Let me walk you through my postpartum experience after having my first baby, Olive.
Going home from the hospital, I was told to avoid lifting anything over 10 lbs and avoid all exercise, except for walking. Then I had my 6-week postpartum appointment and was told “you’re good!”. I left the doctor’s office feeling confused, but this was my first time, so I just assumed that if something was wrong, they would have told me.
I started using my body again like it had never housed and birthed a 7 lb baby just a few weeks before that. I started noticing that all was not well with my new body. I quickly learned that my abdominal muscles had separated (diastasis recti, which I had never heard of before) and I had a mild prolapse (pelvic organs falling out of place). My abdomen felt very weak and unstable, I had trouble getting out of bed, and going to the bathroom was a little different now. Most of the women in my life who had babies before me seemed to talk about those things as if they were normal. Things like, having a “mom pooch”, peeing your pants with sneezing or laughing, all things that we just have to live with now because we chose to have children. I was not satisfied with just living with my symptoms. I did tons of research and reached out to a pelvic floor PT who gave me simple exercises to help improve some of my symptoms.
*See her information at the end of this post. It was amazing how much those simple exercises helped me!
Fast forward 2 years, I’ve had another baby, rehabilitated my diastasis recti and my pelvic organ prolapse. I then decided to dedicate the rest of my occupational therapy career to serving women struggling with these issues.
If you or a mama you love are experiencing any of the following symptoms or are curious if your body is ready for exercise, ask your doctor about a referral to pelvic floor therapy for a postpartum assessment at EPT:
- Mom pooch, poor trunk/core control
- Painful scar (Cesarean section, episiotomy, or vaginal tear)
- Bulging or heaviness at your pelvic floor
- Bladder and/or bowel issues
- Lingering low back pain
- Pelvic pain
- Thumb and/or wrist pain (Mommy’s thumb)
Your body is AMAZING and BEAUTIFUL the way it is. It grew and birthed a tiny human! Together, we can find ways to improve your function and learn about your new postpartum body.
Give me a call at 270-873-4685 with any questions or to get scheduled!
*ALSO, make sure you head to Ali’s website for some awesome information!
She is a physical therapist located in the Springfield, MO area. Ali is also helping patients with pelvic floor online coaching. Check her out!