Why Physios & Mums love BodyICE

We are thrilled to share this blog written by Elizabeth Crisp.

Liz is a passionate, empathetic physiotherapist who works mainly in the field of Women’s and Men’s pelvic health, in addition to teaching clinical Pilates and treating other musculoskeletal conditions. She loves empowering her clients to take ownership of their own health and rehabilitation whilst learning about their bodies and utilising muscle strengthening wherever possible. In her spare time, Liz stays active through weight training, Pilates and running around after her 14 month old son. As a Physio and a mum, Liz feels that she now has a valuable understanding and insight into the increased demands pregnant and postnatal women face, and focuses treatment of pelvic girdle pain, mastitis, preparation for labour and postpartum recovery in a functional, nurturing way to ensure her clients are well looked after through every step of their rehabilitation.  

 Being a parent is one of the most incredibly rewarding and exciting (not to mention challenging) jobs in the entire world. Being a mother is an indescribably fulfilling and powerful experience; a title that carries more meaning than simply being role model, caregiver, friend and supporter. Mothers are strong, reliable, nurturing providers who often form the strongest foundation in a family network. In addition to wearing ‘the mental load’, a mother is often the sole provider of nutrition to her baby for at least the earliest stages of life. Being able to breastfeed is something I practice silent gratitude for many times a day as I know many women are unable to. I am extremely grateful for the invention and gift of BodyICE breast pads which have been a well-utilised godsend throughout the last year and a bit.

 My (now) 14 month old son came barrelling into the world at 37+5 weeks, making his grand emergency entrance via the sunroof (after we later learned he had reached the 10cm finish line after the incision was made in my abdomen), and he has not stopped being a boobie monster since. Those early days with my newborn are now a bit of a blur; with the very real sleep deprivation and adjustment to our new routine which basically consisted of feed-eat-sleep-repeat. As a Pelvic Health Physio, I often treat women with Mastitis, and I am terrified of developing mastitis myself. On numerous occasions in my early breastfeeding journey, at the first sign of redness and pain, I had to take my own advice of resting, feeding on demand, and applying my BodyICE breast pads regularly. I really believe that being so proactive and having those flower-shaped magic ice pads helped prevent me from developing Mastitis.

My son is naturally reducing his feeds as he is eating more solid food and is (finally) sleeping through the night, so I thought that I had passed the need to use my gel breast pads. When he got gastro recently and refused to drink anything but breastmilk however, unfortunately they came back out of the cupboard and have made a reappearance to help soothe my tender, well-drained breasts. Even after 14 months, they’re still going strong which reassures me that they must be made of tough stuff! When providing for our children and family, it can be so easy to put ourselves second and forget to look out for ourselves. I really am very grateful to have found something that I can easily put in the freezer or microwave to help with my well-being and pain management, especially when looking after such an important area of my body!

Our BodyICE Woman breast packs are designed to help provide you with comfort throughout your feeding journey. For more information on how our ice and heat packs can help, head to our BodyICE Woman range.