Left groin pain during pregnancy: what to know

Pregnancy changes posture, joint loading, and the work required from the abdominal, hip, and pelvic muscles. Pain may appear when walking, climbing stairs, turning in bed, standing on one leg, or separating the legs. A clinician should also consider urinary, abdominal, vascular, and pregnancy-related causes, particularly when pain is constant or accompanied by other symptoms. Left-sided pain is not enough to identify the source.

Your maternity clinician or physiotherapist may ask about the pregnancy stage, movement triggers, bleeding, fluid loss, contractions, fever, and urinary symptoms. They can tailor assessment and advice to your pregnancy.

Move slowly, keep steps shorter, and avoid twisting while lifting. Sit down to dress, place a pillow between your knees in bed, and keep both legs together when getting in or out of a car if that feels easier. Choose supportive footwear and take brief rest breaks. A pregnancy-trained physiotherapist can teach pelvic and hip exercises, but avoid starting forceful stretches or manual treatment without maternity guidance. Check any medicine with your maternity team.

Contact your maternity team urgently for vaginal bleeding, fluid leakage, regular tightening, severe or rapidly worsening pain, fever, faintness, painful urination, one-sided leg swelling, or reduced fetal movement when applicable to your stage of pregnancy. Seek emergency help for collapse, breathing difficulty, or severe pain with heavy bleeding.

Ask whether the pattern fits pelvic girdle pain, which movements and exercises are suitable now, whether you need an examination, and which pregnancy symptoms should prompt same-day contact. Tell them about any bleeding, contractions, fever, or urinary change.