Being pregnant can be a joyful time. Waiting and planning for a family member to be is exciting and even exhilarating. But we shouldn’t be scared to touch upon the more inconvenient sides of growing another human being inside your body. For example, the baby doesn’t let your inner organs keep her or him from growing. “All that stuff” simply has to move to make way. And your little bundle of joy will not show any respect for your bladder when it starts to kick, resulting in feeling the urge to use the toilet many times.
The extra weight carried during pregnancy can put pressure on your pelvic floor muscles, ligaments and bladder.
During pregnancy, hormones are released that affect the tissue and the muscles in the body, allowing it to expand as the baby grows. This allows the muscles in the pelvic floor to become softer and smoother to ease childbirth. This can make it harder for the muscles and ligaments to hold the pelvic floor organs in place. And after childbirth, leaks may keep occurring, because giving birth weakens the pelvic floor muscles which can cause stress urinary incontinence. Many women who experience pregnancy-related incontinence find that Kegel exercises really make a difference for them.
