it did before.
When I work with clients with persistent low back pain, it’s often a conversation about balance. I want to make sure I’m loosening the back muscles as the client strengthens their abdominal muscles. This is especially important for postpartum clients. No, this does not mean sit-ups (especially if you’re struggling with diastasis recti). We start with the deepest layer of the abdominal group, the transverse abdominis. I don’t want to be loosening the low back muscles too much if your abdominal muscles aren’t there to support your core.
SHOULDER, NECK, UPPER BACK PAIN
Whether you’re breastfeeding, pumping and/or bottle feeding, holding a baby in your arms for long stretches can be a lot of stress on your shoulders, neck and back. Extra breast tissue can further weigh your chest down and make it difficult to maintain a good posture through the whole day as hard as you try.
Massage is a great option to help loosen the muscles in your chest and the front of your neck which are pulling you forward, and also bring relief and circulation to the overstretched muscles in your shoulders, back and neck.
Breastfeeding mothers can find it uncomfortable to lie on their chests, so we have pillows to prop up shoulders if they still want to lay face down, or we can turn you on your side.
SCAR PAIN
If you had a c-section in your labour, your abdominal muscles will need some time and attention to rehabilitate and return to their normal function, but you may also experience scar pain. This can seem strange as it often can continue to occur after healing has seemed to be complete. It’s important to always make sure you ask a doctor about your healing and make sure you’re following instructions to manage the healing process.
If you’re scar has healed completely but you’re still struggling with scar pain, massage therapy can help. There are also a few techniques we can use to help the scar fade better over time and not become overly restricted. These are not always comfortable techniques but if this is something you’re struggling with, there are options for you!
PELVIC FLOOR WEAKNESS
Your pelvic floor, like your abdominal muscles, held a lot of extra weight during your pregnancy. These muscles and connective tissue layers which hold everything in place have often been stretched significantly during pregnancy. This can develop into pelvic floor issues.
Sometimes this is an issue that women do not take seriously enough. Our mothers and grandmothers can sometimes joke about it being normal to pee with you sneeze, laugh, or cough, but there is a lot that con be done to reverse this issue and many other pelvic floor issues.
Pelvic floor issues postpartum can look like pain or disfunction while using the washroom, squatting down, having sex, laughing, sneezing, or coughing. It can also come in along with diastasis recti and/or low back pain.
This is an extremely common issue for almost every woman to various levels after pregnancy and requires attention and care to return to normal. I highly recommend that clients see a pelvic floor physiotherapist alongside massage.
You may not have all of these concerns after pregnancy, but it’s very likely you’ll have at least one of these. It’s a great idea to plan a massage in advance of having your child. After your labour, you may very quickly forget or delay your own care and that is a very natural thing to do. Caring for yourself, however, will give you a great foundation to give the best care to your child(ren).
As a woman who knows all too well that it’s hard to put yourself first, especially in the first few months of a new child, I offer home visits so you don’t need to leave the house or find infant care.
If you know of someone who is pregnant, a massage therapy gift card is a great baby shower gift or push present. It takes the financial concern out of it, and I offer direct billing to make the money go farther as families are often making a little less income during this time.
The next blog post will be discussing some of the mental and emotional changes that occur during postpartum and how massage therapy can be helpful to regulate our hormones and stress levels postpartum.
Please note that as a Registered Massage Therapist, I am not a Medical Doctor. The information above is for educational and entertainment purposes not to give medical advise. Any questions about your body or medical conditions should be addressed with a physician. Never delay or disregard personal professional medical advise based on information you have read on this website.
