Back pain is just another discomfort women face as they carry a baby. With that little bundle growing and moving inside, he is likely to strike a nerve, even with the most patient mom-to-be. If that nerve is the sciatic nerve, just behind the uterus, pain can shoot across your back and down your leg, causing excruciating pain. Take precautions to avoid or alleviate such pain.
Identification
You sciatic nerve starts just under your uterus and moves down into your legs. As your uterus grows, to accommodate your growing baby, it may put pressure on that nerve creating pain. In worse cases, especially toward the end of your pregnancy, the uterus can actually pinch the nervous causing extreme discomfort, tingling or stinging pain.
What Can Happen
According to the American Pregnancy Association, the sciatic nerve’s job is to allow you to feel sensations in the back of your legs, in the bottom of your legs and your feet. If this nerve is disturbed or pressured, those sensations may be heightened or decreased. You may experience pain or numbing. Either of these feelings make walking, moving around and day-to-day chores difficult, if not dangerous.
How To Avoid It
If you can avoid sciatic pressure, before it starts, you can keep yourself from major pain. Follow a daily abdomen-strengthening routine, such as a yoga, to keep your stomach muscles strong and able to support your uterus as it grows. Continue to stretch to keep your range of movement as wide as possible. Don’t put much stress on your lower back by bending over or lifting large objects.
How To Fix It
When sciatic pain strikes, it strikes fast. One minute you may feel fine, the next you may double over in pain. No matter how hard you work to avoid it, a baby in the right position at the right time can put pressure on that nerve. If you feel this pain or tingling in your legs or buttocks, lie on your side to relieve pressure from the nerve. Take a warm bath or go swimming in a pool to relax and move the pressure of the uterus off the nerve.
When to Go In
If the pain is unbearable or seems to be too early for the uterus to be pushing there, talk to your doctor. He can do an ultrasound or other procedure to determine the cause of the pain. Seek medical attention if you are unable to walk or move as this could lead to more problems later in your pregnancy.
Photo Credit
- futuro image by Adriano La Naia from Fotolia.com
