GREAT NORTHERN PHYSICAL THERAPY P: 406-586-4678

Pain with nursing?

Back pain and clogged milk ducts are common problems with nursing moms. Many new moms suffer through painful nursing sessions because they are either too tired to seek out help, don’t realize help is out there, or just assume this is part of the “joys of motherhood”. It is no longer necessary to suffer in silence! We are here to help you!

Proper positioning and support of mother and baby can help alleviate back, neck, or shoulder pain during nursing. Strengthening exercises for the back and shoulders can also help with back pain relief. Sometimes even just a change in the type of bra you are wearing for support can make a difference. Physical therapy could consist of just one or two visits to make appropriate modifications and establish an exercise routine.

Clogged milk ducts are also very common, and can come and go throughout the nursing process as supply and demand changes, with clothing or carrier restrictions, or with changes in diet or exercise. We are having excellent success treating these clogs with a combination of positioning/postural changes, modalities (heat, vibration, ultrasound), and manual lymph drainage. Women are seen for three visits over consecutive days, which is often enough to relieve the clogs. Physical therapy is typically more effective if the nursing mom is treated when the clog is small or only a portion of the breast is involved. When entire quadrants of the breast are involved, or when mastitis is also present, treatment is still helpful, but often takes longer to resolve the issue.

GNPT Welcomes Rita Pascoe

Sep 5, 2023

Great Northern Welcomes Rita Pascoe!Great Northern is excited to announce that starting mid- September we are hiring a new Physical Therapist, Rita, who specializes in neurological rehab! Rita was born and raised on a farm and ranch near Red Lodge, Montana, where she...

Physical Therapists Help Active People Live Better

Aug 9, 2023

Physical Therapists Help Active People Live BetterPhysical therapy has a lot of benefits for active people. Athletes, weekend warriors, and people who work in physically demanding jobs can all benefit from the expertise of a physical therapist. Here are 3 ways...

Change in Weather…Change in Exercise

Mar 27, 2023

Great Northern Physical Therapy Ph: 406-586-4678 Fax: 406-586-4670 www.greatnorthernpt.com Changes in the Weather Mean Changes to Your Exercise Bozeman, MT March 2023 When the weather gets cold, you should make some changes to how you exercise. We're not talking about...

Breathing and Your Pelvic Floor

Feb 13, 2023

The pelvic floor is certainly a hot topic of conversation for many men and women. Specifically, people begin to focus on their pelvic floor when they are having incontinence, urgency/frequency, prolapse, or pain associated with going to the bathroom or having sex. These are all issues related to pelvic floor dysfunction. But, what many don’t realize, is that your pelvic floor is also integral in one of our most basic functions: breath.

The diaphragm, our respiratory muscle, is located at the bottom of the ribcage. At rest, the diaphragm is a domelike shape, and with inhalation the diaphragm muscle contracts and drops downward toward your pelvis. This downward motion is followed by a shifting downward of internal organs, into the pelvic bowl. The pelvic floor muscles and fascia make up the bottom of the pelvic bowl. So, with this downward force during inhalation, the pelvic floor muscles also descend or stretch slightly downward. Immediately following inhalation and pelvic floor descent, is exhalation, and similarly, the pelvic floor follows the diaphragm as it rises upward to a resting position. This synchronous rising and falling of the diaphragm and pelvic floor is often referred to as the “piston effect”.

Not to be left out, the lower abdominal muscles (transverse abdominis) also contribute to this synchronous movement pattern. Working together by relaxing and stretching with inhalation and a “belly breath”, and tightening and drawing inward slightly with exhalation. In this way, the diaphragm, abdominals, and pelvic floor make up an abdominal cylinder that modulates intra-abdominal forces and pressure changes.

When this cylinder isn’t coordinating well together, or if there is tightness or weakness within the system, we see common musculoskeletal complaints: low back pain, SIJ pain, poor stability through the back and pelvis, hip pain, pelvic pain, incontinence, urgency/frequency of urine or stool, prolapse, poor posture, balance issues, and intolerance to exercise.

Our pelvic floor physical therapists can help evaluate these movement patterns and coordination of these systems, and create a treatment approach specific to you and your individual challenges.