Pregnancy

Pregnancy changes a woman’s body in many ways! Although amazing, it brings about some discomfort and pain including a change in her center of gravity, curve in the low back as baby grows leading to low back pain, ligaments become more loose due to hormones, sciatica nerve pain, rib pain, etc.

During pregnancy, a woman’s center of gravity shifts forward to the front of her pelvis, which causes stress to the joints of the pelvis and low back. As the baby grows in size, the added weight causes the curvature of her lower back to increase, placing extra stress on the fragile facet joints on the back side of the spine. Any pre-existing problems in a woman’s spine tend to be exacerbated as the spine and pelvis become overtaxed, often leading to pain and difficulty performing normal daily activities. Studies have found that about half of all expectant mothers develop low-back pain at some point during their pregnancies. This is especially true during the third trimester when the baby’s body gains the most weight.

Rib pain is common as well as the baby grows and the ribs need to expand to accommodate for more space.

Sometimes the position the baby is in needs to be addressed for comfort and safety for both mom and baby. Breech, feet or bottom first, position occurs in some pregnancies and is important to try to get baby to turn into a head down position prior to delivery.

Chiropractic care throughout pregnancy can relieve and even prevent the pain and discomfort frequently experienced in pregnancy, and creates an environment for an easier, safer delivery. It is one safe and effective way to help the spine and pelvis cope with the rapid increase in physical stress by restoring a state of balance. In fact, most women have found that chiropractic care helped them avoid the use of pain medications during their pregnancy, and studies have shown that chiropractic adjustments help to reduce time in labor.

In the case of a breech baby, we can align the joints and bones to give the baby optimal room and positioning to move into head down position. In some cases, chiropractors can use a method to physically turn the baby while in the womb to a head down position (learn more about that under The Webster Technique page).

As your chiropractor, we should be your partner for a healthy pregnancy because we can provide adjustments, as well as offer nutritional, ergonomic and exercise advice to help address your special needs.

• Get adjusted regularly
• Do some gentle exercise each day – walking, swimming, yoga
• Wear flat shoes with arch supports
• When picking up children, bend from the knees, not the waist. Your low back is much more prone to injury during pregnancy.
• When sleeping, lay on your side with a pillow between your knees to take pressure off your lower back. Full-length “body pillows” or “pregnancy wedges” are very popular and can be helpful.
• Eat several small meals or snacks every few hours, rather than three large meals per day. This will help alleviate nausea, stabilize blood sugar and allow your body to extract the maximum amount of nutrients from the foods that you eat.
• Take a prenatal vitamin