Rotated Pelvis? Ligaments lax? Unstable?

Hi everyone,

I’m new to this forum, but I’m not new to Tms. About 5-6 years ago I had bad upper back pain and was diagnosed with multiple things (rsi, fibro, etc). I beat it using Healing Back Pain. It was amazing.
Fast forward and I am currently 6 months post partum. I had a condition called pelvic Girdle pain or symphysis pubis dysfunction during pregnancy. It was actually structural and caused a lot of pain. Basically my ligaments caused too much separation of my pelvic joints. The pain left after I had my daughter, but after I had her I couldn’t lift my right leg for about two weeks. I was completely unstable and it almost felt like I had a wooden leg. I fell into the wall at the hospital.
It is now 6 months later and I’ve been doing physio (strengthen glutes, core) but I’m not improving. I was told rotated pelvis, ligament laxity, unstable si joints. I basically feel twisted and unstable when I walk, especially when turning corners or holding my daughter.
I am struggling - almost hoping it is tms - but I can see my pelvis tilted in the mirror.
Has anyone dealt with anything similar? I feel like I have no hope and am really really hoping to find some here.
Again not too much pain - but my gait is totally changed and I have basically stopped living life because of how bad I feel. I feel I’m missing out on precious moments with my babe.
Thanks in advance.

 

Hi Robyn,

I'm sorry to hear you're struggling! Glad you found TMS. I have a baby just a month and a half younger than yours so I feel for you. I didn't personally have this condition but I can tell you what I know as a PT. Pubic symphysis separation is a real thing a. nd can certainly cause pain and dysfunction. Pregnancy and birth also do structurally change the pelvis for everyone, whether or not they have that condition. That being said, it should resolve and heal over time, as you get farther from the birth, have less relaxin in your system and the ligaments heal up. That can certainly take some time...all bodies take a while to shift after birth. I know my body isn't the same as before I was pregnant!

All that being said, I think there is definitely an element of TMS in your situation from what you describe. The ligamentous and SI laxity shouldn't be painful at this distance and their stability should be improving. I think being told you have those things (rotated pelvis etc) can significantly contribute to feeling/perceiving yourself as unsteady and create those sensations (or amplify them), TMS style. Many people may "structurally" have a rotated pelvis but have no symptoms from it. Bodies come in so many shapes and with "normal abnormalities"...and all women have lax ligaments and SI joints during and after pregnancy! It really sounds that at this distance many of your symptoms are lingering due to fear, creating TMS. TMS loves to piggyback onto "real" structural issues, that happened to me too.

Hope that all makes sense, feel free to message me if you have a question. Sending good thoughts your way and hoping you get to start spending more quality time with the baby!

 

Hi. Thanks so much for your response. Unfortunately I don’t think I’m dealing with tms. I know it probably sounds crazy to ‘want’ it. But I had gotten over it before whereas I don’t seem to be making progress with this injury.
I’m so unstable on my right side and it’s almosg like none of my muscles on that side fire. And now this week as a result of rolling sideways when I walk, I injured a tendon on the outside of my foot (not tms - major swelling and sore).
As a PT, have you seen anyone with these issues and had them resolve? Feeling like I’m losing hope. I walk all twisted and it’s almost like my right leg is disconnected from my body. Just along for the ride... I have almost no balance or strength on that side.
It’s SO hard dealing with this and a new baby. All I want to do is take care of her and take her for walks and I feel like I have to watch while everyone else does it. Sinking into a depression

 

Hi Robyn84, Have you heard of prolotherapy? Here's a link https://www.spinemd.com/news-philanthropy/explore-the-latest-treatment-option-for-si-joint (Explore the Latest Non-Operative Treatment Option for SI Joint Dysfunction: Prolotherapy - Spine Care News & Articles). I don't know how successful it is - or any of the pros and cons - so you'd need to do some research into it; however, I believe that the injections can be used to strengthen ligaments in various places in the body.

 

Hi Robyn,

I notice you say you're "not dealing with TMS"...yet you post on these forums. Just wanted to bring that to your attention and ask you whether you're still having some thoughts on what is causing this? Some things can be tricky to differentiate but remember that lots of people get TMS when it "piggybacks" off of a now-healed structural injury.

I don't think you "want" the pain at all, that isn't what TMS is about! I think the structural injury you had was at a particularly tough time of life, around the birth and having a new baby. That will certainly make things harder and could amplify your structural pain. Remember that some things arent 100% TMS or 100% structural, there is a grey area. Since i'm not working with you in person I can't say about your right leg, but don't discount that TMS may be a big factor. Remember that TMS can cause weakness, feelings of instability and a million other things. I used to feel my back was very unstable before I knew about TMS, it even popped and cracked in a very real way that contributed to those feelings.

I don't work in women's health so as a PT I haven't had a ton of patients with your injury (I work in neuro). But i've known people to heal from this injury- a colleague of mine also had a pubic symphysis separation and it healed with time. It can take a while, recall that if you're breastfeeding you still have a lot of relaxin in your system that makes your joints more lax in general. This can take some time to heal up but i'm sure it will heal! Hopefully your PT has given you hope on this and helped you see that lots of other women heal from it.

In general, postpartum body issues can be tough. I didn't have what you had, but after my c-section it definitely took me time to feel healed and normal. 5 months later I don't have any pain issues but also don't feel my body is back to "normal" like before...I've heard it can take up to a year for your body to return to its usual functioning after having a baby!

 

Hi...

Whoops. I didn’t mean I wanted the pain. What I was trying to say is the reason I was posting here is in my gut I feel like this is an actual structural thing happening, but I was actually hoping it was tms - as I have overcome tms before (fibro type issues and tmj).

Before posting here I tried treating it as tms and ended up injuring my foot. Swelling on the lateral part. It’s still puffy.

I also had an emerg c section - so there was a traumatic labor for sure. So maybe it’s part of it. I guess I’m just struggling because I don’t have much pain anymore (my pelvic joints hurt before my period) instead I have lost my ability to walk and function like normal. My pelvis is so twisted that the hip bone is lower and a birth mark that used to be on my calf is now partly on the front of my leg. If I wake up in the middle of the night and forget to think about balance and walking, I have rolled right into the wall.

Ugh I don’t know. Just trying to figure out what’s going on. The latest theory by my osteopath was that scar tissue and my uterus isn’t allowing me to transfer weight properly or for dissociation. I just kind of clunk around. Thanks for your help.

 

Thanks - I have actually been looking into it

 

Hi Robyn- I have the exact same thing going on now 9 months after having my daughter. I also recovered from TMS fibromyalgia pain a few years ago. I could've written this word for word. I am so scared I won't get better. How are you now? Any advice?