How Physiotherapy Can Support You
Pregnancy is a time of significant physical and hormonal change. For women living with a neurological condition, these changes can bring additional challenges that affect mobility, balance, fatigue, bladder and bowel function, pelvic health and day to day activities.
Can I have a healthy pregnancy with a neurological condition?
Yes. Most women with neurological conditions can have a healthy pregnancy and birth. While pregnancy may influence symptoms such as fatigue, mobility, balance or bladder and bowel function, careful planning, monitoring and support from your healthcare team can help you stay active and manage these changes.
Neurological conditions affect the brain, spinal cord or peripheral nerves and can influence how the body moves, feels and functions. Because neurological conditions affect everyone differently, personalised assessment and management are particularly important throughout your pregnancy and after birth. Some neurological conditions that may require specialised physiotherapy support include:
- Multiple sclerosis (MS)
- Functional Neurological Disorder (FND)
- Stroke
- Spinal cord injury
- Spina Bifida
- Myasthenia gravis
- Parkinson’s disease
- Cerebral palsy
- Peripheral neuropathies
- Other neurological disorders affecting movement, strength or sensation
How does pregnancy affect neurological conditions?
As your pregnancy progresses, normal changes to posture, body weight, circulation and hormones can influence neurological symptoms. Women may experience:
- Increased fatigue
- Changes in balance and coordination
- Reduced mobility
- Muscle weakness or increased muscle stiffness
- Increased falls risk
- Pregnancy related back or pelvic pain
- Changes in bladder or bowel function
- Pelvic floor dysfunction
- Reduced exercise tolerance
- Difficulty completing everyday activities
Your symptoms may change throughout pregnancy and can continue to evolve during the postpartum period as the body recovers after birth.
How can physiotherapy help during pregnancy?
Physiotherapy can help women remain active, manage symptoms and prepare for the physical demands of pregnancy, labour and early parenting. Management is tailored to the individual’s neurological condition, pregnancy stage and personal goals, and may include:
- Safe exercise prescription during pregnancy
- Balance and mobility training
- Falls prevention strategies
- Pelvic floor muscle assessment and rehabilitation
- Management of bladder and bowel symptoms
- Education on posture, movement and energy conservation
- Strategies to manage pregnancy related pain
- Prescription of aids and supports to improve symptoms
- Labour preparation, birth positioning advice and development of a birth plan
- Rehabilitation following vaginal birth or caesarean section
- Scar management
- Guidance on returning safely to exercise and everyday activities after birth
The goal is to help women maintain independence, optimise function and participate confidently throughout pregnancy and recovery.
A collaborative approach to care
Women with neurological conditions often benefit from care provided by a multidisciplinary healthcare team.
Physiotherapists frequently work alongside obstetricians, neurologists, midwives, general practitioners and other healthcare professionals to ensure care is coordinated and responsive to each woman’s changing needs throughout pregnancy and after birth.
This collaborative approach supports better symptom management, improved function and a smoother transition into the postpartum period.
Expertise grounded in clinical practice
Understanding how pregnancy and neurological conditions interact is essential for providing safe, effective and individualised care. This is why Active Women’s Health Physiotherapists Megan Bergman and Catherine Hayden presented a national education session for the Australian Physiotherapy Association (APA) titled Considerations for Pregnancy and Postpartum in the Neurological Population.
At Active, education and clinical excellence go hand in hand. Our physiotherapists regularly contribute to professional education through conference presentations, teaching and mentoring, ensuring our patients benefit from current evidence and best practice.
Megan has extensive experience supporting women with pelvic health concerns and neurological conditions across private practice and community settings. Catherine has more than 15 years of experience in women’s and paediatric pelvic health, including maternity services and obstetric and gynaecology care. Their combined expertise reflects Active’s commitment to advancing physiotherapy knowledge while delivering compassionate, evidence-informed care to every patient.
How Active Rehabilitation Physiotherapy can help
If you are pregnant and living with a neurological condition, or are planning a pregnancy, our Women’s Health and Neurological Physiotherapy teams work together to provide coordinated, personalised care throughout pregnancy and the postpartum period.
By combining expertise in neurological rehabilitation, pelvic health and pregnancy care, we can help manage both the neurological and physical changes that occur during this important stage of life.
We provide coordinated physiotherapy for women experiencing:
- pregnancy-related musculoskeletal pain
- neurological changes affecting mobility and balance
- pelvic floor, bladder and bowel dysfunction
- preparation for labour and birth
- postpartum recovery and return to activity
One of the unique strengths of Active Rehabilitation Physiotherapy is the close collaboration between our Women’s Health and Neurological Physiotherapy teams. This multidisciplinary approach allows us to develop personalised management plans that consider both your neurological condition and the changes of pregnancy, helping you achieve the best possible outcomes for both you and your baby.
