Carrying and growing a tiny little person is one of the most incredible things that a woman can do, but it’s not always plain sailing. Each trimester often brings its own challenges, from sickness in the early stages to pelvic pain as you go through the second trimester, to back pain and neck pain as you near your delivery date.

Some ladies can also experience headaches and migraines due to the surge in hormones, while the release of the hormone relaxin in the early stages of pregnancy can cause havoc with your joints.

Our physiotherapists are on hand to help relieve some of the joint and muscle pain you’re experiencing while giving you advice on management during pregnancy to keep you healthy and strong throughout. Your body and baby will thank you!

Just as carrying a baby can bring it’s own challenges, you may not be surprised to learn that, unlike what the media would have us believe, our body doesn’t just spring back to it’s pre-pregnancy figure immediately after delivery.

Sometimes you may have experienced some trauma with delivery or have had a C-Section. Sometimes the muscles at the front of your tummy take a bit of time coming back to their former glory and you may have a bit of a gap (the muscles have to stretch a lot when you’re pregnant remember).

A quick postnatal check – or Mummy MOT – can help put your mind at rest. We will thoroughly assess you in clinic and, if needed, give you some safe exercises to help you feel more like you again.

In the haze of being a new mum it can be a busy time – don’t forget to look after yourself, and come and see us. If only for a well-deserved break!

We’ve lost count of how many times we’ve heard that leaking when you laugh, cough and sneeze is all part of getting older and having children. Even adverts on the TV tell us it’s normal and we are expected to just put up with it. But we at iQ Therapies don’t believe that we should.

The pelvic floor is a muscle like any other, although it’s rather neglected. We will go to the gym to tone up our legs or arms but we don’t often think about working our pelvic floor. Yet the pelvic floor is one of the most important muscle groups in the body – it helps to support our internal organs, helps us to support our baby when we are pregnant and keeps us clean and dry everyday regardless of the running, jumping, lifting and carrying we do all day everyday. It’s an amazing and undercelebrated bit of kit!

The trouble is, many women don’t even know how to work their pelvic floor. This is where physio comes in. We will go through your symptoms, assess and treat any problems, and show you how you can strengthen your pelvic floor.

So whether you have been diagnosed with a prolapse, have some leaking when you laugh, cough or sneeze, or simply find you are having to plan your life around being near a toilet, we can help you feel more confident again.