The tailbone is a part of the human body located below the sacrum, the bone structure at the base of the spine. Although small in size, the tailbone plays an important role in the human body. It helps stabilize the body when sitting. Therefore, pain in the tailbone can be uncomfortable because the pain can spread to the legs.
Coccyx pain is a condition where pain occurs in the coccyx area. This pain and discomfort in the coccyx can certainly cause discomfort and disrupt daily activities. Let's take a look at the causes of coccyx pain and how to address it below!
Causes of Tailbone Pain
Here are some causes of tailbone pain that you should know about:
Pregnancy/ Childbirth
The first cause of tailbone pain is pregnancy or childbirth. Tailbone pain in pregnant women usually occurs during the third trimester of pregnancy. This is because the growing weight of the fetus puts pressure on the pelvic area, causing pain in the tailbone.
A prolonged normal delivery or one complicated by complications requiring the use of forceps causes the baby's head to press against the upper part of the mother's tailbone. This can cause the mother's tailbone to become painful after delivery.
Fall
One of the causes of tailbone pain that people often experience is falling. Although many cases of tailbone pain are caused by falling from a seated position, falling from stairs or other places while sitting can also cause tailbone pain. If someone falls very badly, the tailbone can bruise and sprain, causing pain when sitting.
Body Weight
Weight can also cause tailbone pain when sitting. This pain occurs when a person is obese (excessive weight) or underweight. Excessive weight puts additional pressure on the tailbone. This condition can cause the tailbone to tilt backward and become painful when it moves out of position. Conversely, if a person does not have enough fat in the buttocks area to prevent the tailbone from rubbing against muscles, ligaments, and tendons, this can cause pain, especially when sitting for too long.
Sitting Too Long
Sitting in the wrong position for long periods of time can also cause tailbone pain. This is because sitting for too long puts more pressure on the lower back and tailbone, causing pain. This will be even worse if you sit on a hard or narrow surface.
Tailbone Injury
Pain in the tailbone can also be caused by sudden injury. This injury is characterized by bruising, cracking, breaking, or displacement of the tailbone. In addition, the joint between the tailbone and sacrum can be sprained, although this is rare.
Tailbone injuries can be caused by activities that put repeated pressure or friction on the tailbone for long periods of time. Examples include horseback riding, cycling, or riding a motorcycle on bumpy roads.
Abnormal Tailbone Shape
It generally consists of 3-5 small bones at the bottom of the spine. However, if there are more than 5 small bones or calcification occurs in the tailbone, pain will arise in this area when sitting, due to sitting or irritation of the surrounding nerve tissue.
Degenerative Joint Disease
Degenerative joint disease is a condition in which the joints feel painful due to mild inflammation caused by friction between the ends of the bones that make up the joints. This joint disease, or weakened joints due to aging or repetitive activities, can cause pain in the tailbone.
How to Deal with Tailbone Pain
If the pain in your tailbone when sitting does not go away, then the wise thing to do is to visit a doctor for a checkup. However, here we will provide some ways to deal with a sore tailbone. Here are some ways to do this :
Do some light stretching
If you start to feel pain in your tailbone, do some light stretching. Make sure you are in a position to do this, as stretching requires active movement of the tailbone and surrounding muscles.
Performing Treatment
A local anesthetic injection into the tailbone can relieve pain for several weeks. In addition, you can also use pain relievers or certain medications to relieve tailbone pain.
Move a lot
As explained earlier, sitting for long periods of time can cause pain in the tailbone. Therefore, reduce this habit and move around more.
Muscle Massage
The last way to relieve tailbone pain is to massage the muscles. Gently massage the muscles attached to the tailbone. This massage can reduce tailbone pain and discomfort.
That concludes our explanation of the causes of tailbone pain and how to treat it. We hope this article has broadened your knowledge. That's all from us, see you next time!