- (636) 296-8123
- office@abundanthealthstl.com
- 1804 Jeffco Blvd, Arnold, MO 63010
Pelvic girdle pain (PGP) is pain in the joints of your pelvis during pregnancy. Symphysis pubis dysfunction (SPD) is the specific version affecting the joint at the front, where the two halves of your pelvis meet at the pubic bone.
Your pelvis is three joints, not one solid ring: the pubic symphysis at the front and two sacroiliac joints at the back. During pregnancy, relaxin softens the ligaments holding all three together so your pelvis can open for birth. That is exactly what is supposed to happen. The problem is that a looser pelvis is a less stable one, and if the three joints stop moving evenly with each other, you feel it.
If you have been told “it is just part of pregnancy, you will have to put up with it,” we would gently disagree. Pelvic girdle pain is common, but common is not the same as untreatable, and pelvic mechanics is precisely what prenatal chiropractic addresses.
The rolling over in bed one is the giveaway. If turning over at night makes you stop and brace, that is usually pelvic girdle pain.
Talk to your OB or midwife if the pain is severe enough that you cannot bear weight, or if it comes with fever, bleeding or regular contractions.
The Webster Technique is one approach we use to assess and support pelvic mechanics during pregnancy. It uses a prenatal-specific assessment and gentle adjustment focused on the sacrum and pelvis, which may contribute to pelvic girdle discomfort.
Something worth understanding: pain at the front, over the pubic bone, is very often driven by something at the back. Your pelvis is a ring. If one sacroiliac joint at the back is stuck or rotated, the front joint has to absorb that asymmetry, and the pubic symphysis takes the strain. So we assess the whole pelvis rather than only pressing on the spot that hurts.
A visit involves:
If you are new to our office, you can see what to expect at your first visit.
If you have been told a support belt might help, we can advise on whether it makes sense for you and how to position it, because a belt worn in the wrong place can make things worse.
Pelvic girdle pain needs someone who works with pregnant pelvises regularly. The positioning has to be right, the force has to be lower than usual because relaxin has already loosened your ligaments, and the assessment has to look at the whole ring rather than one sore joint.
Both Dr. Amy Horn and Dr. Caitlin Cross are Webster certified through the ICPA, and Dr. Cross also holds the CACCP. Pelvic balance is the core of what Webster certification covers, which makes this one of the complaints we are best set up for.
We are at 1804 Jeffco Blvd in Arnold, about 25 minutes south of downtown St. Louis, and we see prenatal patients from throughout Jefferson County and south St. Louis County. This sits within our full prenatal chiropractic care, and depending on your situation we may also use craniosacral therapy or acupuncture alongside adjusting.
Balanced pelvic mechanics also matters for baby’s position, so this work often does double duty later in pregnancy.
Yes. SPD is a mechanical problem with how the joints of your pelvis are moving relative to each other, which is exactly what prenatal chiropractic addresses. We use the Webster Technique to restore even motion across all three pelvic joints, plus soft tissue work on the muscles compensating for the instability.
Usually a sharp or deeply bruised pain right over the pubic bone at the front of your pelvis, often with clicking or grinding when you walk. It typically spikes when you part your legs, so getting out of the car, rolling over in bed and climbing stairs are the common triggers.
For most people it improves significantly in the weeks after delivery as relaxin levels drop and the ligaments tighten back up. Some find it lingers, particularly if the underlying pelvic imbalance was there before pregnancy. Postpartum care can help with that.
SPD is one type of pelvic girdle pain. Pelvic girdle pain is the umbrella term for pain in any of the pelvic joints. SPD refers specifically to the pubic symphysis at the front. Many people have both front and back pain at once.
Anything that parts your legs asymmetrically or loads one leg at a time. Keep your knees together and swivel when getting out of the car, sit down to get dressed, take stairs one at a time or sideways, avoid standing on one leg, avoid heavy lifting and pushing supermarket trolleys, and put a pillow between your knees at night.
It helps some people and not others, and the position matters a lot. A belt worn too high can increase pressure through the pubic symphysis and make things worse. Bring it to your visit and we will check the placement.
Yes, with prenatal specific care. We use low force adjustments and pregnancy positioning. Check with your OB or midwife first if you have vaginal bleeding, placenta previa, preeclampsia or a risk of preterm labour.
