Who This Blog Is For: If postpartum back pain has continued weeks or months after delivery, especially when lifting, feeding, carrying, or getting through everyday activities, this guide can help you understand why discomfort may persist and what may deserve a closer look.
You expected some things to change once the baby arrived. Your belly gradually changes. Your routines change. Eventually, you start trying to feel more like yourself again.
So why does your back still hurt?
Maybe getting out of bed is uncomfortable. Picking your baby up from the floor makes you think twice. Carrying the car seat feels harder on your back than expected. Or perhaps the discomfort you noticed during pregnancy simply never completely settled.
The postpartum period does not instantly return your musculoskeletal system to its pre-pregnancy state. And once the baby arrives, your body takes on an entirely new set of repetitive physical demands.
That means lingering back pain deserves more than the assumption that you simply need to “wait it out.”
Quick Answer: Postpartum back pain can persist because recovery does not happen immediately after delivery, and several factors may overlap. Previous low-back pain, pain during pregnancy, and other individual factors are associated with persistent symptoms. At the same time, lifting, carrying, feeding, and bending introduce new physical demands, so ongoing pain should be evaluated rather than attributed to one cause.
Back pain during and after pregnancy is not one single condition.
Some people experience primarily low-back pain, while others have pelvic-girdle pain, which involves pain around the joints and structures of the pelvis. The two can also overlap.
Research shows that although pregnancy-related low-back and pelvic-girdle symptoms often follow a favorable course after delivery, a subgroup continues to experience pain. A systematic review and meta-analysis identified previous low-back pain and pelvic-girdle pain during pregnancy among factors associated with persistent postpartum complaints.
Another systematic review found that greater pain and disability during pregnancy were associated with pelvic-girdle pain persisting beyond delivery.
The important point is not that pregnancy has “damaged” your spine.
It is that the transition from pregnancy to postpartum recovery is gradual, and your previous history, pregnancy symptoms, current physical capacity, and new daily workload can all matter.
Postpartum recovery does not happen in isolation.
You are also suddenly performing movements you may repeat dozens of times each day:
These movements are not inherently harmful. But their repetition can matter when your back is already sensitive.
A 2025 biomechanics study examined postpartum mothers lifting their own infants from the floor, a changing table, and an infant car seat. Researchers found that these tasks produced different demands on the trunk, hips, knees, and muscles. Lifting from the floor required substantial trunk and lower-body movement, while lifting from a changing table commonly involved asymmetric side-bending and rotation.
This helps explain why back pain after giving birth may not simply disappear when pregnancy ends. Your physical demands have changed rather than disappeared.
Some soreness during postpartum recovery is expected, but persistent or worsening pain deserves appropriate evaluation—especially when it limits walking, sleeping, lifting, or caring for your baby.
It is also important not to label every postpartum pain as musculoskeletal.
Seek prompt medical care for severe or rapidly worsening back pain, particularly when accompanied by fever, new weakness or numbness, difficulty controlling your bladder or bowels, significant difficulty walking, or other concerning symptoms.
Your obstetric or primary healthcare provider can also help determine whether pelvic-floor dysfunction, pelvic-girdle pain, neurological symptoms, or another condition warrants further evaluation.
The goal is to identify what actually fits your presentation rather than assuming every case of postpartum lower back pain has the same explanation.
This is where an important distinction needs to be made.
Pregnancy does not automatically cause atlas misalignment, and having postpartum back pain does not mean your atlas is misaligned.
There is not sufficient evidence to support that causal claim.
However, the location where you experience pain does not necessarily need to be the only area considered during a musculoskeletal assessment. Your spine, pelvis, muscles, and joints work together during standing, walking, lifting, and carrying.
For that reason, a chiropractor may examine multiple regions rather than focusing exclusively on the lower back.
At Unity Wellness, this can include evaluating the upper cervical region for measurable findings that may be relevant to the patient's individual presentation.
If an atlas alignment issue is identified, that finding should be considered on its own clinical merits. It should not be assumed that pregnancy caused it or that it explains all postpartum back pain.
That distinction allows the evaluation to remain individualized instead of forcing every postpartum patient into the same explanation.
At Unity Wellness, Danielle Stalp uses a gentle, low-force, and measurement-guided approach to upper cervical care.
The purpose of an upper cervical evaluation is to determine whether measurable findings are present and whether addressing them may be appropriate within the patient's broader musculoskeletal picture.
That matters because research into chiropractic approaches for postpartum low-back and pelvic-girdle pain remains limited. A systematic review found that the available evidence was not sufficient to make a clear recommendation for any single intervention.
In other words, upper cervical care should not be presented as a guaranteed solution for postpartum back pain.
Instead, an evaluation can help determine whether the upper cervical region is one piece worth considering alongside other appropriate postpartum care.
When you're caring for a new baby, it is easy to put your own discomfort further down the list.
But months of adapting how you lift, carry, sleep, feed, and move around pain can make everyday life more difficult than it needs to be.
If persistent back discomfort is interfering with your routine and you're looking for a chiropractor in Elkhorn, NE, consider scheduling a consult.
The goal is not to assume your pain comes from your atlas. It is to evaluate your current musculoskeletal presentation and determine whether upper cervical care is appropriate for you.
Contact Unity Wellness today to schedule your consultation with Dr. Stalp.
Recovery varies considerably. Many people improve after delivery, but research shows that a subgroup continues experiencing pregnancy-related low-back or pelvic-girdle pain for months. Previous back pain and the severity of pregnancy-related symptoms can influence the likelihood of persistence.
No. Low-back pain generally refers to symptoms involving the lumbar region, while pelvic-girdle pain is associated with the pelvic joints and surrounding region. They can occur separately or together, which is one reason an appropriate examination matters.
It can. Infant care involves repeated lifting, carrying, bending, and sometimes asymmetric positions. Research measuring common infant-lifting tasks demonstrates that different childcare activities place different biomechanical demands on the trunk and lower body.
Not necessarily. If symptoms persist, worsen, or interfere with normal activities, you can discuss them with your healthcare provider. The appropriate timing and type of evaluation depend on your delivery, recovery, symptoms, and individual medical history.
No. Finding an upper cervical alignment issue does not prove that it caused your lower-back symptoms, nor does it mean pregnancy caused the upper cervical finding. Your provider should interpret any structural findings alongside your history, symptoms, examination, and other relevant healthcare evaluations.
To schedule a consultation with Dr. Danielle Stalp, call our Elkhorn office (402) 275-5613. You can also click the button below.
If you are outside of the local area, you can find an Upper Cervical Doctor near you at www.uppercervicalawareness.com.
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