What Causes Tailbone Pain After Childbirth?
Category: Back Pain | Author: Stefano Sinicropi
A woman’s body goes through some immense changes during pregnancy and the birthing process, but these physical changes can also be quite uncomfortable and even painful. And while your spine may start to bother you a little more as your developing baby puts more stress on your back, your tailbone may be the area of your spine that is most affected by the birth of your child.
Odds are you’ll have some tailbone discomfort for a few weeks after the birth of your child, but how can you treat this discomfort and what should you do if your tailbone ends up dislocating or fracturing during childbirth? We explore how you can effectively manage tailbone injuries after childbirth in today’s blog.
Tailbone Pain Treatment After Childbirth
As we mentioned during the introduction, your body goes through some amazing changes as it prepares to help deliver your child. During the third trimester, your body releases hormones that actually make your tailbone more flexible so that it can more easily shift to aid in the delivery process. Ligaments that are attached to your tailbone also become more flexible to help give the baby more room during delivery, but this enhanced flexibility can also increase your risk of ligament sprains or strains.
The actual birthing of your child is what usually causes the most issues for a woman’s tailbone. As the baby is delivered, your tailbone may dislocate or fracture as the baby passes through the birthing canal. This is more likely to happen if:
- Your baby is larger than average
- You baby is in a posterior position when delivered
- A vacuum or forceps was used to assist with the delivery
And while it may be clear that you are suffering from some type of tailbone discomfort, in most cases, it’s not immensely important to determine if pain is caused by the trauma of childbirth, bruising or a fracture. All of these injuries tend to heal just fine on their own without surgical intervention, the only real difference is how long you may need to pursue conservative techniques before you find relief.
