3rd Trimester
knottie45fd2c5ed8279191
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Debilitating ribcage pain weeks 19 - 31 (still going)
knottie45fd2c5ed8279191
member
Hello fellow third-tri moms
I have been dealing with really excruciating rib pain for 12 weeks now that hasn't let up. My doctor is not helpful in telling me what is causing it--she's suggested it's likely stretching of the ligaments and muscles in my ribcage and says it's normal, but while I believe her it's not dangerous, it is so incredibly painful and definitely not the normal pregnancy experience. It alternates between a sharp stabbing pain in my side right along my bra line (worst when sitting or laying on side) and an all-day really painful ache that encapsulates the entire rib cage but is more focused on the back of my ribs. It started 12 weeks ago isolated to my left side and now it's also on my right side. It's not my gallbladder, my doctor checked. It is not a cracked rib or the baby kicking--it doesn't hurt when breathing/coughing/etc, and is isolated to the side and back. Most all ribcage pain references I have found all talk about sharp shooting pain in the front area that is worst when coughing, but this is not what I have.
Has anyone dealt with this? I have found some measures that provide very moderate relief (taping, ice). I am prepared to (and can) deal with it for another 9 weeks at this point but I am completely crippled by fear that this will continue postpartum. It is so unbearable and I cannot even fathom how I could take care of a baby with this pain, especially since I can't sit or recline at all. I am so distressed that this won't go away and am looking for any reassurance from someone who may have experienced this before or is going through it now :( I just worry all the time that this pregnancy has destroyed my life forever because I truly cannot live this way, it is unbearable!
I have been dealing with really excruciating rib pain for 12 weeks now that hasn't let up. My doctor is not helpful in telling me what is causing it--she's suggested it's likely stretching of the ligaments and muscles in my ribcage and says it's normal, but while I believe her it's not dangerous, it is so incredibly painful and definitely not the normal pregnancy experience. It alternates between a sharp stabbing pain in my side right along my bra line (worst when sitting or laying on side) and an all-day really painful ache that encapsulates the entire rib cage but is more focused on the back of my ribs. It started 12 weeks ago isolated to my left side and now it's also on my right side. It's not my gallbladder, my doctor checked. It is not a cracked rib or the baby kicking--it doesn't hurt when breathing/coughing/etc, and is isolated to the side and back. Most all ribcage pain references I have found all talk about sharp shooting pain in the front area that is worst when coughing, but this is not what I have.
Has anyone dealt with this? I have found some measures that provide very moderate relief (taping, ice). I am prepared to (and can) deal with it for another 9 weeks at this point but I am completely crippled by fear that this will continue postpartum. It is so unbearable and I cannot even fathom how I could take care of a baby with this pain, especially since I can't sit or recline at all. I am so distressed that this won't go away and am looking for any reassurance from someone who may have experienced this before or is going through it now :( I just worry all the time that this pregnancy has destroyed my life forever because I truly cannot live this way, it is unbearable!
Re: Debilitating ribcage pain weeks 19 - 31 (still going)
I thought it was an organ that was infected or something bc the pain was underneath my ribs. Come to find out our nerves are not on top of our ribs but under them. This is why people sometimes think they're having a heart attack and it's actually a bruised or broken rib. Also why I felt like the pain was deep and therefore mist be an organ!
Try to do what you can to keep pressure off that spot. I've found stretching in the cat cow position has also really helped bc it dropped the weight of my belly off my rib cage for a bit.