Comfort Measures for Varicose Veins (updated July 2022)

About 28% of women will develop varicose veins in pregnancy. While they are mostly harmless in the short term they can cause pain and discomfort. Here are my recommendations and best comfort measures to try if you are dealing with varicose veins in pregnancy.

If you’re like me, before I had varicose veins I had no idea what they were, why I had them or why they hurt so bad!

Background:

Blood vessels have two directions of transportation throughout our body. Arteries carry the blood from the heart and veins return the “used” blood back to the heart. We have one-way valves in our veins that prevent the “used” blood from going back into the body and push it forward into the heart. When weakened, blood pools in the veins and isn’t pumped efficiently up to the heart. This pooling causes added pressure on the walls of veins and the result is varicose veins, or veins that have become enlarged and twisted.

Hormonal changes in pregnancy, additional blood volume, increased uterine pressure and last, but certainly not least, genes, are all to blame. So thank your grandma and your mom because heredity is a major factor in this unwelcome pregnancy symptom.

When I was pregnant with my first baby, there were all kinds of changes happening to my body. So when bulging, painful, purple varicose veins appeared I chalked it up to just another normal symptom of pregnancy. I didn’t ask questions, I didn’t really complain or address the pain. I truly thought that it was something every woman experienced and just one more thing to endure.

I was told by my midwife, whom I loved and trusted, “Yes, you have varicose veins. They’re very common with pregnancy.” That was it.

Varicose veins don’t hinder a healthy baby from continuing to grow. They don’t pose risks to the baby, but come on! Give a mom something! It HURTS.

Whether you are dealing with varicose veins in your legs or labial varicosities (I have both, all the above, every which way), the number one advice that I have to give is limit the amount of time you spend on your feet. I know this may seem impossible with all of our daily tasks, at home, work or both. But, standing for long periods of time, with the added uterine pressure, gravity and faulty valves, will add to the blood pooling in your veins and it will become worse and more painful.

8 Comfort Tips for Varicose Veins

1. My top tip for you is to limit the amount of time you spend on your feet. 

Standing for long periods of time will make the symptoms worse and more painful. Sit, lie down and rest often if you can.

2. Wear your compression stockings! 

I will repeat because I know, I get it. I was the “too cool for school” girl who ignored this advice for not one, but almost two, whole pregnancies. WEAR YOUR COMPRESSION STOCKINGS. They’re hot, they’re embarrassing, they’re this or that, BUT I truly believe that if I would have worn mine as religiously as I do now, my varicosities would not have progressed as they did throughout my pregnancies. I order mine through therawear.com. I order the thigh high, maximum support and footless stockings (so I can still wear flip flops or just have the freedom of move my toes, haha.) You can scope out their website and find the support stockings for you.

3. Exercise. 

Get your blood pumping during low impact exercise. This helps your blood to circulate through your body. The blood that has pooled in those varicose veins gets an extra push to circulate back up to the heart. Swimming, walking or using an elliptical are all great ways to get that blood flowing!

4. Ice. 

This is a comfort measure I found that really helped shrink the veins and relieve my pain at the end of the day so I could sleep at night.

5. V-brace for labial, vulvar or vaginal varicose veins, a voodoo subject that no one understands or would just rather not discuss.

I honestly prefer to call them vaginal varicose veins because if anyone knows what a varicose vein is, that will put a real nice image in their head. 😉 Regardless of terminology, I have found comfort in the v-brace. They have also been called a fem-brace, or V supporter.

This wonderful little device is a glorified female jockstrap. Because that, lady friends, is what it looks like. There is no skirting around it. They add a little lace to the front to try to feminize it, which may or may not may you feel better about it. BUT it is a GODSEND.  I literally danced around the kitchen the night I got mine. I use this brace. It comes in different sizes and yes their catchphrase is, “It’s you babe.” Ugh. Can we please stop pretending this is some sexy thing! It does make me laugh, shake my head, but laugh.

6. Lean forward to relieve the uterine pressure off vulvar varicosities. 

If you haven’t tried this it may seem silly and especially hard to picture. When you have been standing or sitting for a long time, find something to lean on, whether that be a chair, table, wall or person. When you lean forward you are moving the pressure of your uterus and baby off your varicose veins giving you relief.

7. Yoga Ball/Birthing Ball/Exercise Ball.

This is a super easy, super cheap purchase that has many uses and is excellent to sit on during pregnancy. I got to a point where I could not sit for very long without having to tilt to one side, unless I was sitting on my yoga ball. I was reduced to three positions at the end: walking, laying on my side or sitting on my yoga ball. Add some rocking and bouncing and you are practicing some comfort techniques for the labor to come as well! It is also great for postpartum. Babes find comfort in the bouncing. The kids love to play with it and it is an exercise ball…so there’s that.

Whether this is your first pregnancy or you are a seasoned vet, I hope in reading this you either found new comfort strategies for dealing with varicose veins or maybe you found someone else who knows and understands your pain.

8. If you are experiencing labial varicosities, we also need to talk about sex.

The pain that goes with it is unfortunately unavoidable. Many women fear that their sex life will never be the same. This doesn’t mean you cannot have a sex life. It was a struggle at first for me to work around those veins, to learn what was ok and not, but we got through it. You will learn and coach your partner on this as well. I did think that these veins would be the end of our sex life. I was happily very wrong.

Will your varicose veins will go away after having the baby and if so, how soon?

In my experience, there is not one straightforward answer. After my first baby, yes, completely gone, very shortly after giving birth. I was so relieved. Then after my second baby they lingered. It took some time and they diminished, but not totally. When I would get my period, I experienced the same pain that I did during pregnancy (minus the added 20lbs of uterine pressure, of course.)

After my third baby, they didn’t go away at all. I was so upset. I couldn’t believe that I was going to have to live with the pain. I was still wearing my v-brace and compression stocking. I still couldn’t stand without the labial veins bulging in pain.

Finally at one week postpartum, I stood up in the morning to go to the bathroom and the bulging pain was gone! That was the longest time the pain lingered for me postpartum so I was really scared I was in it for the long haul.

They did not all go away. I still had some pain and when I would get my period everything would feel as it did when I was pregnant. If I was on my feet too much that day, I would feel it. I also had restless legs at night without all the pressure of being pregnant.

Progressively your veins may linger more and more after each subsequent pregnancy. Wearing your compression stockings and limiting time on your feet also play a crucial role in how the varicose veins progress.

Lastly, there is also the option of seeing a vascular surgeon postpartum, which is my first to do after this baby, our fourth and final one, is born!