Pregnancy can be whirlwind of emotions, thoughts and feelings. On the one hand, with a new child on the way you might feel nervous and excited for the future, dreaming about the life you’ll have pushing a stroller around Toronto; on the other hand, the physical realities of pregnancy can keep you grounded in the present, and not necessarily in a good way.

Back pain, headaches, cramps, fatigue, morning sickness and sleep troubles are all common ailments during a pregnancy and can cause undue discomfort at a time when you really want to be comfortable.

Here are three of the most common pregnancy troubles, and how to deal with them.

Back Pain & Headaches

The reason these two share a header is because they are often linked. With the increase in weight to your abdomen, you’ll be taking on a greater frontal load, which will in turn cause your upper back to move backwards in compensation and your neck to shift forward.

This shift out of alignment of your cervical spine, aside from being uncomfortable in its own right, can also cause headaches. For back pain, neck pain and headaches, don’t reach for the painkillers – contact a chiropractor in Toronto that specializes in prenatal or postnatal care, like Transform Chiropractic in Bloor West Village.

They will be able to offer exercise and stretching tips as well as perform gentle adjustments to relieve pain.

Cramps

Aside from back pain, a common complaint during pregnancy is cramping. As the uterus expands and the abdominal ligaments and muscles stretch, there might be some painful cramping in the form of either sharp pain or a dull ache.

With exercise you can strengthen the abdominal muscles, or target the pain with relaxation exercises, both of which you can ask your chiropractor about.

Sleep Troubles

Either you’re tired all the time or you can’t get to sleep… No, this isn’t your mind preparing for parenthood! Fatigue and sleeplessness often feed off one another – the physical discomfort of pregnancy, as well as very active dreaming can make getting a good night’s rest difficult, which in turn causes you to be tired the next day.

Again, the name of the game here is tackling that root cause, which is pain and discomfort. Draw a warm bath and light a few candles. Do a few stretches and then put your feet up and relax.

Nap if you feel like it. Don’t worry about the workaday stresses in your life: you’re chilling out for two! As you can see, these prevalent pregnancy ailments share some commonalities.

The bottom line that emerges when you take each of them into account is that you have to take the time to take care of yourself, whether by visiting a chiropractor, doing some exercising and stretching, relaxing with a warm bath or setting aside time to rest.

With pain and discomfort out of the picture, you can go back to focusing on what’s important: preparing to welcome this beautiful person into the world.