Excercise and "Pains" After Giving Birth?

My epi/back pain experiences:

2003 I had repeated failed epidurals (emergency c-section, DR couldn't seem to get the needle in correctly.) By back was entirely black and I cried myself to sleep every night for six months.

2004 the epidural was placed correctly but I had back pain/sciatica for six months (not as intense but still hurt.)

2005 again, the epidural was done correctly but I woke in the middle of the night paralyzed. The anesthesiologist said that wasn't entirely uncommon and removed the line (this was 10 hours or so post delivery.) I had some sciatica but mostly it was pain at the injection site specifically. I still have that- if one of my girls pushes up against the spot I can have a 'knee jerk reaction' as it hurts terribly when pressed.

2007 epidural was placed higher (I think) haven't noticed any pain specific to it but I developed a spinal migraine a week later. It was so bad that I was unable to care for my family and my husband had to take off from work for several weeks and then worked from home until they told him he had to return. I couldn't even care for my baby. We hired someone to help me and I had MRIs and neurologist apts and they finally agreed to do a 'blood patch' to hopefully stop the spinal fluid leakage. I was already having some brain dammage (vision and other problems) because of the long term effects of this.

Needless to say, should we have another baby I will not be getting an epidural.

S. in Houston

You can already do light abdominal exercises. I have done them with all 6 of my pregancies and have never developed the "gut". The sooner you start the better. You are right on time to get the muscles to go where they need to. :-)

Lay down, suck in your stomach, hold for a second and release. Start with 3 reps and increase 1 every day til you get up to 30, then maintain once a day for 2-3 months post birth or longer if you want to/need to. Next do the same but then lift up your pelvis, hold for 1-2 seconds, and go back down. Start with 3 and increase 1 rep per day til you get up to 30 (same as above). Next suck stomach in, and push back flat against floor for 2-3 sec. Then stop pushing back flat, release stomach. Start with 3 reps and increase 1 per day til you get up to 30 (same as above). Lastly suck stomach in and lift up abdomen while keep lower back on the floor (crunchy). Tuck chin in so you don't hurt your neck and actually use your stomach muscles. Like with the other 3 exercises, start with 3 reps and increase 1 rep per day til you get up to 30.

These are physician recommended.

I did these until every thing was flat and back to "normal." I always focus on sucking my stomach in throughout the day. It is great for the back and stomach muscles.

As far as your hips hurting, they'll hurt til they go back. From my experience, not more than a few weeks. The tylenol, or pain med they gave you at the hospital will help. The pain/soreness in the back from the epidural will probably stay sore for a week or 2, may be 3. It is normal too.

You are doing great! God bless and good exercising!

M.

Alexandra M,

Hello. As far as as exercises postpartum, first get the approval of your OB. Then, on a resista-ball or gymball, sit on it, (your thighs should be parallel to the floor, as sitting on a chair), reverse the process of a "crunch." Sit straight up, feet on the floor hip-width, cross your arms in front of you, supporting your mid-section and rib-cage with your hands, then lean back just to the point where you feel your mid-section contract/flex. Sit back up-right. There you have it! You're going back to your point of comfort, your abs are contracting/working, yet it's safe.

Please feel free to contact me with questions. I am a personal trainer & I specialize in pre/postnatal fitness. Be safe but have fun! Thank you.

D. P., LMT, CPT
Licensed Massage Therapist
Certified Personal Trainer
###-###-####
email: ____@____.com

Hahah, after i had my son (with no epi) I didn't want to exercise for quite some time because of continued uterine cramping while nursing. Plus, I didn't have time. I was either sleeping, nursing, or eating. Wait til you have clearance from your doctor. I went back to regular activity after about 6 monthes and that worked well for me. (I had gone back to my ballet teaching job which was enough exercise to take care of the abs).

My OB said no excersice for 6 weeks. I had moderate pain from the epi for about 6 weeks. It would randomly hurt off and on for a year. Totally worth it tho!!!

Most physicians recommend waiting the full six weeks before getting back into any serious exercising. Mini-crunches can be done at 2 weeks (usually) where just the shoulders come off the floor. Back soreness and pain are a known side-effect of epidural anesthesia and can last up to 18 months. Sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings there.

A.

Unfortunately pain after an epidural can last for a long time - even MONTHS. I have a friend who took my childbirth classes with me to do a natural birth with her second pregnancy becuase after her epidural she couldn't bend over for six months. She had terrible pain.

Massage and chiropractic were VERY helpful for her.

I recommend pilates to all of my students as well - it is great for total body core strengthening.

Congrats on your baby girl! This isn't an exercise, but a yoga stretch. Maybe it'll help your back. There are pictures for the Cat/Cow stretch here....
http://yoga.about.com/od/yogasequences/ss/catcow.htm

I had an epidural because I had to have a c-section with my four year old. I've had significant back 'soreness' with various activities (horseback riding, gardening, driving, computer work) since then. My 2 year old was born via c-section, but I insisted on general anesthesia... they tried to talk me out of it all the way to the OR, but I insisted that if I had to have an epidural to have a c-section, I'd just take my chances with labor. My sister had her son vaginally with an epidural 27 years ago - and she still has problems in her back if she does much bending (i.e. mopping all the floors in her house the same day, working in the garden, bathing her grandchildren).

I waited 6 weeks after having my daughter to get back to the gym and even then, there were some things that were pretty uncomfortable to do and most involved abs. I had my Dr.'s clearance, so I just kept with it starting slowly and continuing along until it got more comfortable. I think by 8-10 weeks post-partum, I was doing pretty well at the gym and not having much pain after that.

As for the back pain, I don't recall having any back pain that lasted more than a week or two, but it has been a couple of years, so maybe I just don't remember. I'm sure your back will be feeling better soon. Congrats and best of luck to you!

I think you can start crunches as soon as you feel ready. Since you didn't have c-section--your body will tell you. Good Luck and CONGRATS!!!

I had back pains around my epi site as well. I would imagine that is normal considering the size of that needle they put in your back - eeeeekkk. At any rate, my pain lasted a couple of weeks from what I can recall. My doctor said it is normal for it to be a little tender and show some bruising at the injection site too. From what I can recall, there were very few cases of back pain long term - I am 4 1/2 years post epi and have no problems - but they could be out there. I have nothing on the birthing thing because I had 2 c-sections...not too lucky on that area of baby department.

Good luck!
M*

I had my baby in April of 2007 and had the exact same problem as you do. As far as ab workout and crunches go I would wait about 6 weeks because now is the time you need to let your body heal and pushing yourself can make you sick and tired. I am sure you have your hands full already.
Also when I had the epidural I got sharp pains and back soreness for a good month and then off and on for another month.
Now your hips should stop hurting in about a week or two it's just from you having the baby and now that the baby is not spreading everything everything is simply shifting back into place.
I hope I answered all your questions.Good luck and congratulations !

Hello Alexandra,

My daughter Ava Simone will be "1" on March 1st. I still have sporadic back pain that I cannot help but attribute to having an epidural. I resumed moderate exercise after my 4 week appt. with my OBGYN.

S.

The most important thing before you excercise is to listen to your body. Wait the recommended six weeks of course and then if it still really hurts when you excercise wait a little longer. Your body just went through a lot! Walk a lot, go up and down a few stairs, vacuum more then usual. That will help a little with the extra wieght until you can begin your hard core work outs again.
The back pain is not from the epidural. It is from the weight shift. Once you've had the baby all that water weight and baby weight is gone from the front of you. Your back has to get used to the way you once were again. It will feel better soon. My hips quit hurting after a week. That's my body, your body take longer or less time.

Congrats on the birth of your daughter. I had an epi and it was a bit sore for a week or two (like a bruise) if you rubbed it or moved the wrong way it would hurt a bit. Ab exercises...I can't help you. My DD is nine months and I just started back to the gym. I did have one very sore hip that would kinda lock up and then cause me to limp. I hurt really bad. My OB prescribed some Celebrex and I took it for about 10 days and that cleared up my hip pain. Hope this helps...just don't try too much too soon. Nine months up and nine months down is a safe way to think about it.

First congrats on the baby, you had her on my Birthday :)
As for working out make sure you wait until you get your doctors approval. I didn't wait and ended up bleeding and hurting much longer then your supposed too.
Yeah I had back soreness from the epidural for about a week or so it did finally go away.
Just give your body time to recover you have been through alot.

My doula said that I should start just tightening my abs a couple days after I gave birth. You just sit up straight, breath out and gently tighten your abs. It sounds wimpy, but if you're anything like I was, it will be a challenge. After I got the OK from my doctor to do more, the best ab exercise I found was playing airplane with my baby - lying on my back with him on my legs and straightening them out. It's a lot like Pilates with a baby and you get stronger fast.

Usually they say to wait at least 6 weeks to do exercises, once you've got the OK from your GYNO. You can always start walking/strolling your baby around once you feel up to it. Just take it easy and let your body recover!

As for the back pains...I think it's pretty normal and caused by a variety of things: carrying extra weight for 9 months, picking up older siblings, carrying new baby around, labor, etc. So check with your GYNO if it's bothersome.

Best of luck :)

about 6 weeks after I had my first son (vaginally w/ epi) I did pilates. Great way to get your abs back in shape. I don't remember having hip or back soreness however. I just remember healing from my "tear". That wasn't fun. But really, I would go with pilates. I did the Winsor Pilates video at home. You will be happy with the results as long as you are consistant (4-5 times a week). Good luck!

R.

Congratulations on your birth!
I usually recommend that my clients not start any abdominal work for at least 6 weeks, you can start doing kegals and engaging your abdominal muscles in the meantime- imagine pulling your belly button to your back.
If you do not have any diastasis then you can feel free to do light abdominal work after 6 weeks, although it is VERY important to not do any heavy ab work until you are sure you do not have diastasis as this can cause permanent damage.
As for the hip pain, you may try taking Arnica homeopathically for the next week or so. Usually this hip pain goes away in the first 2 weeks, but can ocassionally last longer.

I do remember having back soreness. The funny thing is that I didn't until I read your response, so it should go away. =) I don't remember my hips hurting, so I can't help you on that one. About the exercising, ask your doctor what he thinks. Don't push yourself. I promise if you are determined, you will get back to normal soon. Right now you have a great little girl to worry about. Everybody knows you just had a baby so they are not expecting you to look perfect. I really dealt with wanting to work out right away, but I followed the doctors orders and now, a year later, I am in better shape than I was before I had my little girl. I hope this helped!