Pregnancy & Chiropractic
For mothers
Chiropractic care in pregnancy is an essential ingredient to your
prenatal care choices. A large percent of all pregnant women experience
back discomfort/ pain during pregnancy. This is due to the rapid growth
of the baby and an interference to your body’s normal structural
adaptations to that growth.
Preexisting unnoticed imbalances in your spine and pelvis become overtaxed during these times. The added stresses lead to discomfort and difficulty while performing routine, daily activities. Chiropractic care throughout pregnancy can relieve and even prevent the common discomforts experienced in pregnancy. Specific adjustments eliminate these stresses in your spine, restore balance to your pelvis and result in greater comfort and lifestyle improvements.
Comfort for your baby, too.
As your baby develops, your uterus enlarges to accommodate the rapid
growth. So long as the pelvis is in a balanced state, the ligaments
connected to the uterus maintain an equalized, supportive suspension
for the uterus. If your pelvis is out of balance in any way, these
ligaments become torqued and twisted, causing a condition known as
constraint to your uterus. This constraint limits the space of the
developing baby. Any compromised position for the baby throughout
pregnancy will affect his or her optimal development. Conditions such
as torticollis occur because a baby’s space was cramped in utero.
If the woman’s uterus is constrained as birth approaches, the baby is prevented from getting into the best possible position for birth. Even if the baby is in the desirable head down position, often times constraint to the uterus affects the baby’s head from moving into the ideal presentation for delivery. The head may be slightly tilted off to one side or even more traumatically, present in the posterior position. Any baby position even slightly off during birth will slow down labor, and add pain to both the mother and baby. Many women have been told that their babies were too big, or labor “just slowed down” when it was really the baby’s presentation interfering with the normal process and progression. Avoidable interventions are implemented turing a natural process into an operative one.
Doctors of Chiropractic work specifically with your pelvis throughout pregnancy restoring a state of balance and creating an environment for an easier, safer delivery.
Preparing for a Safer Birth
Dystocia is defined as difficult labor and is something every woman
wants to avoid. In addition to the pain and exhaustion caused by long,
difficult labors, dystocia leads to multiple, medical interventions
which may be physically and emotionally traumatic to both you and your
baby. Some of these interventions are the administering of pitocin, the
use of epidurals, painful episiotomies, forceful pulling on the baby’s
fragile spine, vacuum extraction, forceps and perhaps even c-sections.
Each of these procedures carry a high risk of injury to you, your baby
or both! However, all of these procedures used to hasten the delivery
process can be avoided if delivery goes more smoothly to begin with.
When reviewing the obstetric texts, the reported reasons for dystocia are caused by pelvic imbalance and its resulting effects on your uterus and your baby’s position. Chiropractic care throughout pregnancy restores balance to your pelvic muscles and ligaments and therefore leads to safer and easier deliveries for you and your baby. Additionally, the chiropractic adjustment removes interference to the nervous system allowing your uterus to function at its maximum potential. Published studies have indicated that chiropractic care does in fact reduce labor time.
Spinal problems are common during pregnancy; up to 90% of pregnant women have them. Rapid physical and chemical changes during pregnancy can aggravate existing spinal problems and can make the spine and pelvis unstable through relaxation of the ligaments. Together with postural changes this causes pain in back, buttocks, groin and legs. Pregnancy and labor are more comfortable for women under chiropractic care. The chiropractic drugless approach is ideally suited for pregnancy care. Chiropractic can also help women with premature contractions, morning sickness and can help prevent post-partum depression. Research revealed that women who have chiropractic care enjoy easier pregnancies and deliveries. Back and pelvic pain, common after giving birth, also responds well.
Exerpt written by Jeanne Ohm D.C.
