Antenatal & Postnatal Care in Singapore

After pregnancy, it’s common to feel too exhausted or physically burdened to start exercising again. This is especially true when you experience symptoms like pelvic pain, which can make it appear counterintuitive to exert your body further. However, postnatal physiotherapy is crucial for promptly addressing these issues to safeguard your long-term health.

One of its major benefits is in addressing urinary incontinence. During pregnancy, the pelvic floor undergoes stress from supporting the extra weight of the growing womb, and the weakened muscles can struggle to control urinary functions. With postnatal physiotherapy, you can strengthen the pelvic floor muscles and muscles around the bladder, vagina, and bottom. This helps with incontinence and eases the intensity of pelvic pain related to pelvic prolapse – a condition where pelvic organs shift from their normal position.

Notably, postnatal physiotherapy is effective in reducing the risk of postnatal depression, a condition that affects as many as 10.4% of mothers in Singapore. This is because physiotherapy exercises can increase blood circulation to the brain, reducing physiological reactivity to stress and uplifting your mood. Through these ways, physiotherapy improves your overall physical and emotional well-being.

Besides the conditions that arise after delivery, expectant mothers in Singapore may also face specific challenges during pregnancy. One common issue is pelvic girdle pain, which results from posture changes and increased pelvic pressure due to the baby’s weight.

Another condition that affects mothers-to-be is urinary incontinence. This often results from the added pressure of a growing abdomen, elevated progesterone levels, and potential injuries to the pelvic floor, making women more susceptible to this issue.

Undergoing physiotherapy during pregnancy can help prevent these prenatal conditions. Your physiotherapist may prescribe manual therapy to keep your joints and soft tissues safe and effective throughout pregnancy. You will also learn about proper body mechanics, enabling you to avoid exerting undue pressure on certain areas of your body.

Above all, receiving physiotherapy during pregnancy can ease the childbirth process. In fact, physiotherapy has been shown to alleviate pain during contractions and labour and potentially shorten labour duration. This not only eases the birthing process for the mother but may also reduce complications such as post-partum haemorrhage or prolonged labour.

By engaging in regular physiotherapy sessions, mothers-to-be can manage their physical discomforts during pregnancy and prepare the body for a safer delivery. These make physiotherapy a valuable aspect of antenatal care.

When receiving physiotherapy as part of your antenatal care routine, your chosen physiotherapist in Singapore might tailor the exercises to focus on:

• Pelvic Floor Exercises (“Kegels”): Kegels help with strengthening the pelvic floor muscles which improves bladder control, supports pelvic organs, and help control incontinence of urine, bowels, ensuring comfort during and after pregnancy.
• Breathing Exercises: Abdominal breathing and lateral costal breathing exercises help optimise body oxygenation and promote mental calmness.
• Core Strengthening: These strengthen your spine-supporting muscles to combat lower back pain caused by pregnancy-related postural changes. Abdominal strengthening exercises also helps to improve diastasis recti, which is a condition results from separation of rectus abdomen
• Posture Improvement: Your physiotherapist will help to advise proper posture which improves patients’ spinal alignment while carrying a baby to prevent from lower back strain or discomfort.