Back Pain? How Diaphragm and Abdominal Self Release Techniques Can Help You Heal
Several years ago when I first got into pelvic health, I quickly realized I was completely breathing wrong! Yes, you can breathe wrong, it’s called a paradoxical breathing pattern. This is when you inhale, your abdomen goes in (vs when done correctly, your abdomen and core should expand on the inhale). This improper breathing pattern can cause increased tension in the abdomen, shoulders, and even your jaw. Fast forward a few months, I saw a pelvic floor therapist for my back pain. She helped me realize how important our diaphragm is for improving our mobility and movement! Through additional trainings, I’ve now realized how important getting deep breaths are for regulating our nervous system.
You see, if we are shallow breathing, we aren’t getting good 360 degree breaths throughout our core cylinder. And if our core isn’t expanding, our diaphragm isn’t reaching it’s full range of motion. In addition to being our main muscle of respiration, our diaphragm also helps to massage our internal organs and digestive system. While doing this, it massages our vagus nerve and helps us tap into our parasympathetic nervous system. This is part of our nervous system that helps us to feel calm, regulated, improves inflammation, and even digest better. More about this in another future blog post.
If you’ve been doing stretches and exercises for your back pain—but something still feels off—you might be missing one major piece of the puzzle: your diaphragm. It plays a huge role in how your core, spine, and pelvic floor work together.
In my practice, I teach women how to use self manual diaphragm and abdominal release techniques on themselves to help reduce tension, improve breathing, and relieve stubborn low back pain—especially in women with pelvic floor dysfunction, abdominal tightness, or chronic stress. How empowering is it knowing that YOU can have the tools to help your own back pain!
This is so important for me to teach other women how to do this themselves because you know that pelvic therapist I went to? She wanted to show me how my husband could do this for me. And yes that is a great and feels good to have someone else do it to me but I want to be able to do it myself. I don’t want to have to ask him after along day of work (even though I know he would help me out). I want to heal myself. And as an Occupational Therapist, I know the importance of tapping into my own sensory system and feeling my own body, muscles, skin, and movements with my own hands. To promote neuroplasticity and reconnection to myself.
So let’s break it down 👇
What Does the Diaphragm Have to Do with Back Pain?
Your diaphragm is the dome shaped muscle underneath your rib cage. Its the main muscle of respiration—but it isn’t just a breathing muscle. It’s the top of your core system—working alongside your deep abs, pelvic floor, and back muscles to support your spine and stability.
When the diaphragm is tight, restricted, or not moving well (thanks to stress, shallow breathing, trauma, or surgery), everything else down the line starts compensating.
The result?
Back tension
Poor spinal mobility
Shallow breathing resulting in increased stress response
Core weakness
Abdominal gripping
Pelvic floor overactivity
…and pain that just won’t quit.
What Is Manual Diaphragm & Abdominal Release?
This is a gentle, hands-on technique I use to:
Help the diaphragm glide more freely
Soften fascial restrictions in the upper and lower belly
Improve rib cage mobility
Restore full, functional breath patterns
Release tension that’s been locked in the gut for years
I often pair this with breathwork, body scanning, and nervous system regulation to make it not just physical—but deeply calming and holistic.
How This Helps With Back Pain
When we release restrictions in the diaphragm and abdominal wall, here’s what happens:
More core engagement (without gripping)
Less tension in the spine and pelvic floor
Better posture and body awareness
Improved movement with less guarding
Calmer nervous system = less pain amplification
A tight belly and braced abs are often your body’s way of saying:
“I don’t feel safe.”
Manual release helps your brain and body feel safe again—so your back can finally stop doing all the work.
Who Can Benefit From This?
✨ Women with chronic low back pain
✨ Women stuck in “protective” breathing patterns (chest breathers, we see you)
✨ Postpartum or post-surgery healing
✨ Pelvic floor dysfunction (hello bladder leaks + tightness)
✨ Endo belly, constipation, or GI tension
✨ Anyone living in a stress loop or fight-or-flight mode
Back Pain Is a Whole-Body Conversation
Your back doesn’t exist in isolation. It responds to your breath, your gut, your emotions, your stress, and your story. These release techniques are a piece to the complex puzzle of pain.
If you’re tired of treating the symptom and want to finally address the system—this kind of release work is where we start.
Click the link to join my free Virtual Pelvic Health Facebook Group to check out a live coaching call on these techniques! (located under guides: Women’s Health Wednesday live coaching call!)
I go live every Wednesday on a women’s pelvic health topic to give you actionable steps towards improving your pain and pelvic health.
Want to personally experience this in your healing journey?
I offer 1:1 virtual pelvic health & nervous system coaching and pelvic floor Occupational Therapy that includes guided abdominal release, breath retraining, and nervous system regulation techniques—backed by years of experience and specialty training.
🎯 Book a discovery call to get started!
