Postnatal pelvic floor exercises
When to start doing doing pelvic floor exercises after birth?
You’ve heard your midwife, mum, fellow mum-friends, sister, cat and everyone on the street tell you about doing pelvic floor exercises while you’ve been pregnant. You may have even been given a handout or leaflet from your maternity team as they waved you home, but for many women, that’s about as much information as you get about your pelvic floor, and it can leave you feeling a bit lost.
In those very early days, it can seem incomprehensible to consider doing any exercise, especially if it involves ‘down there’ but actually these supersets of activities can really help with the healing process and relieve pain following delivery.
Recent evidence from Kari Bo (2020) investigated the effect of starting pelvic floor exercises during 0-6 weeks postnatal and confirmed that there were no negative outcomes from beginning pelvic floor exercises within the first 6 weeks. This is important information because it dispels the myth many women have about having to wait for their 6-week GP check before doing anything at all.
Of course, our whole ethos at the 360 Mama is to ensure that you recover smartly from pregnancy and birth, and we want to be clear that our recommendation is that you take things in your own time. When you feel comfortable to do so, here is the evidence to about the benefits of starting pelvic floor exercises following birth:
Pelvic floor exercises help to reduce swelling, improve the blood flow to the pelvic area, which can promote healing of any tearing or episiotomy scars and reduce pain
Your pelvic floor muscles move and function alongside breathing, so we can start as gently as taking some deep breaths.
You don’t need to do loads of them to get some benefit, so you can start with just a few gentle attempts at intervals during the day
It’s totally normal to not feel much is happening when you first begin performing your exercises, but this shouldn’t put you off practising!
Following a C-section, your pelvic floor muscles do still need to recover from the demands of supporting your growing baby for 9 months, and those who have had an emergency C-section may still have spent time pushing during labour before the surgical intervention was decided. However, pelvic floor activation exercises can also cause the lower abdominals to switch on, and this may be uncomfortable initially around your wound. Listen to your body and don’t do activities which cause pain.
If a woman has had a straightforward birth, then gentle stretches and pelvic floor exercises can begin as soon as they feel comfortable.
In the case of surgical intervention or other delivery complications they may need longer to recover and should seek the guidance of a health professional before beginning exercises
Our programme includes instructional videos about how to perform pelvic floor exercises correctly and effectively, and we’ll ensure that you know how to start gently and progress the level of exercise as you recover. It’s a great place to start, and we want you to feel supported whenever you feel the time is right to begin!
