Part I: Abdominal Wall and Pelvic Floor Muscle Dysfunction and Related Complications
Abdominal wall and pelvic floor muscle dysfunction is common in pregnancy as well as in the postpartum stage. However, once a mom is postpartum, she is always postpartum and abdominal and pelvic floor problems can continue for years. As many women can attest to, problems with these muscles can cause pelvic girdle and low back pain, pelvic organ prolapse, urinary and fecal incontinence, and rectus diastasis abdominis. This raises the questions, “What can go wrong with our abdominal wall and pelvic floor muscles during pregnancy and after delivery?” “How does the new mom safely return to exercise and fitness after childbirth?”
To have a better understanding of postpartum barriers for safely returning to exercise, let’s first review our anatomy. The top picture is looking at our belly while the bottom picture shows a side view:
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