Pelvic Pain during Pregnancy

If your pelvis is aching, you're not alone. As many as 80 percent of pregnant women experience pelvic pain at some point, mostly in that final trimester when stress on the pelvic region is especially intense. It’s even more noticeable once lightening occurs (when your baby drops into the pelvic area in preparation for labor about two to four weeks before delivery — though many women won't experience it until they're in their first phases of labor). However it can hit at almost any point in the pregnancy, and its impact can range from minor ache (a few twinges, or a general feeling of heaviness and stress in the pelvic region) to debilitating (a searing sensation that wraps around your back and snakes down below your burgeoning belly). Pinpointing just what it is (or, rather, what it isn't) is tough because it's such a wide-ranging problem.

WHAT CAUSES IT? 
Your increasingly heavy baby is burrowing deeper into your pelvis in preparation for birth, and that little (or not-so-little) head is now pressing (hard) against your bladder, hips, and pelvis — putting ever-increasing stress on the bones, joints and muscles in your pelvis and back. On the bright side, once the baby "drops," your uterus will stop pressing up against your diaphragm and lungs, which will let you (finally) take bigger and deeper breaths. 

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
You can pelvic pain from symphysis pubic dysfunction in that the discomfort is more generalized and isn't necessarily caused by the loosening of ligaments. And it’s not like sciatica in that the pain isn’t caused by pressure on your sciatic nerve, which means it’s more localized to your pelvic area (it doesn’t shoot down your legs).

WHAT YOU CAN DO

• Try some pelvic exercises like pelvic tilts, or relax with your hips elevated.
• Take a warm bath (it'll give you a break from gravity's effect).
• Invest in a belly sling (a specially designed crisscrossed sling made of elastic fabric that supports the weight of your belly), also to lessen gravity's effect — ask your practitioner for recommendations or check online.
• Get a prenatal massage