Benefits Of Physiotherapy During Pregnancy

One of the most beautiful experiences you can have in life is being pregnant. While on the one hand, it is full of happy anticipation, excitement and lots of emotional changes keeping you happy, on the other hand, it comes with a lot of challenges of its own. Be it the changes in your body or hormones, each has its own impact, causing pain and fatigue.

This is a time when you should prioritize your health over anything else as it has a direct impact on your baby as well. So what is it that you can do to handle the different aches and pains? Obviously, the only external medicine that you should take is the one prescribed by your doctor. An excess of painkillers is strongly discouraged by all doctors. The alternative you can explore is Physiotherapy.

Yes, it is therapy with the help of light exercise, massages and heat therapy and most importantly without the use of any external medicine. All these taken together ensure that you are not just feeling light and happy, but also your body keeps gaining the strength it will need to take you through this phase.

There are a number of advantages of opting for physiotherapy during your pregnancy. Some of these advantages are listed below to give you an idea of what to expect, with physiotherapy during your pregnancy. While this is an indicative list, you should consult your doctor for what can work for you and whether you should go for physiotherapy.

1. Increases Flexibility and Muscle Strength – During pregnancy, your body undergoes a number of changes to allow your child to grow. This may cause a lot of strain and restrict movements for some women. As you may be able to relate, flexibility and muscle strength become of utmost importance in such a situation. With the help of your physiotherapist, you can go for light exercise that makes this possible.
   In turn, the increased flexibility will allow you to remain active even with all the physical changes. This will not just keep you happy but also give a boost to your overall confidence. Pain alleviation is a simple by-product of increased agility. Increasing your muscle strength aids by reducing the extra stress on your back and feet as caused by the increasing weight of the baby. Thus, physiotherapy helps in the overall well-being of an expectant mother.

2. Good Mental Health – Pregnancy can be a taxing experience not just physically but mentally as well for most women. Your body is adjusting to so many changes and the hormones are overactive, preparing for the new arrival. All these factors can lead to you feeling emotional, stressed and anxious. Some women also feel depressed during this tough phase of life.
   In such a scenario, mental health becomes as important as taking care of your physical health. You should consult your doctor about any medications that you may need to take. But the one thing that helps most women in this emotional roller coaster is physiotherapy. Yes, it is a known fact that exercise releases happiness hormone causing you to let go of some of the stress. And physiotherapy ensures that you get the exercise that is safe for you under the supervision of an expert, leading to correct exercises and improving your overall health.

3. Reduce Back Pain – An extremely common phenomenon during pregnancy is back pain, especially in the lower back region. The explanation for this is pretty simple. The abdominal muscles grow to make space for the growing fetus. As this growth is in the front, the back muscles feel the extra strain. The increased weight simply adds on to the strain causing the expectant mothers to feel back pain.
   With the help of physiotherapy, it is possible to increase flexibility and allow your back muscles to cope with the excessive strain. This helps in reducing the back pain and lets you feel relaxed. Ask your physiotherapist to show you simple exercises that you can do at home with little or no assistance in order to keep the pain in check.

4. Developing Stamina and Strength – Any experienced person will tell you that during your pregnancy journey, the thing that will help you most is working on increasing your stamina and strength. And the simplest way to do this is with light but effective exercise as part of your physiotherapy.
   Contrast to the popular misconception that exercising during pregnancy can cause problems when done under the supervision of an expert physiotherapist, it can help you to build your strength and with increased stamina, you will be ready to enjoy this precious time of your life. It is a well-known fact that most athletes turn to exercise for developing their stamina for bigger challenges. It is no different for an expectant mother, after all, you are also going through one of the biggest challenges of your life with an equally precious reward at the end of it!

7. Chances Of Natural Child Birth – Although there is no direct correlation of proof for the same, it has been observed that the more active you are during your pregnancy, the chances of you going in for a natural childbirth This may be due to the fact that your body is acclimatized to the changes much better as a result of the physiotherapy and exercises.
   The healthy state of your body aids in staying in a more natural state and leading to increased chances of natural birth. The exercises like the pelvic exercise would also have prepared you for the delivery.
8. Keeps Your Body Active – With the changing lifestyle, the one thing that has become a reality for most individuals is the lack of activity. This becomes even more prominent when you become pregnant. The reason can vary from fatigue to the different aches and pains that you have. But what this overall inactivity does is cause further health issues.
   Instead, the experts advise an expectant mother to remain as active as possible, unless otherwise advised by the doctor. You should keep your body fit and active to prepare for the hormonal and structural changes that it has to undergo throughout the duration. Physiotherapy under the guidance of an expert professional helps a lot in this regard. The simple exercises targeting specific body parts and muscle groups ensure that you remain active throughout this crucial phase of your life.
9. Reduces Pain In Child Birth – Most women who went for physiotherapy throughout their pregnancy claim that it helped them with their delivery as well. As your body and especially pelvic muscles are active and have increased strength, thanks to the exercises, it helps to push and reduces pain during childbirth.
   Most experts believe that during childbirth, especially natural childbirth, it is very important for the mother to have a higher core strength to aid in pushing. This can be achieved by staying active and following simple exercises throughout their pregnancy. The right physiotherapist will help you customize your exercise plan to your specific needs. At the same time, they will ensure that you increase your stamina as well as strength to assist during childbirth.

Author Bio:- A brainchild of IIT alumni Vipin, Abhishek and Garima, Care24 offers professional care from trained caregivers that help the patient recuperate at home. Care24 has been in operation since 2014 and has successfully helped 40000+ families heal at home in Mumbai and Delhi.