Pregnancy brings unprecedented changes as well as developments in a woman’s body and some complications also take place. A section of pregnant women face hassles like frequent urination and incontinence, apart from various developments caused by hormonal changes. It is important to tone and strengthen the pelvic floor muscles in pregnancy.
The pelvic floor has functions like:
- Supporting your bladder, uterus and bladder
- Giving you control over bowel and bladder
- Stabilizinghip and lower back joints
- Providing base for vaginal functioning
Being pregnant an actually exert stress on the pelvic floor muscles. The pelvic floor region may get weakened and stretched after the first trimester. Constipation which affects pregnant women often can also strain the pelvic floor.
Read More:11 Home Remedies to Stop Pelvic Pain during Pregnancy
Natural Ways toMake Your Pelvic Floor Strong in Pregnancy
You can resort to a few tried and tested remedies to make your pelvic floor strong after conceiving:
- Limit caffeine intake- In any case, you have to keep a tab on what you eat and drink during pregnancy. Limiting caffeine intake would be prudent to keep pelvic floor muscles strong. In fact, any drink that can agitate the bladder should be evaded.
- Avoid dehydrating the body- Drinking with caution in pregnancy is desirable but by no means drink so less that your body becomes dehydrated. Drinking less water makes urine concentrated which can also irritate the bladder.
- Choose foods with care- In pregnancy craving for certain type of food is natural but it would be wise to avoid in taking certain foods for pelvic floor health. For example, you should avoid eating spicy and junk foods, citrus drink and alcohol. These can also aggravate the bladder.
- Bladder training- it may not sound realistic but a number of pregnant women have benefitted from it. Using a frequency to urinate during pregnancy helps tone up pelvic floor muscles.
- Exercises- Pregnant women are often advised to practice specific types of exercises to stay fit and strengthen the pelvic floor muscles. The pelvic floor exercises are also called kegels. However, it is advisable that you learn to do these exercises to keep pelvic region in good shape from a veteran trainer. Proper breathing tactics are required to perform these exercises.
- Compression stockings- Wearing specially made compression stockings can be helpful for pelvic floor health. Wearing these stockings enhance blood flow to the pelvic region. This also helps keep blood flow in the veins normalized and prevent swelling of veins in legs.
- Dealing with constipation- A number of pregnant women development owing to hormonal changes in body. In such cases, constipation may create pressure on pelvic floor. You need to seek medical intervention to get rid of constipation in pregnancy for keeping pelvic floor in shape. Eating foods rich in natural fiber can be of much help.
- Yoga poses- Pre natal yoga poses can be helpful for keeping your body fit and strengthening pelvic floor muscles, as it is. Cat pose and downward facing dog poses are especially helpful in this regard. However, you need to learn the poses from a veteran yoga trainer.
Read More:7 Must Know Prenatal Yoga Poses
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Pelvic Pain During Pregnancy
Important things to keep in mind
While it is important to resort to measures that will keep pelvic floor in top shape, you need to remember some factors. Not every woman has same health conditions and food habits, immunity and pregnancy related developments are never the same in all pregnant women. So, you should do anything only after seeking medical advice. Some kegel exercises may actually not be suited for your health conditions and resorting to them may complicate things.
