About a year ago when Hubster wanted to get an exercise ball, I was against it.  I pictured this big ol’ ball taking up what precious little floor space we had.  I pictured it sitting there collecting dust because neither of us would ever use it.

Then I got pregnant.

Toward the end of my second trimester when the aches and pains starting to really set in, I begged him to pull that deflated exercise ball (which, I was correct, had never been used) out of the closet and pump some life into it.  I had heard the benefits of an exercise ball for labor (aka a birthing ball).  If it helped ease pain in labor, it had to help during pregnancy, right?!

It. Is. Wonderful.

I bounce on that thing almost every day.  Unlike sitting in a chair, laying down or standing, the exercise ball takes all pressure off of my lower back and pelvis.  Last night, I think it saved me from a trip to labor & delivery.  Cramping and back pain set in and my doctor suggested that it might be the baby’s position on a nerve.  If I had an exercise ball, I could move my hips around to try and put baby in a different position.  That’s when that little light above my head (you know, the cartoon light that pops on when you have a fabulous idea) sputtered to life.  ”Yes, I have an exercise ball!”  If the pain didn’t subside, I’d have to take a trip into the hospital to get checked out.

I proceeded to bounce my little heart out on that exercise ball and – alas! – Baby C must have been sitting on a nerve, because the pain started to subside.  Hooray!

I strongly recommend an exercise ball for every pregnant woman!  Whether you have issues with back pain or just for a strange instance such as the one I had last night, it could save you from popping pills for your pain, suffering in silence, or even from a trip to labor & delivery.