What can I do about hip pain during pregnancy?

You might have expected back pain or even pelvic pain during your pregnancy. Yet you might not have expected to have hip pain. 

However, you aren’t alone in experiencing this type of pain; medical researchers found that about 32% of women have hip pain during their pregnancy. This pain may be linked to the weight gained during pregnancy, and it could also be caused by a hormone called relaxin that can cause your posture to change. Fortunately, there are several tips that can help treat hip pain during pregnancy. 

Three tips that can lead to decreased hip pain during pregnancy

Most times, hip pain during pregnancy starts in the second or third trimester, but it can occur at any time during the pregnancy. If you’ve started feeling hip pain, here are three tips that can help reduce it: 

1. Get a pregnancy pillow — A pregnancy pillow can help reduce many of pregnancy’s aches and pains while you’re sleeping. These pillows are often a full body length long. They can be arranged to target many types of pain. For hip pain, the pillow can be placed between your legs when sleeping on your side. This can help realign the hips and decrease pain. 

2. Wear a pelvic belt — Pelvic belts are intended to provide additional hip support during pregnancy. They are padded for comfort, and many are adjustable so they can fit women with different hip sizes. A medical study reports that pelvic belts can help reduce hip pain and could have other positive effects on the body. 

3. Go to physical therapy — Doing exercises and stretches is a common tactic to reduce hip pain. But you might not know which movements are best or safest for your needs. A physical therapist can show you the most effective exercises for you. They can also go beyond exercise and use other techniques that can decrease your pain, including: 

• Soft tissue mobilization
• Joint mobilization
• Myofascial release
• Instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization (IASTM)

Ready to decrease hip pain during pregnancy? Armor Physical Therapy can help! 

You don’t have to be resigned to enduring pregnancy-related hip pain. Our Armor PT team is ready and willing to help you find therapeutic care that can reduce your pain. We can perform a free screening of your hips to pinpoint the issue(s) causing your pain. Then, our specialists will construct an individualized therapy plan for you that can decrease your pain and prevent its recurrence.

Not comfortable leaving home to get our help? You don’t have to! Our team offers several services you can use from home, including at-home care and virtual therapy. You can even start getting our help without first going to your doctor for a referral. 

Contact us today for more information about our hip pain treatment services or to schedule an initial appointment.