Top 7 Reasons For Joint Pain During Pregnancy

It is true! Pregnancy is the most exciting phase of a woman’s life where she experiences many things that are entirely new for her. But, the dark side of this is that these experiences include many factors that offer uneasiness and discomfort to the woman. Joint pain is one among these.

Joint pain is the common complaint of most pregnant women. Even though backache is what comes to our mind while thinking of pain during pregnancy, there are other places in the body that are equally affected. You may experience pain and stiffness in joints such as elbows, fingers, knees, hips and ankles.

The joint pain reasons vary depending on the health of each woman. But, still there are some common joint pain reasons that are related to the overall physical changes of the body during pregnancy. The change in the body weight and weight distribution is one of the main reasons, while hormonal changes also add its own contributions to it.

Here we may go through some of the common joint pain reasons during pregnancy that may help you identify the one related to you.

Weight gain: Weight gain during pregnancy is the most common reason for joint pain. This will commonly cause pain in the hips, knees and ankles because of the demand of additional support for weight distribution.

Fluid gain: There will be an increase in the fluid gain that is closely related to joint pain during pregnancy. This commonly affects the wrist due to the increased pressure. This will also trigger and extend pain to the hands as well.

Sleep position: Factors that are not related to physical changes during pregnancy like your sleep positions can also act as a trigger for joint pain during pregnancy. Since you have to sleep on your left side for the whole night, it is natural that you will wake up with pain and numbness in the hip region.

Hypothyroidism: Hypothyroidism is another important factor that has to be ruled out in the beginning stage of your pregnancy. Hypothyroidism is a known cause of joint pain in many pregnant women.

Hormone changes: During pregnancy, hormones are released to relax the pelvic ligaments and tendons. But, along with the pelvic ligaments, they also cause other ligaments and tendons around the knees to loosen, resulting in knee joint pain.

Occupational factors: Nowadays, most pregnant women continue to work till the ninth month. If your work demands sitting or standing for a long time, this will cause pain in the back, knees and ankles. Make the necessary arrangements to avoid joint pain reasons from the workplace.

Medical history: There are many medical joint pain reasons that may continue throughout the pregnancy period. This includes conditions like rheumatoid arthritis and disk complaints. Seek medical advice if you have any medical history of joint pain and take the necessary steps to manage it.

Even though joint pain is a common condition during pregnancy that will resolve by its own, there are certain situations that require medical assistance. Knowing the common reasons for joint pain during pregnancy is very important in seeking medical advice at the earliest.