Kid Amnesiac

You’ve heard of tennis elbow, right? Or of washerwoman’s knees? I have a new one to add to the canon of occupation-specific maladies: Nursing Mom’s Tuchus.

Apparently I am not used to sitting so long in this particular posture. That or my poor-man’s Aeron downstairs is a better chair than I gave it credit for. Whatever the case, since Simon arrived on the scene, I have noticed an increasing tenderness at the base of my spine.

It doesn’t hurt when I’m actually sitting. Thank goodness for that small mercy. But whenever I shift or get up, I’m in short-lived agony. It’s something like a dull stab or sharp ache–and yes, I’m aware those are both oxymorons.

Has excessive sitting bruised my coccyx?

It turns out this pain may be exacerbated by nursing but not have been caused by it. A quick Google search on “coccyx pain” turned up several sites about coccydynia, a pain disorder often caused by trauma during birth. So then more accurately I have “Birthing Butt”, which has nothing to do with nursing but is still Simon’s fault.

It appears that if regular treatment fails–and I have no idea at this point what regular treatment would be–the nuclear option is surgical removal of the coccyx. No kidding. I’ll try to sit that one out.

I’ll also read a little more. Perhaps sitting on a donut cushion will take care of things. Or maybe the condition will improve when nursing is over. (Hey, I’ve made it this far largely ignoring the problem–what’s another six months?) And then, and only then, I’ll consult a doctor. I’m not even sure what kind of doctor to see!

For now, I’m calling it Nursing Mother’s Tuchus and will assume it’s only a matter of time before it goes away. Because really, who likes the sound of Birthing Butt? It’s asinine.