A pregnancy chiropractor can help with the back, hip, and pelvic pain that often comes with a growing baby by improving how the joints of your spine and pelvis move. At our Springdale office, care during pregnancy uses gentle, modified techniques and positioning built around your comfort and how far along you are. It’s meant to work alongside your OB or midwife, not replace them.
Why Pregnancy Is So Hard on Your Back and Hips
Your body makes room for a baby in a matter of months, and your spine and pelvis absorb a lot of that change. Most of the aches expectant moms describe to me come from three things happening at once.
Your center of gravity moves forward
As your belly grows, your weight shifts toward the front. To keep from tipping forward, your low back tends to arch more and your upper back and shoulders pull back to compensate.
That extra arch puts more load on the joints and muscles of the low back. It’s one reason pain often builds as the day goes on.
Hormones loosen your joints
During pregnancy, your body releases hormones like relaxin that help loosen the ligaments around your pelvis so it can widen for delivery. That’s a good thing for birth.
The trade-off is that looser ligaments can make the pelvic joints less stable day to day. When one side moves more than the other, it can lead to pain in the low back, hips, or the front of the pelvis.
Your daily routine changes
Sleep positions change, you may be on your feet more or less than usual, and lifting a toddler while pregnant adds strain. Small habits that never bothered you before can start to add up.
Where It Hurts, and What It Might Mean
Low back pain
This is the most common complaint we see from pregnant patients. It’s usually a dull, achy pain across the low back that gets worse with standing, walking, or the end of a long workday. Our low back pain page covers more of the general causes.
Pelvic and tailbone pain
Pain right at the back of the pelvis, near the dimples on either side of your low back, often involves the sacroiliac (SI) joints. Some women also feel a sharp pain at the front of the pelvis, at the pubic bone, especially when rolling over in bed, climbing stairs, or getting out of the car.
Hip and buttock pain that travels
Pain deep in the buttock that shoots down the back of the leg can feel like sciatica. During pregnancy, it’s often related to the pelvis and the muscles around it rather than a disc. I explain more about the many sources of leg pain in my post on what’s really causing your sciatica.
Is Chiropractic Care Safe During Pregnancy?
This is the first question most moms ask, and they should. For most healthy pregnancies, chiropractic care is a gentle, conservative option for back and pelvic pain. The key is that care is adapted for pregnancy, not the same adjustment you’d get otherwise.
A few things change when we care for a pregnant patient:
- We use lighter, more specific adjustments and avoid any pressure on the belly
- We change your positioning as your pregnancy progresses so you stay comfortable
- We don’t use spinal decompression during pregnancy
- We ask about your pregnancy history and any concerns your OB or midwife has raised
I always encourage patients to let their OB or midwife know they’re seeing a chiropractor. If your provider has flagged a high-risk pregnancy, we’ll talk through whether care makes sense for you right now.
What a Pregnancy Visit Looks Like in Our Office
Your first visit starts with a conversation. We want to know how far along you are, where it hurts, what makes it worse, and how it’s affecting sleep, work, and chasing any little ones you already have at home.
From there, we do a gentle exam of your spine, pelvis, and hips to see which joints aren’t moving well. We don’t take X-rays during pregnancy.
If chiropractic care is a good fit, your first treatment usually happens that same visit. Both Dr. Justin Favorite and Dr. Christopher Ray care for expectant moms, so you’ll be in good hands with either doctor. You can read more about how we approach this on our pregnancy chiropractor page.
Simple Things That May Help at Home
Adjustments help most when your daily habits support them. These are a few of the suggestions I give pregnant patients most often:
- Sleep with a pillow between your knees. It keeps your pelvis more level when you’re on your side.
- Keep your knees together when you roll over or get out of the car. This can ease strain on the front of the pelvis.
- Sit down to put on pants and shoes. Standing on one leg can aggravate pelvic pain.
- Stay active. Walking and gentle movement, as cleared by your provider, usually beat long stretches of sitting.
- Choose supportive shoes. Save the heels for after the baby arrives.
When to Call Your OB or Midwife Instead
Back pain is common in pregnancy, but some symptoms aren’t something a chiropractor should handle. Call your OB or midwife right away, or go to the hospital, if you have:
- Vaginal bleeding or leaking fluid
- Regular cramping, tightening, or contractions, especially before 37 weeks
- Back pain that comes and goes in a rhythm
- Severe headache, vision changes, or sudden swelling in your face or hands
- Fever, burning with urination, or pain on one side of your mid back
- Numbness in the groin area or trouble controlling your bladder
These can signal labor, infection, or other problems that need medical attention first.
What About After the Baby Arrives?
Your body doesn’t snap back the day you deliver. The ligaments around your pelvis stay looser for a while, and now you’re lifting a car seat, feeding at odd angles, and bending over a crib dozens of times a day.
A lot of new moms tell us their back pain actually changed after delivery rather than disappearing. Upper back and neck tension from feeding and carrying is common, along with low back pain from all that bending.
Once your OB or midwife clears you, chiropractic care can pick up where it left off. We’ll adjust the plan to where your body is now, not where it was at 36 weeks.
Care for the Whole Family, Starting Now
Since I started practicing in Springdale in 2006, I’ve cared for many moms through pregnancy and then watched them bring their babies in afterward. That’s a big part of why we built this office around chiropractic care for the whole family, from newborns to grandparents.
Pregnancy shouldn’t mean months of gritting your teeth through pain. A gentle, careful approach may help you feel more like yourself while your body does the hard work of growing a baby.
If back, hip, or pelvic pain is making pregnancy harder than it needs to be, we’re here to help. Walk-ins are welcome, or you can contact our office or call 479-756-1155 to ask any questions first.
