Easing back and pelvic pain

As your bump grows and pregnancy hormones loosen your ligaments, back and pelvic pain become two of the most common complaints — so if your lower back or hips are aching, you’re in very good company. It’s caused by a mix of things: the hormone relaxin softening your joints ready for birth, your growing weight, and your centre of gravity shifting forward, which changes how you stand and move.

Day-to-day habits make a real difference. Stand tall rather than slouching, and try not to arch your lower back to balance the bump. Bend at the knees, not the waist, when picking things up, and avoid lifting anything heavy. Sit with your back well supported and both feet on the floor, and take breaks if you’re on your feet for long stretches. Flat, supportive shoes help more than you’d think — now’s not the time for heels or completely flat thongs.

Gentle movement is genuinely helpful, even when resting feels more tempting. Walking, swimming or aqua classes, prenatal yoga and simple pelvic-tilt stretches all keep things mobile and ease stiffness. A maternity support belt can take some of the load off your lower back and pelvis, and a warm (not hot) compress or a warm shower can soothe tired muscles at the end of the day. Sleeping on your side with a pillow between your knees takes pressure off both your hips and your back.

It’s worth knowing the difference between general back ache and pelvic girdle pain (sometimes called PGP or SPD) — pain felt at the front or back of the pelvis, over the pubic bone, or deep in the hips and buttocks. PGP often flares with movements that part your legs: getting in and out of the car, rolling over in bed, climbing stairs, or standing on one leg to dress. If that sounds like you, keep your knees together for those movements (swing both legs together getting out of the car or bed), take stairs one at a time, and sit down to put on pants.

Most back and pelvic pain eases with these simple measures, but you don’t have to just grit your teeth through it. Mention it to your midwife or GP if it’s severe, sharply one-sided, stopping you sleeping or walking, or not improving — a women’s-health physiotherapist can assess you and make a big difference, and you can be referred. And get advice promptly for back pain that comes with a fever, vaginal bleeding, painful weeing, or regular tightening, as those need checking for other causes.

A few gentle exercises can both ease and prevent pain, and they take only minutes. Pelvic tilts — on all fours, gently arching and then flattening your lower back — relieve tension and strengthen the muscles supporting your spine, and the cat-cow stretch does something similar. Sitting on a fitball (birth ball) instead of a chair encourages good posture and can feel wonderful late in pregnancy. Keep every movement slow and within comfort — pregnancy hormones make it easy to overstretch — and stop anything that hurts. Paired with the day-to-day habits above and a warm compress when you’re sore, that covers most of what helps at home.

It’s common, it’s treatable, and it almost always settles after birth — so be kind to your body and ask for help sooner rather than later.