Groin Pain

Try to find a yoga teacher who has experience teaching prenatal yoga. I have been going to a class once a week and find that it helps with my aches and pains. I also had some groin pain but the yoga helped me. Going to a regular yoga class might cause you to over extend yourself.

Good Luck!

Hi R.,
I'm sorry that you are uncomfortable, but it will all be over VERY soon! How exciting! I definitely think that you are experiencing ligament pain from your pelvis relaxing, as your doctor suggested. This is very common and it is true that after you give birth it should be better, as the hormone that is causing the overstretched ligaments will be reduced back to normal levels. I am a physical therapist, so I have worked with a number of people who have shared your pain and I have actually dealt with it myself during my recent pregnancy, so I know how uncomfortable you must be. A couple of suggestions that I can make that might be helpful are to get into the pool! Swimming in the water will help you to unweight your body and feels really good. A pregnancy support belt was also very helpful for me, as it also unweights your belly and gives your ligaments a break from being strethed by the added weight. Another suggestion that might work for you. Try doing pelvic tilts (between 50 and 100 a night)- (preferably on all-fours, but sitting or lying will work, it just takes a bit longer to get the results...) That strengthens the back and abdominal muscles, which will help relieve the pressure on the ligaments. Also, when you are walking, try to periodically hold your abdominal muscles tight to support the weight of the uterus. Although I have not read it myself, I have heard that a good book is "Essential Exercises for the Childbearing Year" by Elizabeth Noble. One other suggestion I have is to have a significant other lace his fingers together and place them under your belly. (make SURE that you have emptied her bladder prior to trying this! :D) Then have him GENTLY and SLOWLY lift up, not in, but up and hold for a few seconds and then gently release. This feels really good and makes you feel like you're not even pregnant (if only for a moment or two!). I hope these ideas help, I hope you feel better and I wish you all the happiness in the world with your baby to be!
B.

Yes, your doctor is most likely right. The pain can come for the pelvic or hip areas. I remember, during my first pregnancy, having that problem with my hips. It was so painful! I couldn't walk at all for about three days. And even after that it was painful. I can remember having to crawl into the bathroom and pull myself onto the toilet. It was horrible, but I couldn't even stand, let alone walk.

However, if after reading my little story, you still feel that their is a problem, you can contact your doctor again and see about making an appointment.

S.

hi R....i went through the exact same thing and all i can tell you is to hang in there. there were no exercises or medicine that helped me...the one good thing though was that is disappeared immediately following delivery! just take it easy because you dont want to pull anything else! best of luck to you!

I had the same pain towards the ends of both of my pregnancies but honestly I never found anything that really helped besides moving around as much as possible. It was always worse when I got up from sleeping. But I just took it slow and as I walked around more and more it got better. I also started taking regular walks just around the block every couple of hours and that seemed to help a lot too. But it is totally normal, just uncomfortable. Good luck!

I similarly experienced much more groin pain in my second pregnancy. Apparently it is normal as you've loosened up alot of those joints and muscles in your first delivery. I found that limiting certain activities that involved crouching - particularly kneeling next to the tub while bathing my 3 yo and lifting her - helped. You can also try a more ergonomic sitting position that takes some of the weight off your groin. Try propping pillows behind your back or use a chair with a back arch to it (for example look at the IKEA Poang series chairs,which you can use a pillow to imitate). It helps to keep in mind groin pain is common in second pregnancies but don't hesitate to call your doctor or go in if you're really uncomfortable. At 35 weeks you need (and deserve) all the peace of mind and support you can get and a good doctor won't turn you away. Best of luck for the remainder of your pregnancy and birth!

ugh, i had that with my boy..i had to sleep sitting up. ive never experienced such pain or discomfort ever. my doctor finally prescribed sleeping pills too. which i couldnt take cuz i have another one at home. you could ask ur doc about those for nights. i hated it!! did ur doc say a heating pads ok? or try elevating ur feet. not much worked for me but, hang in there, this is def the worst month before the relief of delivery

i had the same problem when i was pg. i wore a maternity belt and that helped alittle. i also went to a chiropractor that did the activator method and that helped alot it put the body part that is "clicking" as i would say back. for sleeping i slept w/pillows between my legs and that would help some. a body pillow is nice too. the last few weeks are very uncomfortable i went through the summer too. after you have the baby it does go away. good luck.

Sounds to me that your doctor is on target. Ask him/her if it is ok to take a calcium chew. I've a feeling you're not a big milk drinker from your youth, or that you lack calcium. The pressure of the pregnancy is most probably the pain your feeling as your baby is weighing down on the pelvic bones that are spreading. I believe it will go away after birth, however, this is an indication of what may come in about 8 years when you begin your 40's. Utilize approved vitamins by your physician to help prevent osteoporosis down the road. By the way, I'm 46 and every bone in my body creaks and I regret not starting the calcium chews at your age. Take care and happy and safe delivery!

Hi There
I had this my doctor called it Pubic bone seperation it was the most painful experience for me it started around the end of my 7th month. I had my son in March via c-section for 2 reasons 1 being becuse of my seperation out of fear of making it worse and being bed ridden for 3months (it happened to someone I knew.) The other reason being my son was weigning in at 9pds (he was 10pds 3onces when he was born.)
I slept with a body pillow at night it helped a little, I took tylenol pm at night too because I was becoming so irratiable from loss of sleep. They gave me a belly belt that didn't work they wanted me to do therapy but the therapist said there was nothing they could do!!! (Its very frustrating) I am sorry to say that nothing really worked and my son is 4months old and I am still in pain. I just recently had an x-ray to determine the problem and I am still seperated (they gave me pain medicine and motrin which you can't do til after the pregnancy but that is the only thing that has taken the pain away :()I am waiting for a call back to tell me what the next step is!! I fear my next pregnancy because of this seperation!! :( If you find anything out that works for you please let me know.
I am sorry that I can't give you any good news about this!!

S.

I had the same problem with my second baby. Ask your doctor to send you to physical thearpy. OR get a pregnancy message. The PT should beable to tell what type of excerises to help with the pain. And don't expect the pain to go away right away after birth. My son is almost 18 months and if I sit the wrong way for any amout of time it still cracks. The sound is your bones go back in to place. Good Luck

Ok, I had this when I was early on in my pregnancy and the doc said it's a particular ligament in the pelvis ( I think it was "round ligament") and that gets stretched so it hurts. Same thing, if I got up suddenly I would double over in pain, especially if I was sitting for a while (like when you get up in the morning). Walking made it worse and I had to just sit and rest for a while and watch that I don't do sudden movements. It was so bad that I had an emergency ultrasound to check if I was having an ectopic pregnacy! You are almost done. If the doc says you are fine then watch that you get up slowly and get plenty of rest.

Been there. I thought it was the pubic bone seperation thing and so did my doc. Then we found out that I had hairline fractures in my pelvis from my daughter being so big. You need a complete pelvic to find out if its just the pubic bone seperating or something more. I know its very painful and I feel for you. Stay off your feet as much as you can is all I can offer for advice. Good Luck.

Fortunately for me, I didn't have the issue you're experiencing - and I have to say, it sounds pretty unpleasant, so I feel for you.

Something that might be asking your doctor about is acupuncture. I have used it for other issues that I have had (migraines as well as a sports injury), and I was really surprised how much of a difference it made! My OB had fliers up in the office for acupuncturists, so it is really becoming more mainstream (even my father, who is a retired physician and the biggest skeptic I know, admits that acupuncture is worthwhile treatment that can make a significant difference). It's worth a shot to at least investigate.

Good luck and hang in there - you're in the home stretch! Congrats on your girl. How nice to have one of each.

It's totally normal.

I'm 37 weeks pregnant with my third and in the same boat. Especially with subsequent pregnancies, the ligaments in your pelvis loosen considerably. (Calcium chews won't help this).

The only cure is delivery, so unfortunately we both have to grit our teeth and bear it for a few more weeks!