A C-section is major abdominal surgery involving the delivery of a baby through horizontal incisions made in the abdomen or uterus along the pubic hairline. Women can experience significant pain at the c-section incision site due to scar tissue formation, limiting mobility in the abdominal area and contributing to pelvic pain and pelvic floor dysfunction. After a c-section, physical therapy can play a critical role in helping women recover, reducing incision site pain, normalizing pelvic floor muscle tone, improving core and back muscle strength, and optimizing women’s function and mobility.

Check out our May 2022 newsletter celebrating women’s health month with an article on strengthening the core after a c-section. The newsletter also covers treating pitcher’s elbow with physical therapy, therapeutic boxing for Parkinson’s disease, and managing diabetes with exercise.

The rate of c-section deliveries is steadily increasing, comprising over 30% of births in the United States in the last year. A c-section is a major surgery involving a horizontal incision just above the pubic bone that can negatively impact core muscle function and strength. Following a c-section, it’s critical to gradually retrain and strengthen the core under the guidance of a physical therapist. In the video below, Mangiarelli Rehabilitation physical therapy assistant Patti explains how to safely strengthen your core after a c-section delivery.

Physical therapy can treat postpartum bladder problems, such as urinary incontinence, by restoring pelvic floor muscle function after pregnancy and childbirth. Between 30 to 40% of women experience some degree of urinary incontinence postpartum, often silently suffering through stress incontinence in which urine may leak without your control when pressure is applied to the bladder when laughing, coughing, or exercising. Women can find relief from postpartum bladder issues by working with a skilled physical therapist.

Having a baby is a joyful, special event in the life of a mother. However, the process of delivery and recovery post-delivery can be challenging, particularly if a mother has undergone a c-section delivery. Women may experience pain at the c-section incision site, low back pain, urinary continence, and pelvic floor muscle weakness following a c-section. Physical therapists can provide women customized physical therapy treatment to address these issues, relieving incision pain through soft tissue mobilization techniques and strengthening the core, back, and pelvic floor muscles through an exercise program.