Читать книгу Blooming Birth: How to get the pregnancy and birth you want - Lucy Atkins - Страница 37

Late for a book launch, about 37 weeks into my first pregnancy, I walked fast across central London in high heels, keeping up with my striding unpregnant colleagues. I ended up spending the last three weeks of that pregnancy immobilized on the sofa. I had strained my ‘symphysis pubis’ – the ligaments that hold your pubic bone together. I felt disabled and my confidence in my body was shaken. In my second pregnancy, through fear of a recurrence, I strained only to lift the box of Thorntons to my lap. This was not ideal either: I grew vast and tired.

The general advice out there on exercise in pregnancy tends to be outdated to say the least – I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve read ‘light housework is OK’. You do have to be sensible about what you do during pregnancy. Strains like the one I had – particularly in later pregnancy and particularly in the pelvic region – are common because your body is swimming in a hormone called ‘relaxin’ which loosens the ligaments in preparation for birth. Indeed, physiotherapists say that nowadays, because we’re all leaping around trying to be as thin as Hollywood starlets, ‘diastasis symphysis pubis’ (called DSP or SPD) – a strain in the joint at the front of your pelvis – is all the rage. This can be severe and even cause permanent damage but none of this means you should sit on your bum for nine months. Indeed, if you’re the fitness type, this idea could really panic you. You don’t have to put your exercise programme on hold while you gestate and indeed, if you’re a couch potato, now is as good a time as any to put down the remote and go for a walk. You do, however, need to follow some basic rules, and remember that pregnancy is not a time to lose weight or become hell bent on shaping up.

Where to go for help:

The National Childbirth Trust offers help and advice on ‘pelvic disfunctions’ like SPD. 0870 770 3236 www.spd-uk.org