Pelvic Pain

Pregnancy-Related Pelvic Girdle Pain

Pelvic girdle pain is pain in the pelvic joints that may develop during or after pregnancy.

Pelvic pain may occur because of:

• changes to your posture
• increased pressure on your pelvis due to the growth of your baby
• hormonal changes which soften the ligaments that support the pelvis.

These changes can place increased strain on the pelvic joints making the joints inflamed and painful.

What you might feel

• Clicking, locking or grinding in the pelvic joints.
• Pain in the front or the back of the pelvis, buttocks, groin and/or radiating into the thighs.

The shaded areas in the picture below are where pain commonly occurs.

Activities that may increase your pelvic girdle pain

• Prolonged walking
• Fast walking
• Getting in and out of the car or bed
• Rolling in bed
• Lying flat
• Deep squatting or lunging
• Going up and down stairs
• Standing on one leg (e.g. dressing – putting on pants)
• Moving from sitting to standing
• High impact exercise (e.g. running and jumping activities)

Managing your pelvic girdle pain

To avoid increasing pelvic girdle pain:

• Don’t push through pain.
• Take smaller steps when walking.
• Walk shorter distances.
• Reduce heavy lifting and pushing and pulling activities such as vacuuming.
• Break up large tasks into smaller activities.
• Rest in between activities.
• Keep your knees together when rolling in bed.
• Roll under rather than over when rolling in bed.
• Sleep on your side with a pillow in between your legs.
• Get in and out of bed with your knees together (see the diagram below).

Tips to reduce your pelvic girdle pain

• Use an ice pack on the painful area for 20–30 minutes every 2–3 hours. Wrap the ice pack so that the ice is not in direct contact with your skin.
• Stand tall at all times.
• Sit tall with back support.
• Wear a compression garment or support belt (supplied by your physiotherapist).
• Perform strengthening exercises for the hip, pelvic floor and deep abdominal muscles (as
• shown by your physiotherapist).
• Use home massage or trigger points to release tight muscles (as shown by your
• physiotherapist).

After the birth

• Rest lying down rather than sitting in chair.
• Continue to ice the painful area (20–30 minutes every 2–3 hours).
• Use your compression garment or support belt if required.
• Move within your pain limits