The Ordinary Doula Podcast

E128: Pelvic Floor Prep For Pregnancy with Dr. Kasia Unes

• Angie Rosier • Episode 128

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Pregnancy can feel like a nonstop stream of “Is this normal?” and too many people get brushed off when they bring up pain, pressure, leaking, or pelvic heaviness. We sit down with pelvic floor physical therapist Kasha Unes to break down what pelvic floor physical therapy actually looks like during pregnancy and why it can help even before any symptoms show up. Think prevention through posture, body mechanics, breathing, relaxation, and strength, not just a quick fix when things get unbearable.

We get specific about the problems we hear most often: sciatica, SI joint pain, pubic symphysis pain, back pain, and that creeping feeling that your body is shifting faster than you can keep up. Kasha explains how pelvic PT evaluates the whole pelvic girdle and the full movement chain, why lifestyle factors matter, and when an internal pelvic floor exam is useful. We also talk through supportive tools like SI belts, belly bands, and perineal or groin support garments, including who they can help most and how to avoid wasting money on random trial and error.

Then we move into labor prep, because birth is not just “get the baby out.” Kasha shares how she helps clients practice positions and pelvic mobility, plan for movement with or without an epidural, and build confidence with pushing mechanics. We also cover tight or hypertonic pelvic floors, how stress and fear can cause clenching, what calming the autonomic nervous system can change, and what research says about perineal massage and tearing risk. If you want a clearer plan for pregnancy comfort and long-term pelvic health, this conversation is a strong place to start.

Subscribe for more practical birth education, share this with a pregnant friend, and leave a rating or review if it helps you feel more prepared. What pregnancy symptom do you wish someone took more seriously?


Learn more about Dr. Unes, here: https://rebornphw.com/our-staff/dr-kasia-unes/

Visit our website, here: https://hatchednlatched.com/
Follow us on Facebook at Hatched & Latched
Follow us on Instagram at @hatchenlatched

Show Credits

Host: Angie Rosier 
Music: Michael Hicks 
Photographer: Toni Walker
Episode Artwork: Nick Greenwood 
Producer: Gillian Rosier Frampton
Voiceover: Ryan Parker

Welcome To Ordinary Doula Podcast

SPEAKER_00

Welcome to the Ordinary Doula Podcast with Angie Rosier, hosted by Hatched and Latched. Here, we explore the many layers of pregnancy, labor, birth, breastfeeding, and postpartum life through the lens of more than 20 years in a busy doula practice, supporting thousands of families. Whether you are preparing for birth, navigating feeding, or adjusting to life with a new baby, this podcast is designed to offer practical knowledge, thoughtful conversation, and empowering support for the real experiences of parenthood.

Meet Pelvic Floor PT Kasha Unes

SPEAKER_01

My name is Angie Rosier. I am your host today, and have us I have a very special guest with me. Her name is Kasha Unes, and I am happy to have her with us. She is a pelvic floor PT, and this is a field that I have seen in my you know recent year, you know, my years as a doula, um, in recent years, I've seen it just feels like explode, but I've so much more awareness um over the last several years for myself and for clients that I have, and I've seen such a great um it'd be a great resource for people who are pregnant or postpartum. So we want to dive into that today. Um, Kasha, can you tell us a little bit about yourself? Um, tell us a little bit about your background, where you work, what you do, and then we'll dive into our topics for the day.

SPEAKER_02

Yes, hello. Nice to meet you all, and thank you for having me on the podcast. So, like Angie said, my name is Kasha, and I've been a pelvic PT for six years now, and I'm currently working at a clinic called Reborn, which has been amazing. I've met a lot of great people and providers that are like-minded like me, so it's been a fun environment. Um, but I really love working with um with people who are pregnant, postpartum. You know, I see a little bit of everything. I see um, you know, women who haven't had babies, I see males, so I kind of see a little bit of everything, but um, but there are definitely a lot of things out there revolving pregnancy and postpartum and labor prep that um I think we're still um we're still lacking in in you know general education or um like Andrew and I have talked about that there's uh sometimes too much out there. So we're trying to filter through um what to focus on. So I tried to put together um some

Why Pelvic PT Helps In Pregnancy

SPEAKER_02

highlights today for everyone.

SPEAKER_01

Perfect. I think that's awesome. Um so let's start with pregnancy um and and give us a good idea of how pelvic floor PT can um help in pregnancy. Who's who should see a pelvic floor PT? When should they do it? What do visits look like? That's kind of let's kind of walk through the the benefits and the process.

SPEAKER_02

So I think that every pregnant person should come to pelvic PT even before symptoms start. So there's a lot we can do preventatively. We do a lot of work with um posture, body mechanics, strengthening, breathing, relaxation, um, and ergonomics. So there are certain patterns that we see as the body is changing during pregnancy that if we get on top of it sooner rather than later, we can um help prevent quite a bit of issues like pain and weakness. Um yeah, I get that question a lot. When can I start? So I mean, I even see people before pregnancy, even when they're prepping for pregnancy, because people also have a lot of questions. So I think it can also be really um really helpful in validating to be able to have a space to ask those questions, especially for first-time moms.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, and I know there is a lot of um common pregnancy discomforts and pains that are largely dismissed by providers, right? Like I'm and and that's who you're gonna see as a pregnant person, you're we're kind of scripted to see our provider 10 to 13 times, whatever the schedule is. Um, and I hear all the time, all the time, people are like, yeah, I took this question to my provider and they dismissed it, right? So, and we know those those visits are pretty short. Um, so so it what about some of those common pains and discomforts? Can we avoid some of those with pelvic floor PT?

SPEAKER_02

Yes, definitely. So even though we do work a lot on the pelvic floor, we uh really specialize in the whole pelvic girdle. So we uh see a lot of joint pain that's common in pregnancy, especially when we start developing more laxity, so pubic symphysis pain, SI joint pain, back pain. And we, you know, look up and down the whole chain too. So we see, you know, feet issues, like collapsed arches, like that can go up the chain. So we screen for that. Um so yeah, you know, sometimes we see pelvic floor pain from muscles that are too tight and weakness. Um a lot of people complain about sciatica, like right there.

SPEAKER_01

So some of these typical things we can address. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02

So sciatica is a big one. Sciatica is probably one I see most often, and I and I've seen women who have had sciatica before pregnancy and then it's exacerbated. I've seen women that have not had it before, and all of a sudden they're like, what is going on with my body? So um, so even though it's good to get started early, if you don't, it's it's still not too late. So I have some a lot of women who come in, they're like, you know, even like six, seven months, or like eight months, and they're like, man, like I feel so guilty. Like I should have come in earlier. And like I never want to add to the mom guilt. No, it's never too late. Like you're busy, you have a lot going on.

SPEAKER_01

So um, so a lot of times those aches and pains don't come till later, right? When we get the there's some more weight to the uterus and to the baby, that that's when the body becomes stressed. Um, so it's not too late, right?

SPEAKER_02

We can always Yeah, yeah. And even though a lot do come later, I have seen uh a couple of women even recently that started having pain right away, like early first trimester, and um their doctor even said, Oh, it it's not typical to have this much pain early on, but but go see pelvic PT and get it addressed. So I was happy that she got sent over. And because I think there are a lot of women who um who aren't sent to PT, or maybe they think, Oh, maybe it's not even something that I need to bring up because this is just a normal part.

SPEAKER_01

It's normal. We've accepted it, right? And yeah, yeah. Well, and that's help that's really encouraging to know that some providers are aware and sending um their patients to a place that they can get help.

What A Pelvic PT Visit Looks Like

SPEAKER_01

Because we know those visits are pretty short. Tell us what a visit with you is like. Like we're not in and out the door, probably in five minutes here, right? So tell us kind of what we look at at a visit with you. Yeah, so somebody who does your role.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, so pelvic PT is really nice because we do get to spend quite a bit more time with the patient. Visits usually are, you know, in my clinic they're 40 minutes, some clinics are 60 minutes, but um, you know, the nice thing about where I'm at now is even though our visits are 40 minutes, that allows us to see patients more often. So, you know, we can see someone twice a week, once a week, versus um sometimes you'll get to a clinic that PTs are super booked out because pelvic PTs are very high in demand.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, that's popular.

SPEAKER_02

So yeah. Um so either way, um whatever time you can get with your pelvic PT, wherever you're at, you're still going to get more time than you do at your OB appointments. So, you know, when you first come in, we do a pretty thorough evaluation. There's a lot of um history taking. So we're um, you know, talking about the musculoskeletal system, but we also talk about like lifestyle factors, um, you know, what's your environment like at home? Like, do you have a stressful job? Do you sit a lot? Do you know childcare? Um, and then we'll touch on um, you know, bowel, bladder, sexual function, because that can all play into it. I hear people say all the time, I don't know if this is relevant. And then they'll tell me something. I'm like, yes, that is key. That really helps me put things together.

SPEAKER_01

So it's so validating, right? That people are being listened to.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, yeah, totally. So, and yeah, we definitely do a movement screen, we see uh, you know, how things are moving, check strength, flexibility, all those things. Um, depending on what you're coming in for, we'll we can do a pelvic floor exam. If we're looking at if your main issues are pelvic girdle symptoms like pain or sciatica, we don't always go internal right away if we don't or if we don't need to, but if you have some pelvic floor-specific issues or we have a suspicion that okay, pelvic floor has something to do with it, then we can do a pelvic floor exam.

SPEAKER_01

So, um and you're also sending people home with things to work on, correct?

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, oh yeah, yeah. So stretches, exercises, and you know, we cater it to what we're seeing in the clinic. And sometimes you'll get people who are, you know, pretty textbook, like, okay, we gotta do like look at your posture, glute strengthening, core strengthening, and um, but more often than not, people are not textbook. So um, you know, we can give the general guidelines, but pretty often we're giving something unique to you as well. Um, and

Support Belts And Pelvic Garments

SPEAKER_02

then what else?

SPEAKER_01

So tell me on the I I know some people will use um some devices, if you will, right? Like um, tell me a little bit about supports, different supports that are might be on the market. Are those um recommended? Tell me, tell me your thoughts on those products.

SPEAKER_02

So supports can be really helpful, especially in cases where you're maybe limited with ability to exercise or you have a lot of nausea, pain, or busy lifestyle. Um I do like SI belts, especially if you have the that pain in the front, that anterior pubic pain or the SI pain in the back. Uh belly band is nice when you're feeling a lot of pressure in the belly, but also back pain. Like if you feel like you're getting heavier and your weight is shifting forward, it can help to have some support. Um, and I I really like some options out there for perineal and groin support. I think that's something that's not talked about as much, but I've had people have pretty good success with that. So um there's one I like, there's like the baby belly band, but it is an SI belt, but then like velcro straps that go under your perineum and cross, and it's actually pretty comfortable and it helps give you some more support. So I like to recommend that for my patients who have um maybe they have a a profession that requires a lot of standing, like healthcare providers, nurses or teachers, and um, you know, they can be doing their exercises, their posture, but um, you know, by the end of the day, like your your body gets tired. Tired, yeah. Extra support, especially if someone's had multiple kids and they have maybe a history of prolapse, that can be really nice and supportive as I've not heard of that before, but that is awesome.

SPEAKER_01

So I'm kind of thinking like when you're repelling or rock climbing, like a harness, is it something kind of like that that you wear?

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, kind of. So it is like and there are different ones out there. So um there's one called the like the pelvic bra, and it's like it kind of looks like a thong, but there's like extra support at the bottom. Interesting.

SPEAKER_01

So you wear this under your clothes, obviously. It's comfortable enough. Okay, cool.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, it's comfortable enough, yeah. And um, and there's what like there are ones out there that like it's like a full like set of like underwear or like a compression garment, and they have like an extra like sling on the bottom that helps give you a little bit of lift. Cool. Um, and I've had some patient, I had a uh a lovely patient who did so much trial and error with this, and um she like got like so many different products and like uh scoured Amazon and she actually ended up liking just using like like a compression garment one and then uh a thick pad, like just like for some pressure almost, pressure, and that gave a little bit of lift, and so um she found what worked, yeah. She found what worked, and you know, after after spending all that money, so I told her that I'm going to use your case to to help other women um not spend as much money, right?

SPEAKER_01

She did a lot of work for people, like a little case study. Yeah, that's that's that's really cool. Cool.

Third Trimester Labor Prep Planning

SPEAKER_01

Um, and then tell me a little bit about um I you talked to you said the word labor prep. So how do you, as people, I mean, there's pregnancy is a long time, right? We got nine months of that, and it changes. And then we're always building up to that day that you have a baby. Um, and that's a big day. The body's doing a lot of things. Um, people are sometimes kind of anxious about that day. Um, how do you go about preparing people for labor as they visit with a public floor PT?

SPEAKER_02

So usually when they're coming in for, you know, various issues throughout their pregnancy, like pain or strengthening or incontinence, you know, we'll we'll zone in on that and um, you know, we can keep labor prep in in the back of our mind. Like, you know, we want to start making sure the pelvic floor is able to relax. We'll already like do some stretches and work on mobility, especially if you have some, you know, some stiffness or weakness. But um I do like to have a separate labor prep visit or a couple of visits, getting as we get closer, so in in third trimester usually, and we go over positioning movement. Are you planning epidural or not? Because then that can be a bit variable in your prep. Because um, I've had a lot of women who are like, Oh, I I want to do all these things, and I I've heard I need to do this, and then they say, Well, I think I'm I'm going to do an epidural. Am I still going to be able to do all these things? And so, you know, the answer is you still can incorporate movement, but it just looks different. So I think it's nice to already plan ahead versus you know, planning all these things like I'm gonna do squat bar, I'm gonna do this, and then you get to the hospital and you're like, oh, this looks a lot different. I'm not going to. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Um, I think I think people oftentimes when they and most, let's face it, most people get epidurals as we look at percentages. However, um, I think a lot of people just they view themselves as a static object after they get an epidural, right? They're a beached well, they can't move, and that is not the case at all, right? So helping them pre-prepared for that.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, yeah. And um, and actually I listened to some podcasts on uh some episodes on your podcast, and I really liked a few of the episodes that went over that more in depth. And um, you know, talking about how you can still like move your pelvis to help it be in a more open position, like in different planes, like forward and back, side to side, and um using gravity and things like that. So um, so yeah, I I go over things like that. Um, we practice it in the clinic, so then it's easier for them to also figure out what will work best for them in you know when they're in labor, because if you've never tried these things, if you've never done it, they're like, oh my gosh, this is overwhelming.

Tight Pelvic Floors And Push Feedback

SPEAKER_02

Um, and something I also really like to practice if they're okay with it, is giving internal feedback. So doing an internal exam and giving feedback on how they're pushing. So I can check and see, okay, when you try to push or you know, think about pushing baby out, like having a bowel movement, what's going on with the pelvic floor? Is it actually opening and getting out of the way? Or is it actually tightening and um and going to cause some some issues later on?

SPEAKER_01

So that could help them be aware prior to, right, and be more effective with pushing. I've I've something I've noticed working um with athletes or ballerinas or gymnasts or um different, even different body types sometimes. Um we get to the labor part where, you know, pushing and a provider, whether it's maybe a nurse in the pushing phase, a doctor says you have a really tight public floor. And we're right there having a baby, like you know, within the hour or two or three or whatever it will be. And that to a lot of people, that's that's um a speed bump, right? They're like, oh my gosh, like is that bad? Like, what what do you mean? What do I do about that? And we're in the moment, right? It's kind of it's feeling um really inhibitive, honestly. And some people it like it kind of stops them in their tracks, um, and it puts some fear in them on their providers. So it what do you do when you do work with the people who have like incredibly tight cores, whether it's their um, you know, uh like a ballerina, ballerinas, it's challenging, gymnasts, like it's really challenging, as I've noticed working with them. So, how do you prepare somebody like that? Well, first of all, awareness, and then what do you do about it?

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, that's that's an awesome question. And it's cool to hear how things play out in the moment. Um so I see a lot of women who have tight pelvic floors outside of pregnancy during pregnancy for various reasons, and it can take it can take a while, like it can take um you know, quite a few sessions. And I've had I've seen women for months for like a year to help stretch and relax the pelvic floor. So um I think if more women knew about it ahead of time, it wouldn't be as much of a shock during and knowing, okay, this isn't really something that you can always um just tell someone relax and it just relaxes, you know, it it can take a lot of work. Um, but I also, you know, I see cases where people have like really tight public floors, like like tight hamstrings, like tight traps. So you're like, okay, I I need to do some maintenance, you know, I need I need to be consistent. Um And I see some people, and yeah, in those cases, we do we can do a lot of manual stretching and and prep work. I like to teach people how to do stretching on their own too, if they're willing. So I can teach them using their own fingers or using tools like a pelvic wand or dilators. Um, but I also see a lot of people who, you know, they might have um, you know, a pretty flexible pelvic floor. It's not super hypertonic to stretch, but in the presence of stressors, pain, anxiety, that pelvic floor just locks up.

SPEAKER_01

Or exhaustion, right? You're exhaustion.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah. So um, so I like to go through some of those scenarios ahead of time too. So um, for example, I I had a patient the other day who we were able to stretch, and she's like, Oh yeah, that's feeling better. And then, you know, we went a little further and we we hit a pain spot, and all of a sudden our pelvic muscles, like everything just locked up. And um, and even I went back to stretching the areas that were that let go previously, and they just they didn't want to let go. So we worked on breathing exercises, diaphragmatic breathing, autonomic calming, and um like desensitization, and she was able to relax her muscles herself, you know. It wasn't me going in and stretching and just like shoving those muscles open. Um, a lot of it was her and her like autonomic system and having less less fear around it. So, so it's really cool to see like um how powerful like your own body and mind can be in those scenarios.

SPEAKER_01

And there's different approaches, it sounds like, right? Intentional approaches to there's more than one way to do that.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, yeah. Yeah, totally. And um, and I also see uh when it comes to pushing mechanics, you'll see a lot of mismatch in what someone thinks they're doing and what's actually happening. So um, you know, I I go through different cues, like because you're going to hear different things. Like, okay, hold your breath, you know, do the valsalva. Oh, but then my my pelvic PT or like my doula told told me not to do that. Like, what do I do? Right.

SPEAKER_01

There's like a lot of conflicting information in the moment, I think. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah. So we work through that, and then um, you know, I say, okay, well, let's let's see what happens if if you do hold your breath and and push. And then I tell them, okay, yeah, I feel the pelvic floor opening, or nope, it's it's tightening. Or okay, let's let's exhale and do it. Let's try to push more from your your upper abs. And um, and so it can be really interesting to see and I think empowering for the person too to get that to get that feedback. And then feel like, oh yeah, like I I can do this.

SPEAKER_01

My body is capable, yeah.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, and even if you um do end up getting an epidural when you're not feeling what's going on down there, you can at least have the confidence knowing, like, okay, I've my body has done this before. If I'm if I'm feeling this like abdominally and and I'm doing the breathing right, you know, hopefully my pelvic floor is responding.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_02

And even though in the moment, of course, you can't like fully predict what's going to happen. I think that um, you know, just that that confidence and knowing more about your body goes a long way too.

SPEAKER_01

And I I would imagine that the the manner in which someone pushes the awareness they have, the knowledge they have around how they push affects their um what we call tissue separation, right? If people are getting a first degree, a second degree, no tears at all. Um, and everyone wants obviously to avoid avoid third and fourth degrees. Those are not fun to heal from. And

Perineal Massage And Tear Risk

SPEAKER_01

we have some control over that, correct?

SPEAKER_02

Yes.

SPEAKER_01

Okay.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah. So perineal stretching or massage, whatever you want to call it, um, can be prior to, like this is prior to pushing. Yeah, really helpful. And you'll hear people say start at like 34 weeks, 36 weeks. Um, I've I've started with people way earlier on if they already have a known hypertonic pelvic floor. So I had a patient who was referred like right away, like first trimester, even like it's okay, start, start now by her provider. She was cleared. And so, you know, in her case, she needed a lot of work. Um, but in general, even if you start those few weeks before, um the the research that I know of shows that it can reduce your risk of tearing by about one degree. So if you were going to have like a third-degree tear, you can expect maybe second degree or second degree, maybe first. And um, you know, of course that can be variable. And you know, maybe that's just a way of um trying not to give like false expectations, like, okay, you do this and and you're not going to tear. Um not a guarantee, but not a guarantee, but but that's what I've heard. And um, and then I also have seen a study that shows that if you do perineal stretching for about 10 minutes three times a week, there's no there was no difference in outcomes if you did it say 10 minutes a day every day. So I like to tell that to women. Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_01

They don't have to be perfect about it.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, help take some pressure off because there's so much going on, so many things to do. So um, you know, I think anything you can do is is better than nothing. And I also think that um, you know, like we talk like the pushing mechanics, like the like automat autonomic nervous system calming, like that can go a long way too. So um, so like the physical part isn't everything, like it's it's it's significant, but um, but it's I think it's just part of the picture.

SPEAKER_01

There's a lot more to it.

Pushing Styles Prolapse And Gravity

SPEAKER_01

So in the time we have a couple minutes left. So tell me like traditional pushing. I don't know if you're familiar with that, what that is, but it's push with all your might, hold your breath, push three times in a contraction, um, curl up, hold your head up off the bed, pull back your knees. Like, that's what people are gonna be faced with typically, right? Is that okay? Like, what how can we improve upon that?

SPEAKER_02

What what other advice can you give alongside that or instead of so I I think I mean, I guess it's good that that their women are getting some advice, but um it's in the moment though, right? It's like it's good to have that guidance. Um and I I think it's hard because like as a public PT, you kind of want to um think about like like the ideals, like, oh yeah, like this is the right way, you know. But I think we have to acknowledge, like, okay, in the moment things aren't going to be perfect. So um I think that you know pushing, like holding your breath and pushing can reduce the risk of prolapse. Um, but what I've seen is that if you are able to do it in a way that your pelvic floor can relax and get out of the way, then you're going to be a lot better off. So I tell this to people with when we're talking about um like bowel movements as well. So you don't want to hold your breath and push. But if if you're absolutely going to and need to, like we got to make sure that pelvic floor isn't like tightening as a reaction because if you're holding your breath and pushing and the pelvic floor is tightening, then that pressure's gotta go somewhere.

SPEAKER_01

And you're fighting yourself, right?

SPEAKER_02

Like, yeah, and it's probably going to push into like those soft tissues where we don't want it that can create the prolapse. So, um, so that's why I like to prep both ways. Like, okay, ideal world, let's exhale and push, but let's also practice with the breath holding because I know that you might end up doing that anyway. So if you're going to let's let's prep the pelvic floor for it.

SPEAKER_01

Okay. I like that because people are going to be faced with that nine times out of 10, just the way our, you know, the way the birth culture is. Um, but and and their goal is let's get a baby out, right? And I think we're looking, you're looking at like we have a pelvic floor, we have a woman's pelvis who has to continue living, right? Like we have a lot of life left after just getting this baby out. How can we do that in the most beneficial way? It's it's out long-term outcomes, not just yes, get the baby out in the fastest, most efficient manner, but how can we be better off afterwards, which is important. That's a long time.

SPEAKER_02

Totally. And I think gravity goes a long way too. If you can get into like any upright position, then like which I know is talked about some of the other podcasts, like that can really help help open things up and help the pelvic floor even get encouraged to open up.

SPEAKER_01

A lot of times changing position during pushing, which is a lot of times over an hour. We can we can do some shifts in that hour. So okay, cool. There's a lot of work to be done there in the birthroom because we they're they're pretty scripted, honestly, in in a lot of what they not not at every facility, not with every provider, but there's some pretty predictable

Best Pregnancy Prep Tips And Wrap-Up

SPEAKER_01

patterns there for sure. Yeah. So wrapping up here, uh, because we're gonna we're gonna we have another episode, we're gonna talk about postpartum, which is exciting. Um to to wrap it up, what are um top tips you would give someone who's pregnant, um, who knows they're gonna be having a baby? What's what's a an a reasonable course of action they could do to prepare in the best way?

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, so I I think the obvious is see a pelvic PT throughout the the span of the pregnancy, wherever whenever you can come in, um, you know, use use your resources. Uh, you know, if you have any um free classes or access, then take advantage of that. Um and one thing that I do see often that I I would like to spread the word is to exercise and move as as much as you can as early as possible. And I, you know, take that with a grain of salt. Like I know um, you know, there are so many limiting factors. So um, but I'm seeing more in the cases of if there's fear around movement, like oh should I should I be doing this? I'm nervous about this. Um, and even if you might have like, you know, maybe like a little bit of pain and an achiness, um it's beneficial to, you know, work through that or like see a pelvic PT to try to work through that because I see women that can stay active have so much more success. And of course it's easy to overdo it, but because we have that um increasing laxity, we really need that that stability and the strength. And because I see a lot of women when they start to have pain or get nervous about movement, they overstretch. So I do so much stretching and uh it helps a little in the moment, but then now my sciatic one is oh yeah. So I it's if you can um, you know, try not to be too afraid of exercise and don't overstretch. Do it if it feels good, but don't only focus on stretching because you need the the strength and stability to supplement, otherwise, you probably will will end up having some pain.

SPEAKER_01

Good tip. That's a really good tip. That's cool. Well, thank you so much. I think that gives um awareness is key to so many things. And I think it gives such a great awareness of um addressing regular pregnancy pain, addressing better outcomes for mom's bodies with delivery and pushing. And there's a lot of things to know about and to learn, which is people have a course of action they can take.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, yeah. And I acknowledge I I don't know everything either. You know, this is just from my knowledge. So yeah. We're all we're all learning together. We're all learning. Like I feel like I I learn new things all the time. Like knowledge is constantly changing.

SPEAKER_01

It's so true. It's so true. It's good to stay on top of what we can. So, well, Dr. Kasha, thank you so much for being with us today. Um, this has been very helpful. I sure appreciate it. So appreciate your time. Thank you. Yeah, thanks for having me. It's a pleasure. So, to wrap up our episode today of the Ordinary Doula podcast, again, we encourage you to reach out to someone, make a human connection. We are so important to each other. We need each other. So please reach out to a human today. It'll make a difference in your life and in theirs. We'll see you next time.

Ratings Credits And Next Time

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You can find episode credits in the show notes and more information by visiting hatchdonlatch.com. If this podcast has been helpful to you, please leave a rating wherever you listen to your podcasts. Your support helps us continue having thoughtful conversations about birth, breastfeeding, and postpartum life. Be sure to tune in next time as we continue exploring the many experiences, questions, and realities surrounding the journey into parenthood.