Feeling of Heaviness in the Pelvic Area and Lower Back Pain: What Your Body May Be Telling You.
If you’ve ever felt a heaviness feeling in your pelvic area, know you are not alone. The feeling of pelvic pressure, with or without back pain is a common description we hear as pelvic floor PTs.
Whether you are describing pressure, heaviness, a dragging sensation, fullness, or aching, know that what you are feeling is valid, and there is a likely a very good reason for what you are experiencing.
The pelvic organs, muscles, and ligaments, all attach to the lower back. Therefore, if there is a dysfunction in one (or many) of them, there can absolutely be a connection between the pelvic pressure and lower back pain.
Pressure in the pelvic area is common, especially after childbirth, are absolutely treatable with the right provider.
What Does “Pelvic Heaviness” Actually Mean?
Patient’s typically describe pelvic heaviness as
“It feels like something is falling out”
“A rubbing or dragging sensation”
“Like a tampon is partially in”
“A weighted or downward pressure”
“Pressure that worsens by the end of the day”
Typically, symptoms of pressure in the pelvic area are worse after upright activities like standing for a long period of time, walking, or after lifting during workouts.
Back pain usually is accompanied by pelvic heaviness because of the close proximity of the lower back to the organs, muscles, and ligaments. This area gets weighed on by gravity all day, which is typically why symptoms are worse at night.
In addition, the pelvic floor helps to stabilize the spine, so as it fatigues throughout the day, more pressure is placed on the lower back.
Research suggests a strong overlap between lower back pain and pelvic floor dysfunction, which is why treating the back alone is often not enough. Many patients that struggle with lower back pain would benefit from seeing a pelvic floor PT in order to fully address the root cause of the back pain.
Common Causes of Pelvic Heaviness and Lower Back Pain
Common causes of pelvic heaviness and lower back pain include:
Pelvic floor muscle tightness: This causes muscle pulling on the lower back
Pelvic floor muscle weakness: This results in decreased support to the lower back
Pelvic organ prolapse: While extremely common post-pregnancy, even mild cases of prolapse cause ligament stretching which can cause pulling to the lower back
Pregnancy, postpartum, or perimenopause: Hormonal and postural changes associated with these time periods can put more pressure on the lower back and spine.
Poor coordination and mechanics when lifting heavy: The rise in pressure, combined with poor mechanics during lifting can put more pressure on the pelvic area and lower back
Chronic stress and nervous system tension: Stress results in pelvic floor muscle tightness which can result in pulling on the lower back
Signs Your Symptoms May Be Coming From the Pelvic Floor
Signs your pelvic heaviness might be coming from your lower back:
Heaviness worse at end of day
Symptoms that increase with standing, lifting, running
Relief when lying down
Coexisting symptoms:
leaking
constipation
pain with intercourse
tailbone pain
When to Seek Help (and Why “Waiting It Out” Isn’t Ideal)
Unfortunately, symptoms rarely resolve on their own. Unfortunately most patients choose to either forgo, or modify their exercise/movement which only weakens the pelvic area.
Fortunately, pelvic floor physical therapists are specialized physical therapists that specialize in helping patients overcome pelvic floor muscle heaviness and improve lower back pain.
The earlier that you can seek treatment with a pelvic floor PT, the better your outcomes with treatment.
How Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy Can Help
Pelvic floor therapy can help with pelvic heaviness and lower back pain by uncovering all the factors that might be contributing to your pelvic heaviness.
Your care plan will start with an assessment (it doesn’t just involve giving exercises!). Your therapist will then work on coordination, breathing, posture, movement mechanics, and nervous system exercises, manual techniques, and modifications to help you feel confident.
Working with a specialized therapist in a 1-on-1 setting can be a total game changer.
What NOT to Do When You Feel Pelvic Heaviness
Things you shouldn’t do if you feel heaviness:
Ignore it
Google exercises and go down the rabbit hole of “worst care scenario”
Stop moving entirely
Rely on generic core workouts alone- you need a customized exercise program.
You Don’t Have to Live With This Feeling
Pelvic heaviness and lower back pain are common—but they are not something you have to accept. With the right support and a thoughtful, individualized approach, meaningful improvement is absolutely possible.
Pelvic Floor PT in Bucks County, PA.
Vivid Women’s Health is a women’s health physical therapy practice located in Newtown, PA and Doylestown, PA. We provide unmatched pelvic floor physical therapy to help women resolve pelvic floor symptoms.
If you are local to the Newtown, PA or Doylestown, PA, Bucks County area, please click here to find out more about our in person services. If you are visiting our site from afar, we offer virtual services to help you overcome your pelvic health concerns. For virtual services, please click here.
We proudly put our patients first by offer one-on-one appointments for a full hour. You will have time to be heard and we will take time to listen to your whole story. You won’t be passed between different professionals and we will work to get you a holistic solution to your pelvic health concerns. We choose to participate in a private pay model so that we can focus on putting patients first.
