TAILBONE PAIN
You probably never gave your tailbone a single thought until it started to hurt.
Tailbone pain is centered at the very bottom of your spine, right above your buttocks, where this multisegmented bone sits. The tailbone is small, but it does have a few important jobs. It helps stabilize you when you sit. Also, many tendons, muscles, and ligaments run through the area.Your doctor might call your tailbone by its medical name: “coccyx.” The word comes from the Greek term for “cuckoo.” The name was given to the tailbone because the coccyx looks a lot like the beak of a bird.
Pain in your coccyx is called coccydynia. Pain from an injured tailbone can range from mild to intense. The pain can get worse when you sit down, stand up from a chair, or when you lean back while sitting.
You can also feel soreness when you use the bathroom or have sex. Women may feel discomfort during their period. Sometimes, the pain can shoot all the way down your legs. Standing or walking should relieve the pressure on your tailbone and ease discomfort.
Your tailbone might have started hurting after sitting on a hard bench or other uncomfortable surface for a long period of time. Falls and other traumas can bruise, dislocate, or break your tailbone.
Joint damage from repetitive motions or general wear and tear from aging can also contribute to tailbone pain.During the last trimester of pregnancy, the ligaments connected to and around the coccyx naturally loosen to make room for the baby. That’s why women are
You’re also more prone to tailbone problems if you’re overweight. However, if you lose the weight quickly, you’ll lose the padding that protects your tailbone and may be more likely to injure it. In rare cases, the cause of coccyx pain may be an infection or tumor.
To ease discomfort, sit on a heating pad or ice pack, or go for a massage. The way you sit also matters. Poor posture can put too much pressure on your coccyx. Sit with your back against the chair and your feet flat on the floor to take the weight off your tailbone.
Lean forward when you go to sit down. You can also sit on a special donut-shaped pillow or wedge-shaped cushion to relieve pressure on the sensitive area.
A physical therapist can show you exercises to strengthen the muscles that support your tailbone. These include your stomach muscles and pelvic floor.
You can also try a technique called coccygeal manipulation. This is when a doctor inserts a gloved finger in your rectum and moves the tailbone back and forth to shift it back into position.
While there’s no instant cure for tailbone pain, some exercises and stretches can help relieve the pressure that causes tailbone pain. Various yoga poses can be wonderful for stretching out the muscles and ligaments connected to the tailbone.
Pregnant women with tailbone pain can also benefit from stretching.
Talk to your doctor if tailbone pain is worsened by exercising or stretching.
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