What Is a ‘Tilted Uterus’, Anyway?

If you don’t know what a tilted uterus is, it’s when a uterus is tipped towards the back of the pelvis — causing a baby bump to appear smaller than it otherwise would. This is what happened to expectant mom Yiota Kouzoukas. During the first few months of Kouzoukas’ pregnancy, many people didn’t believe that she was pregnant because she didn’t “look” pregnant.

In response, Kouzoukas aired her frustrations on Instagram:

Not that I’m upset/affected by these comments at all, but more for the reason of educating in the hope that some people are less judgmental [sic] on others and even themselves. For the first 4 months of my pregnancy, my uterus was retroverted/tilted which means that I was growing backwards into my body rather than outwards.

According to the American Pregnancy Organization, a tilted uterus can occur either because it may have just not moved forward, or in Kouzoukas’ case, scarring from endometriosis. Kouzoukas went on to explain this in her post:

My uterus didn’t ‘flip forward’ until well into being 4 months pregnant because of the backwards tilted position paired with decade-old endometriosis scarring that I have on my uterosacral ligaments. Basically, these ligaments are acting like anchors keeping my uterus ‘inside’ rather than ‘outside,’ which is why I appeared smaller than most people for the first 4 or 5 months.

Thankfully, a tilted uterus is actually not dangerous for mother or baby, and usually corrects itself by 12 weeks gestation. It’s important to note, as Refinery 29 points out, that “everyone gains weight differently during pregnancy,” and it’s always a good idea to talk to your doctor if you’re concerned about your pregnancy in any way.

As Kouzoukas aptly put it: “Our bodies and bumps are all different and our shapes and sizes are all different too.”

*BUMP SIZE* I receive a lot of DMs and comments regarding the size of my bump, which is why I want to explain a few things about my body. Not that I’m upset/affected by these comments at all, but more for the reason of educating in the hope that some people are less judgemental on others and even themselves. For the first 4 months of my pregnancy, my uterus was retroverted/tilted which means that I was growing backwards into my body rather than outwards. Most people with this type of uterus tilt forward at around 12 weeks and continue growing outwards like you normally would. My uterus didn’t “flip forward” until well into being 4 months pregnant because of the backwards tilted position paired with decade old endometriosis scarring that I have on my uterosacral ligaments. Basically, these ligaments are acting like anchors keeping my uterus “inside” rather than “outside”, which is why I appeared smaller than most people for the first 4 or 5 months. Now, at #6monthspregnant I’m growing forwards just like everyone else while the scarring on my ligaments slowly breaks down. My torso is also short and my stomach is naturally toned which is keeping my belly super tight, so I’ve had to personally stop all ab exercises to avoid any issues with possible ab separation. This is for me personally, as instructed by my doctor and is in no way a blanket rule for anyone else. I’m perfectly healthy, baby is perfectly healthy and that’s all that matters. Our bodies and bumps are all different and our shapes and sizes are all different too ❤️

A post shared by Yiota Kouzoukas (@yiota) on Oct 9, 2017 at 2:53am PDT