Taking care of feet during pregnancy
September 15, 2008
Pregnancy, no doubt, is the most wonderful experience of womanhood. Of course, all roses do have thorns. Pregnancy too brings with it many physical strains.
All organs of the mother’s body will have to adjust, and many of them will have to be even reshaped, in order to make it comfortable for the baby within. Legs too have to put up with the changed situation of weight gain, which is most inevitable. As pregnancy advances they will have to bear the weight of both the mother and her laden uterus. This may trigger off certain irregularities such as heel pain, leg cramping, flat foot, edema etc. Some women suffer from varicose veins as well. Body tends to change its weight-bearing posture in order to cope up with the additional weight.
Flat foot is one such common irregularity. Here, arches of the feet get flattened and make them flat. Flat feet provide increased strain on the feet, back and calves. Walking becomes extremely painful. It is advisable for such women to wear well-fitting shock absorber footwears that provide enough support as well.
Swelling of feet during pregnancy is termed as edema. The excess pressure that comes on veins due to the bloated uterus causes edema. This slows down the blood circulation to the feet and as a result extra fluid retention takes place. Edema can be effectively tackled by keeping the legs stretched in a raised surface. Whenever possible, toes and ankles should be rotated.
Foot massage during pregnancy is found to be extremely effective. Through massaging, muscles are relaxed and thereby pain gets reduced. Massaging also enhances blood circulation and thus swelling is minimised. Leg massaging should be done from toe upwards. Starting from the toe, strokes should be made towards the ankles. The return stroke back to the toe should be of lighter pressure. The bottom of the feet can also be massaged similarly. This can be repeated thrice a day for better results.
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