Crossing Legs

knottie928bc58a64df9b8c · January 2020

Has anyone else heard that your not supposed to cross your legs when pregnant? I just had my feet up and my DH aunt told me to uncross my feet, but it’s so comfortable. Wanted to know what everyone else thought about this

jrouge12 · January 2020

So no, I've never heard anything like that but people do like to tell pregnant women what not to do. I did a quick internet search and found a site that broke down the myths. Essentially, sitting with your legs crossed isn't harmful to baby, could cause a temporary increase in blood pressure (but nothing to worry about), does not increase varicose veins, and is sorta bad for posture (pregnant or not). If you're comfortable sitting like that, sit how you want. Your husband can't begin to understand how difficult it is to find a comfortable position to sit.

If you're thinking about sticking around on the board introduce yourself in the intro thread at the top and change your knottie user name to something easier. This question would have fit in our randoms thread best!

pirateduck · January 2020

Yes. It has to do with circulation and things like vericose veins and spider veins etc. It's better for your circulation, pregnant and otherwise if you are sitting in a chair to sit with both feet flat on the floor (or feet up). It also keeps you in better alignment overall so is better for your neck/back/hips/etc.

jrouge12 · January 2020

@pirateduck I have to disagree with the varicose veins and spider veins. It is a myth. I will agree it's not the best for posture.

m6agua · January 2020

This person is probably never coming back to respond... but I’ll bite.

My function medicine chiropractor advises against any and all forms of crossing legs. So when you are sitting and cross at the knee, or more of an open cross, even sitting and just crossing your ankles on the ground. It can be not so good for the overall alignment of your spine. But honestly all the looking down we do is probably way worse.🤷🏼‍♀️

pirateduck · January 2020

Hmm... @jrouge12 perhaps my pregnancy reading sources are outdated or I mixed something up then.

I found this article about good posture (which is always good for us) when standing/sitting/driving and might be worth a read.

https://www.webmd.com/baby/posture

pirateduck · January 2020

I’m not totally losing it (though pregnancy makes me feel that way sometimes) from my what to expect book...

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5020794/uploads/editor/55/x1tgyfag5qj1.jpeg

jrouge12 · January 2020

Hahah @pirateduck I don't think you're losing it. It just seems to me that the understanding of what's causing them is changing (like so many things, it's more down to genetics). I'm not surprised it's still in WTE.

Here's a few things I read:
“Crossing your legs does not cause varicose veins,” Dr. Moursi says. “They result from an intrinsic problem with the veins themselves..."
https://uamshealth.com/medical-myths/does-crossing-your-legs-cause-varicose-veins/

"Both standing and sitting for long periods of time may increase your risk of developing varicose veins, but there’s no evidence that crossing your legs has this effect."
https://www.healthline.com/health/crossed-legs-while-sitting#takeaway

"No,” says Dr. Boyle. “Crossing legs does not cause varicose veins. Neither does wearing tight shoes or tight pants — although these things can exacerbate varicose veins if you already have them.”
https://health.clevelandclinic.org/varicose-veins-7-myths-you-shouldnt-believe/

@m6agua is right though! This person is probably never coming back.

mokay19 · January 2020

RE the veins: I don't know how proven either thought is (to cause them or not by crossing your legs), but it's the same thought to not cross your legs while they take your blood pressure (pregnant or not) because it restricts flow and causes a higher BP reading than what may be true. Also, when we get further along and feel like we have a bowling ball between our legs (don't worry, it'll only be a baby), you won't want to cross them lol.

And, I agree with @m6agua that it's bad for us in general... but that's how I sit most the time soooo *shrug*

pourmeanothermocktail · January 2020

FWIW Most chairs are designed with people 5'7"+ so the posture of sitting in a chair might be worse for your posture than crossing legs. Might.

And the shape of your butt and pelvis plus how your legs attach to said pelvis affects your overall alignment in different positions.

For instance, I am relatively short, with a bubble butt and my legs attach in such a way into my pelvis that with feet flat on floor and knees at 90 degrees (which is impossible in the overwhelming majority of chairs anyway-they are either too high off ground so my feet aren't touching flat, or too deep so that they're pressing into the backs of calves or just not able to bend 90 degrees) it pulls my lower back out of alignment, to the point of discomfort. Sitting on flat floor stops my lower back from hurting, but I have to have my legs bent (usually laying one in front of another, so not *quite* crossed, but emulating crossed for sure!). In a chair, to keep my lower back from over-flexing, my knees have to be above my hips slightly. I can keep my back straighter with legs pseudo crossed than sitting in a chair without foot rest, especially considering chairs the right size for me don't really exist in adult American furniture.

Many cultures, especially those in Asia, don't use chairs generally at all and are generally known for good posture and healthy people late in life-think India, China, Japan.

I'm no expert, but I've done a lot of research and reading and learning and taken yoga teacher training, especially in my last 4 years with a messed up pelvis-trying to do everything I can to keep some mobility.

pirateduck · January 2020

@mokay19 I meant to mention this as well. I knew it had an impact on blood pressure because my nurse made me uncross my legs once so she could get an accurate reading. I think you'd have to be in the same position for a long period of time for it to have a notable impact on you/baby in terms of blood pressure, but we are prone to noticing those changes in pregnancy.

There is more in WTE about how spider and vericose veins (along with stretch marks) are predominantly genetic and how there are things that we can do that might help minimize them, but essentially the people who are gonna get them are gonna get them, let's just try and make it as good as we can. Prevention techniques certainly can't hurt.

@pourmeanothermocktail there was some budget at work about two years ago for work station upgrades. A lot of people got standing desks, which didn't work well in my office due to dimensions etc. I am in front of the computer a lot of the day and got the company to buy me a fancy ergonomically correct chair. Obviously not everyone is built the same, but it has a ton of adjustments and I can totally tell a difference in how my back/neck feels at the end of the day. I still have to pay attention to how I am actually sitting, but it's much easier to sit in a good position when you have a chair that supports that. If anyone else works in an office I highly recommend it, even if you have purchase your own chair.

pourmeanothermocktail · January 2020

@pirateduck Yes!! Better chairs are better. I had such issues in an office. I can't get a chair low enough so put my feet in the right vertical place for my back, and even if I could, the desk then is too high. I tried a number of things as foot stools, but once I got feet high enough to take pressure off my back, my knees hit the desktop from bottom. Ugh! I did find a super fancy chair once that supported sitting almost legs crossed that was super comfy for me, but at like $1200 it just couldn't happen! I think if I ever go back to an office I'll see about floor desk. I'm guessing there's just some inherent shape in my lower back/hip attachment that is just relatively rare, that causes chair issues. Maybe it's the underlying cause of my pelvis being so faulty during/after pregnancy too!

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