In this episode I’m joined by Laura Patterson from Reform Physio and Pilates in Cults. I asked Laura all about physiotherapy, Pilates exercising in pregnancy, the pelvic floor, whether it’s normal to have incontinence after having a baby and lots more.
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Transcript –Â Please note this transcript is automatically generated and may contain mistakes.
In this episode I’m joined by Laura Patterson from Reform Physio and Pilates in cults, we are talking all things physiotherapy, Pilates, exercising in pregnancy, the pelvic floor, whether it’s normal to having continents after having a baby, and so much more. Thank you to Laura for answering all of my questions. It’s great to have these conversations, both while you’re pregnant and after and to learn more about what’s normal and what you can do to help yourself.
Cuz there’s so much you can do. You’re listening to the Pregnant and Aberdeen podcast, a podcast for those expecting in the northeast of Scotland. I’m your host, Jade Gordon, clinical hypnotherapist, hypno birthing teacher and doula. My aim here is to bring you local information as we have today, birth stories and birth tips and techniques. So let’s get started.
Welcome Laura. Thanks for joining me. And I am quite interested in hearing more about Pilates and pregnancy and what kind of exercise you can do because as I was saying to you before, I think a lot of people look for pregnancy yoga when they’re pregnant, but pregnancy Pilates is less well known but is wonderful as well. So thanks for joining me today.
Thank you very much for having me. So were those people listening who don’t know you? Tell us a little bit about who you are, what it is you do and where, where it is you are. So I am Laura Paterson. I am a physiotherapist and a certified mat and reformer Pilates instructor. I run reform physio and Pilates, which is based in cults.
So we are a physiotherapy clinic and we are also a reformer Pilates studio. So we don’t do any matte Pilates now. We only do Pilates on the big reformer machine, which is exciting. And I’ll talk a little bit more about when we think about the pregnancy Pilates. So my background, I’ve worked in kinda musculoskeletal physio for 15 years. It’s been my specialty.
And then oh, over the last kinda eight years I’ve gradually moved more into the pre and postnatal physiotherapy and gone off and done lots of postgraduate training in that. And so I now treat pregnancy and postnatal related sort of musculoskeletal pains. So pelvic girdle pain, back pain. I am a mommy m o t practitioner. So that’s a postnatal check that we can do on women.
And I also look after women with pelvic floor dysfunction. So things like incontinent constipation and prolapse. That’s great to have this locally. I think to skip slightly to postnatal for a moment before we go back to pregnancy, in some parts of the world it’s normal to, or common shall we say, after you’ve had a baby to see like a physio and to have all that support.
But it’s not here. Like it’s, yes, it’s not available generally in N H s unless you have some special circumstances, but it’s not like the norm here to do it. And I think a lot of people don’t even know it’s a a thing. Yeah, it’s such a shame cause I think we have quite a few ladies who come in who’ve maybe lived in France if they’ve moved out there with work and come back.
I think it’s a norm in France to have up to 10 sessions with a physio. Now most ladies don’t need that I would say. But I think you know what is really nice is sort of well-informed women who are really keen to maybe get back to exercise and they’re wanting to think, well what’s the kind of safe way to get back to exercise? How can they protect their pelvic floor as they’re returning to exercise after section or after vaginal delivery?
So it’s, it is lots of women who maybe don’t have a problem but they’re trying to make sure they don’t have problems. And then yes, we will see some of the people who are maybe concerned about prolapse or incontinence. Thankfully if you do have a more traumatic sort of a general delivery, you should be picked up by the nhs. But sometimes they still slip through the net and we see women,
you know, four or five years down the line from mamo T as well. So there’s no kinda opportunity limit. But it’s, yeah, it’s something that I didn’t know about that didn’t exist when I had my first baby. But now Aberdeen’s quite lucky. I’ve managed to gather all the mamo of tea practitioners here. So from January there’ll be three of us here.
I should do so that would be great. Oh Yeah. So to go back to pregnancy and distracted you both nicely, what is it that you offer there for pregnant clients? So we have a pregnancy reformer class. In fact we have two. So we have one on a Monday sort of late afternoon. And then we have one on a Thursday lunchtime.
We also offer physiotherapy. So if anyone is concerned about things like prolapse, maybe a bit of stress incontinence during pregnancy or even just wanting advice on exercise and continuing with activity during pregnancy. Pelvic girdle pain is a big one in back pain during pregnancy that we see physio wise. And then we have two massage therapists as well who both are qualified in pregnancy massage.
Nice. So we can kind of do it all under one roof, which is great. Brilliant. So tell me what, what is a reformer? I mean I do kind of know because I have seen your reels on Instagram including you with a very straight back when you’re doing your demo. I was trying, Always trying. It’s a constant battle to try and try and keep that good posture on the videos.
So the reformer machine, it is one of the original machines. So Pilates is based on movements designed by Joseph Pilates himself and he came up with the machines as well. So these are not new things. These have existed since kind of the birth of Pilates itself. So the reformer is a big metal frame with a moving carriage on top of it and the carriage has different springs.
And so it’s this springs really that create the workout. So this springs add resistance. So that’s what makes it different to matte Pilates is that it’s got this resistance kind of built into it and it’s got straps which are used to create a pilley system. And so that pilley system allows us, again resistance and a bit of stretch and it can support you into positions that you maybe couldn’t achieve down on the mat.
So actually as terrifying sometimes as the reformer can look, it actually in a lot of circumstances can make matte Pilates easier. Yeah. So there’s positions that I can do in the reformer and moves I can do in the reformer that I could not do on the mat. And so part of it is that it’s to Im, you know, it improves your technique that you can then carry over to nice to Matt.
And I suppose especially later pregnancy, it’s easier not to have to get up and down off the floor. That’s higher isn’t it? But it brings a bit more variety because, so I am no yogi and I’m rubbish at yoga, but in, in postnatal certainly for the way I was trained, you know, if we’re doing stuff we don’t lie ladies on their back from sort of that second kinda trimester.
And so we can do work on an incline, but you’re modifying an awful lot of stuff in in Pilates and a lot of women, you know, if they’re used to exercising hard, a lot of women are out there lifting weights, you know, heavy weights to then come and do Pilates where you’re laying on your back with your back incline on a pillow,
doing some simple leg slides Yeah. Can feel like a big change. Whereas at least on the reform or because we’ve got that resistance, people can work a little bit harder. Yeah. You know, can maybe feel a little more cardio because they’re working that little bit harder as well. So it can feel more like the normality of what they’re doing exercise-wise.
But yeah, it’s brilliant because people don’t need to get on and off the floor so we can do things like squats off the reformer and stuff as well. You know, you’re not having to worry about chairs, they’re, they’re there on that base. So. So you are talking about how some people in pregnancy are obviously less than weights and doing things so you have to have like some level of fitness to come to reformer class.
No, not at all. And certainly the pregnancy and postnatal classes, they are both designed with people brand new to Pilates Okay. In mind. So no previous Pilates experience and certainly no reformer experience expected. And yeah, we take the classes through thinking that you’re a total beginner and everything’s easy to modify. So we can make some exercises harder depending on your experience and your strength and your fitness beforehand.
And even things like having pelvic girdle pain, you know, difficulty on and off the floor doesn’t stop you from being able to do the class. We just, yeah we can modify the, modify the movements to to help with that. That’s Great. So what is, why is it useful then in pregnancy? Why would it be useful to do that?
Think it really is for that maintenance of strength. You know, we can look, if we look at the sort of Royal College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists, their recommendations for exercise in pregnancy is that we should all be doing 150 minutes of moderate intensity exercise a week. And so that moderate intensity is enough where you can still hold a conversation or you can still speak but that your breathing is that that little bit faster.
That’s A lot more than I expected actually. Yeah, I mean I mean that’s there we should all be doing that in normal. I just, I was like, oh how course some outta that this week. Yeah, It’s, it’s a lot when you, you take it, you know, if you take it in and especially if we have younger children in the house already,
going out for a walk is often not a brisk walk if you’re out with a toddler because it can be quite slow. Yeah. Oh that’s, I’m glad you said that cause I don’t feel so bad now cause I do half an hour walk every morning so actually I’m fine. Plus I do martial arts class and stuff, I just, I’m like I’m near that.
But it’s interesting cuz it’s what we count isn’t it? Because it’s easy to disregard a walk. Yeah. And a brisk walk is brilliant but it has to be brisk. Yeah. And so like for me, I walk the kids to and from school a few times a week and I’m always late so that’s good because it’s a brisk walk. But if you’re out for a wee dole,
you know Yeah. Doesn’t count. So it needs to be that where you’re a wee bit rosy cheeked maybe feel in a wee bit sweatier. Yeah. And so the resistance of the reformer I think brings that in. Yes. Quite nicely. It’s really good for that maintenance, the strength around. I do put a lot of focus on glutes and that’s really for that kind of prevention of dysfunction around the,
the pelvis and then yeah lots of focus on pelvic floor as well. Really thinking prevention. So it’s a lot of breath work too through the exercise. So it’s all just try and keep everybody as strong as possible. Yeah. I want ladies exercising and continuing to exercise right up until the point of delivery if possible. Yeah. Makes such a difference to your delivery and then into that postnatal period.
And I suppose it’s always a bit listening to your body, isn’t it? Because although like you on rosy cheeks, you also, if your body’s screaming at you to stop you have to listen to that right? Yeah, absolutely. And there’s some people as well who’s just not appropriate for it. You know, obviously we’re going on the medical advice, if you’re low risk pregnancy,
great. If you’re a higher risk pregnancy, you know with that advice not to exercise or things like that, then obviously it’s appropriate with pelvic girdle pain as I say, that’s totally manageable and we can adapt and we can change with that. Even things like, well just if you’ve got dreadful indigestion Yeah I think can make things a challenge but we can work around that.
And generally our classes we take people from 12 weeks. Yeah. Cause that first trimester can be a challenge. And so I think if we get you from 12 weeks generally you’re hopefully coming out of that period of the lower kind of energy and Hopefully past sickness and things like that Hopefully. Yes. Yeah. Great. And so pregnancy and exercise like I think it used to be people were just like,
oh no, don’t do anything. Like you’ve gotta like, you know, protect yourself. Remember my gran even told me when I was pregnant, oh don’t reach up to get that. Like if you stretch up you could do some like damage, like something bad happen. I was getting something off a shelf in the cupboard and it’s like what? And yeah so there is obviously a lot of more evidence on exercise and pregnancy now.
Like how, how do we know what we should and shouldn’t do? Obviously people can come and chat to you never start it. Yeah, I think so much of it depends on you as a person. I think pregnancy is not a great time to necessarily take up lots of new exercise. But that’s not to say you can’t start exercising at all. And I think,
you know during pregnancy maybe that is the time where you suddenly realize, gosh I need to get, get myself exercising, work on pelvic floor work on core. And I think that’s where things like Pilates or yoga do come in really nicely. A wee bit more gentle. Yeah. We didn’t advocate starting going to the gym and lifting big heavy weights or starting to run if you’ve never done those things before sort of pregnancy.
But if you are a keen runner, you’re a keen boot camper, you know, you’re in the gym lifting weights and you can absolutely continue with that through pregnancy if you’re having a routine comfortable pregnancy and then you just have to modify depending on how you feel. So it does start to become just listening to your body. So running wise you might just find that intensity of running has to decrease a a a little bit initially you may find that distance starts to decrease as bump gets bigger.
Yeah. With weight you may have to modify your weight as bump gets bigger cuz you just physically the bump is getting in the way. Yeah. So some of your, your weights can change but again there is no reason why you can’t be in the gym, you know, dead lifting at 37 weeks pregnant if that’s something that you’ve done before and you’ve done all the way through and you’re feeling fine and it’s,
it’s a routine pregnancy. Yeah. Nice. Yeah. Cause I know some people who ran, ran through their pregnancy have always been run, they’ve been runners for years and they just kept going and it made a big difference to them. They felt for their mental health as well because of course exercise doesn’t just get our body strong. There’s so many women who cope with life through exercise.
I think if we remove that coping strategy it’s yeah it’s awful. And so it’s super important that people know that it’s safe to do it. But as I say it is just listening to your body. So if you start, you know, if you are a runner and you’re starting to find that you’re having heaviness into pelvic floor or you’re maybe starting to notice that you are leaking wee or you’re struggling to hold in your gas,
that would maybe indicate that your pelvic floor is starting to struggle a little bit. Working kind of beyond its capacity. It doesn’t mean you have to stop but it maybe is a wee nudge to do some pelvic floor exercises or even just looking at supportive clothing. Yes. Can be can be helpful as well. Yeah because I’ve seen people do like taping and all sorts of things.
Yeah. Taping your bump can feel amazing. Yeah. Even just a giant tub grip. Yes Can can feel much nicer than any of the big kind of solid support. And there’s so many like maternity leggings, like sportswear leggings and stuff out there now as well. Which you know, even just getting a tight pair of leggings can offer you that, that feeling of support.
So it’s very much dependent on the person on the pregnancy, what you feel able to do and kinda your level of fitness. Yeah. Beforehand for general exercise, Pilates, no requirement of fitness. Yeah. Beforehand. And I guess because of my physio background I’m always kind of banging on about the pelvic floor. Yeah. And I was just gonna ask you about that so that’s perfect.
Yeah. Always bringing in pelvic floor and we try and cover quite a lot of kind of pelvic floor prep. Like I like to talk about the perineal pre preparation. Yes. During classes as well. I’ve got a captive audience. It’s nice time Yes. To speak to people about and and positions for labor as well. Yeah. It’s all kind of stuff that we try and cover in class Too.
So just for those listening who’ve no idea what perennial massage is, can you basically explain what is talking about? Well it can be a couple of different things but yeah, it’s where you massage or try and stretch the perineum so that bit of skin between the back of your vagina and your, your back passage and it’s all about trying to mobilize the tissue there and reduce,
well prepare the vagina for a delivery, get that tissue really nice and stretch and and reduce the, the, the chances of you having a perineal tear. And I always like talk about it in class as well, just making you describe it for a change. But yeah I think there’s, there’s two aspects of it. There’s the physical aspect of it but also like the mental aspect of it.
So when you’re used to massaging that area and feeling pressure inside there, like in the kind of inside of the per when you actually feel it, you’re less like to go, what is that like? It’s about get my clients to practice their breathing, their birth breathing with it because then they have that, that kind of positive anchor or connection already. So yeah,
always a choice. Of course you don’t have to do it if you’re not uncomfortable if you’re not comfortable doing it. But yeah it’s good to know about cuz I think still not spoken about enough So No and and there’s, you know there’s certainly the last sort of birth trauma course I was on Yeah the, the obstetricians were really advocating for it at that point as well and I think you kind of feel like there’s nothing to lose.
So yeah. Why not give it to bash you think? But I do understand it can be a bit of a, a team effort if you can’t Yeah. Especially with a big bump. Exactly. But see if you don’t do it antenatally then certainly when moms are coming to see me postnatally, if anyone has had a tear then again perineal massage for that scar massage is something that we talk about.
So it’s always handy to do beforehand. Yeah. And pelvic floor, I talk about pelvic pelvic floor, like how much pelvic floor exercise should we be doing? Everybody should be doing pelvic floor exercises once a day. That is the current government advice. So relocated advice from the National Institute for Clinical Health Excellence and they brought out guidance on prevention of pelvic floor dysfunction and that guidance is that all women from adolescents really should be doing pelvic floor exercises irrespective of our age over birth history,
whether we’re gonna have children or not. But yeah, for prevention of future problems. So once a day is is a good place to start, especially if you’re not having any, any issues. Yeah, the kind of what you see rolled out everywhere is 10 lots of ten second holds. Yep. And then 10 squeeze, relax. Yep. So we have different muscle fibers,
we’ve got our slow twitch muscle fibers and they’re the ones that are targeted in those long holds. And then we’ve got our fast twitch muscle fibers and they’re the ones that are implicated in things like our stressing continents. So if you’re leaking, if you cough our sneeze. So we need our pelvic floor muscles to be able to contract really quickly and then relax.
Yes. And so that’s where those, those quick ones come in and just during pregnancy with your change in hormones plus change in weight, you know baby pushing down onto pelvic floor intraabdominal pressure increasing it can be quite challenging for the pelvic floor. Yeah. So maintaining that strength in pelvic floor during pregnancy is helpful for sort of pelvic symptoms. But again, as I’m sure you’ll cover,
it’s also thinking, you know, we think that that stronger pelvic floor is really useful for delivery as well. Yeah, Yeah. Nice. And one thing that always bothers me is the number of people after birth who are having like incontinence problems and are like, well I had a baby like this is, you know, it’s just how it is. So let’s talk about that.
I’m sure you have a similar viewpoint as I do on that. Yeah and especially like when you, cuz you mentioned mommy o t and things like that. So what’s, what’s normal after birth in terms of pelvic flora in terms of what we should do or what we experience? So the normal is that we should have no issues. Yeah. That’s the normal.
The normal is that we should be continent and that means we shouldn’t leak, we shouldn’t leak if we’re bouncing on a trampoline we shouldn’t be leaking if we’re coughing or sneezing, leaking can be urine. And I think that’s something that we talk about, you know, I think we’re much happier talking about urine but there are issues around some people postnatally might find that they struggle to control gas.
Yeah. Which can be really embarrassing and people are much less keen to talk about that. So there’s control of gas and also sort of barrel control as well either leaking or constipation. Postnatally is a big issue and we as physios want to kind of try and avoid people’s straining because of the pressure that that puts on pelvic floor. So yes, what’s normal is that your pelvic floor ideally would be what it is prenatally,
assuming you have no problems prenatally, but statistics at the moment are what one in four women will have urinary continents at some point or other and probably 50% of women will have a prolapse. Yeah. At some point or so. Really, really common, not normal. So definitely not something to put up with. So first port of call I would always say if you are leaking urine,
if you’re coughin sneezing, you’re not keen to go in the trampoline. If you’re not doing pelvic floor exercises, then just start. Yes. A a and general exercise as well. You know, if you’re somebody who’s not particularly active, just getting yourself generally active can be helpful. But if you’ve got any concerns and speak to your gp, there are any HS physios that do the job that I do.
And so you can access that by speaking to your gp. If you feel that that weight is too long, then absolutely, you know, you can come and see, see us and that’s what we deal with all day every day. But there’s options kind of either way. Perfect. And I would say those first few days are maybe a bit different or you’re still trying to work out where stuff is.
So like when would you expect people to be like going to the bathroom normally? Well yes, first thing is starting pelvic floor exercises. Pelvic floor exercises can be started from the moment that you feel able to, if you’re catheterized you have to wait until the catheter is out. But aside from that you can get started as soon as you can and and actually starting to do your pelvic floor exercises can help with that reduction in inflammation because you’re improving the blood flow into the tissues,
kind of down into your, into your vagina. I mean we don’t see people before six weeks and there’s reasoning behind that because if somebody has had a tear you want everything to heal the kind of tissue perspective. But also in that first six weeks I, I definitely think quite a lot of ladies will find that first couple of weeks, you know, bowel control’s not so good bladder controls maybe not so good,
maybe wee bit more constipated. But by week six often a lot of those symptoms of leaking have resolved. Good. Yeah. It’s just good to know like I think people bought with it for years like you say. And if anyone’s listening who has experienced that for however 10 years, is it too late? No, never too late. Never too late at all.
Because there’s so many things that can be done between just simple exercises and, and I think that is the other thing, if people feel well I’m doing my kind of key goals and I’m still having problems, then often we just need to change when you can make pelvic floor a wee bit more functional. Yeah. So trying to bring in exercises in challenging positions,
looking at what you’re doing exercise-wise, looking at people’s breathing through their exercise Yeah. Is really important for pelvic floor function. Then we can also use things like we have biofeedback machines or muscle stimulation machines, which can make a difference. And then, you know, sometimes you find that somebody’s bladder symptoms actually relate to a prolapse. Yes. And so then we can advise correctly on the management to prolapse and that can make a big difference as well.
So yeah, there’s lots can be done at any point down the line. So I would say for people themselves, if they’re having issues then definitely worth seeing about, but it’s trying to open the conversation. So even if you’re starting speaking to your mom or your aunt and they’re having issues from when they had children, you know there’s still things that can be done.
That’s good. I didn’t think like generationally there’s so many misconceptions passed out, like just saying, oh well you know, that’s what happens. Like, oh no, when you have a kid you can’t go in the trampoline. So I think it’s, yeah it’s so important to hear that actually no we wanna be getting back to, you know, being able to go in the trampoline if you wish to go in the trampoline.
It’s actually quite hard work to depend in the trampoline. Oh it’s really hardcore, hardcore work. I think it’s the physios generally get quick cross at like ken lady adverts on tv like and they’ve moved into a younger category for sure with some of their more recent advertising and it’s like, you know, I want to exercise, I’ll stick on a pad and off I go.
And while we want everybody to exercise and we must have access to those products for sure, but they never mention that there’s things that can be done to resolve. Yeah. Is that balance of Yeah. Like yes empowering people to be able to do stuff now but also to look at actually it would be more empowering to solve the problem rather than the kinda bandaid approach or pad approach in this case.
So, and I think that is something else that’s important for people to know. I think sometimes people are reluctant to come forward because they’re worried that we will tell them to stop exercising. Yeah. If they are thinking or if they’re having problems. And I would say that is never my goal and it’s always trying to look at other options and look around things.
Sometimes it’s activity modification but it’s definitely not our goal to kind of stop people from Yeah. Exercising. So for those who are looking for exercise classes like Pilates or anything else locally, like how do you know, like what do you need to look for in terms of something that’s suitable for pregnancy? I, I would always just look at any of the pregnancy specific classes because,
so I mean I think if you’re established, if you already go to a class and have gone to that class for a long time and then you become pregnant if your teacher is happy for you to be there and ideally we’d have some pregnancy training then I say you know, you’re kind of fighting to stay but otherwise getting into those pregnancy specific classes. So anybody that’s a designated pregnancy specific coate class or a yoga class and I think we’re quite lucky.
I think there’s quite good provision in Aberdeen. Yeah. So just to finish off, you’ve, you had your kids’ Aberdeen, didn’t you? Yes. Yeah. For anyone who’s pregnant in Aberdeen, what tips or suggestions would you have for them? It’s very hot in the maternity unit. Yes. Good for you. Oh well that the birthing pool always seems to be free.
I know we only have one. Yes. But I don’t think, I don’t know about you Jade. I don’t come across many people who haven’t had the pool if they want to. Yeah. Yeah I can think of one or two who maybe had to wait. But yeah, I think it’s massively underutilized and I think part of that is the number of people going for induction,
therefore going to Westburn and Labor Board. So yeah I think like always asked don’t just discount it cuz there’s only one like you say because yeah there is often it’s often available And I think, I just think we’re super lucky. There’s lots of good options for classes and stuff here as well for new moms. So I think she’s getting out and finding, finding those classes,
finding your bunch of people, yeah. Is the key. Perfect. Thanks. And for people to get in touch with you, what’s the best way they can do that? Probably find us on social media. Cause I try and keep our social media quite busy. So we are reform physio, a, B, Z on Facebook and Instagram. Do you have mommy o t Instagram as well.
It’s Mommy mot Aberdeen. Just so I could post more of the kind of mommy, ot and pregnancy stuff without boring all of our other people. And I’ll link those in the show notes anyway so people don’t need to remember it or write it down. Yeah. So that’s probably the easiest way. And then all our links for contacts and stuff are on there.
Yeah. So if they were getting started, if if anyone’s listening thinking, oh I really need help, a physio would be good. Do you, do they book an initial consultation or anything like that? How do they begin? Yeah, so if somebody’s got concerns, then absolutely booking an initial appointment and you all are bookings, run online, you would select antenatal physiotherapy first appointment.
And we also do remote appointments as well still. So if you are out in the shire a bit further away, yes then that’s quite a nice option. And then if you’re just keen to start with the pregnancy, Pilates again online booking, you don’t need to come along beforehand, just fill in the health screen form on there. Super. That’s brilliant.
Thanks very much for sharing all that with us today, Laura. Thanks Jade. We’re quite busy. So we are reform physio, a, B, Z on Facebook and Instagram. Do you have mommy mot Instagram as well? It’s mommy mot Aberdeen. Just so I could post more of the kind of mommy tea and pregnancy stuff without boring all of our other people.
And I’ll link those in the show notes anyway so people don’t need to remember it or write it down. Yeah, So that’s probably the easiest way. And then all our links for contacts and stuff are on there. Yeah, so if they were getting started, if if anyone’s listening thinking, oh I really need help if physio would be good, do you,
do they book an initial consultation or anything like that? How do they begin? Yeah, So if somebody’s got concerns, then absolutely booking an initial appointment and you all our bookings run online, you would select antenatal physiotherapy first appointment. And we also do remote appointments as well still. So if you are out in the shire a bit further away, yes,
then that’s quite a nice option. And then if you’re just keen to start with the pregnancy, Pilates, again, online booking, you don’t need to come along beforehand, just fill in the health screen form on there. Super. That’s brilliant. Thanks very much for sharing all that with us today, Laura. Thanks. Thank you again to Laura for answering all of my questions today.
It’s a really interesting topic and one I wish we would talk about more. So here’s a couple of points that stood out for me that I want you to take away from this. Firstly, everyone is different. There’s no one size fits all in terms of the care you need, the exercise you should be doing or can be doing no matter what exercise you’re thinking about.
Listening to your body is so important and asking your teacher if you’re taking a class to help in adapting things so it feels good for you. But reaching out for a professional support if you wanna know what’s right for you can be really helpful. Secondly, you shouldn’t put up with incontinence after birth. There is something you can do about it. There are people out there to help you,
whether it’s going to your GP or going to a pelvic floor, physio like Laura. Reach out and get support because you don’t need to spend the rest of your life like that. There are things that you can do. Finally, whether you’re pregnant or not, remember to do your pelvic floor exercises. As Laura said, these are important throughout our life anyway,
so I encourage people in my classes to tie this to something else you do often to help add it on. It’s a really good way to add a tiny habit. Things like waiting for the kettle to boil. Just taking those minute or two to actually do some pelvic floor exercises and making it part of your daily routine can be really helpful in remembering to actually do it.
Thanks for listening. Head over to the show notes for this [email protected] slash episode four, but you’ll find links to additional free resources and links to Laura’s website and social media. Thanks again for joining me here today and do get in touch if you have any questions, you can email me, jade pregnant aberdeen.com and I’ll be back very soon with our next episode.