Tailbone Pain After a Fall or Childbirth? Here’s What You Can Do

December 19, 2025 |

A sudden fall, a long labour, or even months after childbirth, tailbone pain can become a silent companion that gradually takes over your daily life. Sitting, standing up from a chair, driving, or even turning in bed might be something that you can barely do without feeling uncomfortable. At our clinic, we often hear from those who initially ignore this pain and thus delay their recovery. Understanding the causes of tailbone pain and the early management of it are the main factors that determine the time to recovery. Tailbone pain physiotherapy is important in dealing with not only the pain but also the movement changes, which are the most frequent companions of it.

Understanding Tailbone Pain

The tailbone, or the coccyx, is one small triangular bone located at the bottom of the spine. It may be small, but anyway, it has quite a bit of a job to do. When you sit, the tailbone supports the weight of the body, and at the same time, it is the source of attachment to the muscles and ligaments of the pelvic floor.

Pain in this area usually develops due to:

• • Direct trauma, such as slipping on a hard surface
• • Prolonged pressure from sitting on firm or narrow seats
• • Strain and ligament stress during vaginal delivery
• • Poor posture or weak core and pelvic muscles

In some cases, pain may be sharp and immediate. In others, it builds slowly and becomes chronic if left untreated.

Why Pain After a Fall Feels Different

A fall right on the buttocks may bruise the coccyx, tear ligaments around it, or, in a very few cases, cause a small fracture. Even if X-rays reveal no broken bones, the damage to the soft tissue can still be the reason for the discomfort that stays for a long time.

People often notice:

• • Pain that worsens when sitting or leaning back
• • Relief when standing or lying on the side
• • Tenderness at the base of the spine

Without the right help, many people alter their ways of sitting and moving to avoid pain, which at a later stage may indirectly bring them problems with their back or hips.

Childbirth and Tailbone Stress

The tailbone moves naturally towards the back during childbirth to leave room for the baby. The difficult or prolonged labour, the doctor-assisted delivery, or the big baby can be the reasons for the extra tailbone stress. As a result, the inflammation of the joint, the stiffness of the joint, or the imbalance of the muscles of the pelvis region can occur.

Postnatal tailbone pain is often accompanied by:

• • Pelvic floor weakness or tightness
• • Lower back discomfort
• • Pain while breastfeeding due to prolonged sitting

These problems are related, which is why it is very important to consider a whole body approach.

How Physiotherapy Helps in Recovery

Helping the body effectively means doing much more than just giving the patient temporary relief from the pain. In the intermediate phase of the treatment, tailbone pain physiotherapy works on posture, muscle balance, and joint mobility to be able to restore the patient completely.

A physiotherapy plan may include:

• Gentle manual techniques to reduce stiffness around the coccyx and lower spine
• • Pelvic floor assessment and targeted exercises
• • Core strengthening to improve spinal support
• • Postural correction for sitting, feeding, and daily tasks
• • Breathing techniques to reduce muscle tension

The treatment is always tailored to each individual's needs, new mothers and people recovering from injuries, in particular, being given special consideration.

Simple Changes That Make a Big Difference

Along with the therapy that is guided by a professional, small changes in your everyday life can lead to a great reduction in your pain:

• • Use a cushion with a cut-out to reduce pressure while sitting
• • Avoid slouching or sitting for long periods without breaks
• • Sit with feet flat on the floor and hips slightly higher than knees
• • Apply heat or cold packs as advised by your physiotherapist

Performing these habits consistently not only supports faster healing but also prevents recurrence.

When to Seek Professional Help

If tailbone pain continues for more than a few weeks, affects the performance of everyday activities, and gets worse with time, a professional assessment is highly advised. Early intervention helps prevent chronic pain patterns and compensatory movement issues.

Physiotherapy is especially beneficial when:

• • Pain persists after childbirth
• • Sitting becomes increasingly difficult
• • You notice associated back, hip, or pelvic discomfort

By tackling the problem at its root, instead of simply managing symptoms, one can expect better results.

A Thoughtful Path Toward Comfortable Movement

Finding a cure for tailbone pain is rarely about one particular exercise or one session. The healing process requires body understanding, correction of the imbalances, and, at a slow pace, gaining the lost confidence in movement. Guided in the right way, the majority of people can comfortably sit and perform their daily activities without the pain that is still going on. Tailbone pain physiotherapy is the care that is well-planned, based on research, and it is this care that helps patients go through the journey safely and effectively.

Experience, empathy, and a profound knowledge of musculoskeletal and pelvic health are the factors that guide care in our clinic. Under the clinical supervision of Dr Leena and with the support of a physiotherapy clinic in Mumbai that you can trust, patients receive a personal programme of rehabilitation for issues like coccyx pain treatment, postpartum tailbone pain, tailbone pain after a fall, pelvic floor physiotherapy, and physiotherapy clinic that focuses on helping you move better and live more comfortably.