Pregnancy and Chiropractic Care
There are many pregnancy benefits of chiropractic care. The promise of alleviating back pain alone can be enough to persuade you to schedule an appointment with your chiropractor during your pregnancy! However, there are several other incredible benefits to continuing chiropractic care while pregnant. Of course, safety is top priority, especially when it comes to pregnant patients. Luckily, most people can receive routine chiropractic treatment safely while pregnant.
As your body changes both physically and physiologically with pregnancy, many discomforts arise. The pelvis widens, the spine compresses, and one’s posture begins to curve, among other changes. With all these changes come aches and pains. Receiving routine treatment during pregnancy can help continued alignment of the spine and maintaining pelvic balance, providing several benefits.
In addition to pain relief, chiropractic care can help avoid certain risks during labor and delivery and help those who want to alleviate sore back, neck and joint issues,the most common ailment pregnant women face. Plus, if you suffer from sciatica, this pain can resonate through the body and be debilitating. Pain does come with the weight of that growing belly and curving spine, but also because of the production of relaxin. Relaxin is the hormone that loosens your ligaments and joints in the pelvic area to prepare for birth, and also results in painful and fragile joints throughout the body. Fortunately, chiropractic care naturally relieves back pain by decompressing and properly aligning the spine, including alleviation of pain from all reasons for pain, including relaxin production. With chiropractic care, you can enjoy better posture, increased flexibility and mobility, and even better sleep along with overall pain relief.
Another common pregnancy symptom is morning sickness. Nausea is often overlooked when considering chiropractic care. However, regular treatments can also tackle this discomfort by aligning your spine to improve overall nervous system function, which will allow your increased hormones to balance and therefore lessen nausea. Additionally, digestive issues such as heartburn or constipation can also be improved with regular chiropractic care.
The more flexible you are, the less risk of injury you face overall as well, especially in the spine. This is incredibly important during pregnancy as you lose mobility increasingly the further along you go. Continued spinal alignments will help you maintain flexibility throughout your body so you can avoid injury during pregnancy, as well as during labor.
In addition, dangerous positioning of the baby, such as breech or sunny side up position, can lead to interventions such as induction, forceps birth, and C-section. Preparation through chiropractic care can help to position the baby optimally and decrease the risk of intervention. Treatment can therefore help reduce overall labor and delivery time, and therefore help you avoid complications in general.
The spine is directly connected to the lower back and pelvis, so routine realignment through chiropractic care will improve posture and provide optimal pelvic alignment. This can help strengthen pelvic muscles, avoid lower back injury during labor, and maximize space for the baby leading to a much easier and smoother labor and delivery. This can also help those wanting to avoid pain medication and experience a natural birth. Of course, it is important to note that chiropractic care, like all prenatal preparations and treatments, cannot guarantee an easy labor and delivery, as all bodies and birthing experiences are different! However, taking steps to ensure you are wholly connected to your body and baby can encourage a positive birthing experience, even if your birth plan does not follow through perfectly.
Once you give birth, your body continues to slowly revert to its pre-pregnancy state. Recovery time can decrease if you maintained spinal flexibility, pelvic strength, and overall wellness during pregnancy. Because chiropractic care can help to promote a smoother, more natural birth as well, healing and recovery time is also lessened. Chiropractic care can therefore help during the postnatal period, particularly with pelvic rebalancing.
It is well-known that chiropractic care increases immune response, helping you avoid nasty colds and allergies that are even worse to endure while pregnant. Additionally, pregnancy wellness and being in tune with your body at its healthiest state can bolster your emotional well-being, improving your prenatal experience all around.
Overall, receiving chiropractic treatment is safe and effective at all stages of pregnancy. Call us to schedule an appointment.