There are the millions of different hormonal changes and chemical reactions occurring in both mother and her developing baby. These hormonal changes are all controlled and coordinated through the nervous system. Now more than ever, during pregnancy you need a nervous system that responds immediately and accurately to changing requirements in all parts of your body, and therefore you need a healthy spine! A healthier pregnancy means an easier labour and delivery, and a better transition for the baby into this life.
Chiropractic care prior to conception:
1. Promotes a more regular menstrual cycle and optimal uterine function.
2. It prepares the body to be strong, supple, and as balanced as possible to carry the pregnancy.
3. Restoring proper nerve supply to reproductive organs has helped many couples who thought they were infertile.
A person’s spine is made of 24 moveable bones called vertebrae, plus the sacrum (tailbone), pelvis, and skull. From the brain, nerve impulses travel down the spinal cord, out into nerves, and exit between the vertebrae. When the vertebrae become unable to move properly a condition called vertebral subluxation complex irritates and interferes with the nerves. The message from the brain is slowed down and the life-energy carried by the nerve is unable to reach the organs and tissues at full potential. A doctor of chiropractic adjusts the spine, skull and pelvis through gentle techniques, allowing the full nerve energy to reach the tissues it serves.
As you gain weight during your pregnancy, especially in the abdomen, this exerts a downward, forward pull on the lower spine. Additionally, as labour approaches, your body secretes a hormone called relaxin, which loosens ligaments. This may exaggerate the effects of an existing spinal or pelvis problem. Additionally, your increasing breast size in preparation for lactation can create upper back subluxations.
According to recent studies, chiropractic care may result in easier pregnancy including:
1. increased comfort during the third trimester and delivery and reduced need for analgesics (pain medication).
2. The sacroiliac joints of the pelvis function better. As a result, there is significantly less likelihood of back labour (contractions and sharp pain felt in the lower back during labour).
3. Chiropractic care has helped new mothers become more comfortable breastfeeding (posture-wise) as well as to produce more milk.
4. Chiropractic care has been shown to reduce the likelihood of postpartum depression.
Body position during delivery is critical. The semi-recumbent position that places the labouring woman on her back onto the apex of the sacrum closes off the vital space needed for the baby to get through the pelvic outlet. This delivery position is the main reason why so many births are traumatic, labour is stalled, the mom becomes fatigued and overwhelmed by pain, so the utilization of epidurals, forceps, episiotomies, vacuum extraction, and caesarean increases. This is why squatting is the preferred position—gravity works to help and the pelvic outlet can open to a greater degree. Squatting during delivery results in decreased use of forceps and a shorter second stage of labour than the semi-recumbent position! Moreover, research has shown that coached pushing in the second stage of labour does not improve the short-term outcome for mothers or babies, except when the baby needs to be keep “baby blues” at bay, regain their energy and lose the weight they gained during pregnancy.
For more information on Chiropractic care and how you can benefit, visit www.livewellforlife.com
References:
www.icpa4kids.org
Stacey Rosenberg, DC
