Has anyone had pubis symphysis separation following childbirth?

[newmum1211]

I didn't have much of a problem during pregnancy but since giving birth I still feel like I'm 42 weeks pregnant (my baby is now 11 months old). I can't run, walking fast is uncomfortable, I sort of waddle and picking up my baby I get a twinge across my pelvis. I'm worried about getting pregnant again and whether I'm stuck with this feeling. How will I ever exercise properly again?

Anyway -

I've just been diagnosed by a chiropractor as having pubis symphysis separation and pelvic misalignment. The chiro wants me to take some supplements to loosen up my joints so he can work on them (sacral area). He says he can fix it but I'm not totally convinced.

Has anyone experienced this and can you tell me what was effective in treating it AND can you tell me if it was covered under the NHS?

Many thanks!

[Thumbwitch]

Not exactly had it but I'm still having trouble with my symphisis pubis 5w post birth; but had a level of SPD throughout the pg as well. My osteopath kept me going and is still treating it successfully but I still have a fair bit of relaxin in my body (breastfeeding) which is keeping the joint a little too flexible for my comfort.

The NHS won't cover any form of chiropractic of osteopathic work but they might be able to offer you physiotherapy; however you'll need a referral through a GP and it could take months to get seen AND then they still might not be able to do much for you (have had poor experience of physiotherapy in the past, more than once, for more than one condition).

IME the osteopathic procedures have helped my pelvic/spinal problems far more, and given me more relief, than anything else.

The supplements aren't strictly necessary, but may expedite the treatment by allowing more flexibility in the ligaments, thus allowing the realignment to be more quickly achieved. Depending on how strapped for cash you are, I'd give the chiro a go - given how long you've had the problem, you'd probably need at least 3 sessions to really get a good result so don't think that it will be fixed in one session.

You might also benefit from a pelvic support belt to help stabilise your pelvis in the meantime, but don't come to rely on it.

[Thumbwitch]

Forgot to say that the first session 2w post-birth when I saw my osteo, my sacrum was stuck in a fully-flexed position, from the birth - my bum had actually changed shape completely! - and she fixed that in one session (but it hadn't been like it for long), returning my bum to its normal shape albeit a little more flabby