Acupuncture for Postpartum SI Joint Instability & Pain

Acupuncture is an excellent treatment for low back pain from SI joint instability, a situation that is especially common postpartum. And the good news is that it’s never too late to get lasting relief from this treatment, even if your pregnancy was decades ago.

What are the SI joints?

The sacroiliac joints—SI joints for short—are the joints that connects the base of your spine (sacrum bone) to your pelvis (ilium bones). You can find them by putting your hands on your hip bones and following the curve of the bones towards your spine until you feel a lump on each side about 2 inches lateral of your midline. These lumps are a part of the pelvis called the posterior superior iliac spine (PSIS) and deep to these bones are the SI joints where the pelvis meets the sacrum.

The SI joints need stability and movement.

The SI joints are stabilized by complex structure of ligaments, which are fibrous bands of tissue that serve as the connections between bones. In a healthy SI joint, these ligaments have both a high tensile strength that lends stability to the joint, and also a bit of flexibility that allows for a small amount of movement in the joint as we walk. The right mix of stability and flexibility adds up to an SI joint that supports healthy, pain-free movement.

What is SI joint instability?

When the ligaments of the SI joint get overstretched on one or both sides, they allow for too much movement in the joints with walking and other activities. This structural instability can cause a domino effect where the surrounding muscles tighten up in an attempt to stabilize the low back. The combination of laxity in the joints and the tight surrounding muscles easily leads to pain in the joints and the low back in general.

Why is SI joint instability common postpartum?

Ligaments in the body can get overstretched due to injury, repetitive motions, and (you guessed it) relaxin. Relaxin is an important hormone released during pregnancy that allows for muscles and ligaments in the pelvis to stretch in preparation for delivery.

Normal pregnancy weight and the forward shift in your center of gravity puts extra pressure on your SI joints, and labor and delivery can also put stress on the SI joints as the sacrum moves back to accommodate the baby’s movement through the pelvis. Because of relaxin, these stresses can easily lead to overstretched SI joint ligaments and the resulting cascade of pain and tension in the low back.

Can pubic pain be caused by SI joint laxity?

Yes, SI joint laxity can result in pubic pain. The laxity of the ligamentous connections at the SI joints allow for more movement in the pelvis, which in turn puts more stress on the pubic symphysis where the left and right pelvic bones meet in the front. Fortunately, when we address the SI joint instability, the pubic symphysis pain can disappear.

How does acupuncture treat SI joint pain?

Acupuncture with microcurrent is quite possibly the very best treatment for overstretched ligaments in the SI joint. This treatment easily enables me as the practitioner to reach the ligamentous structure in question, and the electrical impulse jumpstarts the healing process and triggers a tightening response in the ligaments that restores their tensile strength. It is a pain-free treatment process that has a high success rate in both stabilizing the pelvis and relieving pain.

At Seven Seeds Acupuncture, I round out my treatment of SI joint instability by also addressing any resulting dysfunction and tension in the surrounding muscles of the low back and pelvis.

When is it too late to treat pregnancy-related SI joint instability?

It's never too late to address postpartum sacroiliac joint instability and get lasting pain relief. I have successfully relieved SI joint pain as early as the 3rd trimester of pregnancy and as late as several decades postpartum.

As a women’s health specialist with orthopedic training, I have a unique skillset that lends itself to this area of treatment. If you are suffering from chronic low back pain postpartum, please reach out for an evaluation and treatment. As with so many other women’s health conditions that are common but not normal, you don’t have to continue to suffer from SI joint pain. Get treatment and get relief!

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