Coccydynia: A dislodged tail bone

Well this one is often missed, put down to the trauma of delivery. However, come three months post delivery when the bleeding has stopped, the stitches have healed and you are starting to feel half human again there is still pain lingering in the tail bone.  You have spoken to your friends about it, and got all types of possible and probable reasons why you could still be in pain so long after giving birth. Most likely, none of these friends suggested coccydynia. 

Although you can suffer from coccydynia without going through childbirth, it is thought to be the most common cause. Once again the hormone relaxin plays a part in this condition, by relaxing your ligaments and soft tissue, including the tail bone. During child birth the tail one bone needs to move a little to give way for the baby, and in some cases the coccyx bone does not go back into its correct positions, leaving you in pain and with a condition called coccydynia. 

Quite often the main indicator of coccydynia is pain while moving from sitting to standing. Other symptoms can also include back ache, shooting pains down the leg, pain before or when you pass stools, pain during sex, painful buttocks and hips and increased pain during periods if they have started already. You may also have difficulty sleeping but often this goes unnoticed with a new baby round the house.  It is therefore not commonly suggested post partum as there could be pain anyway from the birth. 

How can it be treated?

Ibuprofen is very useful in this scenario as coccydynia always comes with swelling and inflammation. If the pain still persists then a physiotherapist can use a technique called spinal manipulations to put the bone back into its correct position, relieving the patient of pain.  

If you feel direct pain over your tail bone and you are in great discomfort, you do not need to wait three months before seeking help from a physiotherapist. It can be diagnosed and treated directly after giving birth.

If you are suffering from tail bone pain and would like to book an appointment, please contact me on 0544485086 or by email to tamaramay.physio@gmail.com.  I can arrange to see you in Bishvilaych Women's Comprehensive Medical Centre in Givat Shaul, Jerusalem or a home visit if you live in Gush Etzion.