backache edition - week 20 :)

I have had it a little here and there and now and then: backache. It is normal to get some of it during pregnancy and one major reason is connected to your pelvis which is already extending. So, this is not only weight-related, because then many women would only have it in their third trimester, when they carry a lot more around than before that time. But you can work against back pain and with a bit of luck you might get rid of it again.


1. Ask your partner for a massage of the back. This relaxes your back muscles and might lead to other regions that need to be relaxed.

2. A warm bath is good, but don't use too hot water. It's bad for baby.

3. A little stretching; don't overdo this. My backache happened round about the start of the second trimester and occasionally a little now and then. Do not try to stretch like an acrobat, you are none at this point of time. The magic term is: moderate.

4. Yoga and Pilates are good to strengthen muscles in general. In urban areas you'll probably find yoga and pilates classes for pregnant women. In one book I have read that a woman did not want to join a class and instead had a video with yoga exercises at home. According to her, the backache disappeared within one week after she had started doing exercises for about half an hour each day.

4.1 Do your exercises,   you could go walking or swimming, and your doctor will know a few exercises for you, to strengthen the back.

5. Stand straight! It's about posture, so don't let your shoulders slump forward, take them back and keep them relaxed. There is more to it, e.g. you could prop up your back with a small cushion while you sit.

5.0 Don't stand too long, but don't sit too long, either.

5.1 One of my favourites: sleep with a pillow between your knees. This should help, probably the main reason is because you sleep on the side and if you pull one knee a little up, it relaxes many different abdominal muscles.

6. Wear shoes with low heels. High heels would always be a balancing act for me by now. Flats are not my favourites and somewhere I also heard that flats are not the best choice either. This must be because you need some good support for your arch.

7. Wear a maternity support belt.  They can help a lot and give support to your bump.

8. I haven't tried this one yet, but applying cold packs to the back for the first days and then switching to warm packs is supposed to help. But don't apply heat to your bump, because this could really harm baby.

From other backache, not at all pregnancy related, I would always prefer the warm pack, e.g. from a nice warm water bottle.


9. If the pain doesn't vanish within a rather short period of time, I would go and see the doctor, just in case.

10. You could try acupuncture. You could, only I wouldn't, because of the needles. If I were absolutely relaxed, I could do that, but needles make me tense. I am not completely afraid, though.

11. But when you are tense, you might also be stressed. That leads to muscle tenseness and that could result in backache, too. You need stress relief! Some ideas are in another post of mine, on reducing stress levels.   And the least you should do, if you are troubled, is to talk to someone you can trust!

12. Don't lift anything heavy. Only a few pounds are ok. If you have to lift something from the ground, bend your knees, squat down and lift with your legs. So, don't bend your back. If you squat down and cannot get up again, forget lifting anything else but you, at all.

13. Don't sit at the computer too long, and if you have to, use the little cushion or a towel to support your back.

14. If this could be sciatica, try massaging your lower back, buttock and upper leg with a tennis ball. I don't know if this works for others, but it did the trick for me.



Backache can also mean that there is something else going on, e.g. UTI or beginning labour. Therefore I would always recommend to ask your doctor in time.

Baby and I have reached week 20! Now it turns into something really big.:)

... not that big, please!

Originally, I was looking for jokes about back pain. There are some, but I also found these here, below.

BDSM - jokes

Did You Know This About Leather Dresses?

Do you know that when a woman wears a leather dress, a man's heart beats quicker, his throat gets dry, he gets weak in the knees, and he begins to think irrationally? Ever wonder why?

It's because she smells like a new truck.

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Q: What's green and carries a bull whip?
A: Kermit the Flog

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Sue and Sally meet at their 30th class reunion, and they haven't seen each other since graduation.  They begin to talk and bring each other up to date.  The conversation covers their husbands, their children, homes, etc. and finally gets around to their sex lives.
Sue says "It's OK.  We get it on every week or so but it's no big adventure, how's yours?" Sally replies "It's just great, ever since we got into S&M." Sue is aghast.  "Really Sally, I never would have guessed that you would go for that."
"Oh, sure," says Sally, "He snores while I masturbate."

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One day Mom was cleaning junior's room and in the closet she found a bondage S+M magazine. This was highly upsetting for her.
She hid the magazine until his father got home and showed it to him.
He looked at it and handed it back to her without a word.
She finally asked him, " Well what should we do about this?"
Dad looked at her and said, "Well I don't think you should spank him."

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Q: What's the difference between Sensuous and Kinky?
A: Sensuous they use the feather,
   Kinky they use the whole chicken.