A quick reminder that this is information only, never to be taken as health advice. If you experience discomfort during pregnancy, please call you healthcare provider, or call your local health line number, or head into the hospital for assessment.

It’s been a minute since we entered the world of blogs! Since we chat about so many different areas in our prenatal classes, from pregnancy all the way to the beginning parts of parenthood (Hence the name of our signature Prenatal Course ;) ), we thought we would start where we meet a lot of you - while you’re still pregnant! And what pregnant person hasn’t noticed the occasional backache or two (or let’s be real, maybe a few more than that!)?
As our uterus and baby grow during pregnancy, they start to change our posture by pulling our front body more forward than our spine is used to. This can create tension and discomfort in the lower back.
During this time, it’s really important to be mindful of our posture, and engaging our muscles to keep our bodies in alignment (Are you sitting up straighter after reading this sentence? We know that we are!)
To keep your body in alignment during pregnancy, try to imagine that you are keeping your body stacked: think about ears over shoulders, shoulders over hips, and hips over knees with a slight bend to the knees. Remember to keep your core engaged (yes, you still have one!), with your bum tucked comfortably underneath you (we say comfortably, because we don’t want to permanently squeeze our bum all the day long either!). Keep your weight distributed evenly over both feet, and this might be a time to pack away the stilettos for now and slip into some more comfortable, sturdy footwear to decrease the risk of you falling. We aren’t questioning your skill - our centre of gravity and balance is thrown wayyyy off during pregnancy.

While posture can be really helpful to help manage lower back discomfort, we know that sometimes it takes a combination of things to find relief in pregnancy. First of all, we want to say that if you experience any new pain, we want you to talk to your healthcare provider about it, so that they can sort of what the cause is. It's common to have discomfort when our babies stick a foot in our ribs, or as our ligaments stretch to accommodate our growing belly, but sometimes pain can be a result of something more serious, so always check in with your healthcare provider first. They can also help brainstorm ideas of what you can do to help!
Often it’s a combination of things that seem to do the trick. Good posture, physiotherapy or body work by a person experienced in working with pregnant people can be helpful. Your doctor might also recommend ice, or very low heat on the area, or some sort of belly or pelvic support band. Massage can also provide comfort, and putting your feet up can do wonders, as well! Finally, your doctor may discuss with you certain medications that are safe to take during pregnancy.
If you’re wondering if we talk about all the ways to manage discomfort in pregnancy as well as during labour in our Live Prenatal Classes, we absolutely do, and more! Click here to arm yourself with knowledge to help carry you through the remainder of pregnancy, and head into parenthood with confidence!

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