Chiropractic and Pregnancy – Everything You Need to Know
Pregnancy is a special time for every woman. However, optimal health is of utmost importance during pregnancy to ensure a healthy journey and promote fetal development without complications. Pregnancy can take a toll on your spinal and nervous systems.
For instance, your body's biomechanics undergo numerous changes as the baby grows, causing discomfort, poor movement patterns, and pain. Unfortunately, the discomfort and pain detract you from a positive pregnancy experience.
A 2018 research study shows that many problems a pregnant woman suffers from are due to spinal issues, including low/mid/upper back pain, groin pain, nausea, dizziness, headaches, and sciatica.
These symptoms start in the first trimester and continue until the last trimester. Anyway, what's the connection between chiropractic and pregnancy? Is chiropractic care a reliable option for pregnant women? Today's article will give you evidence-based information and details. Read on!
What Happens to a Woman's Spine During Pregnancy?
Research highlights that a woman's body releases a hormone called relaxin during the first trimester, leading to ligament and joint laxity, discomfort, and pain. A 2015 study shows that a woman's body's center of gravity changes as pregnancy progresses, the belly grows, and the size of breasts increases.
When your bump grows, it increases your lower back's curve and adds more load on your spinal structures, including bones, muscles, joints, discs, and soft tissues. A 2016 study states that breast development/enlargement can cause discomfort in a woman's neck, lower cervical, and upper thoracic spine.
As a result, it adds an abnormal load on your body and spine, causing muscle discomfort and pain. A pregnant woman needs biomechanical support to cope with these symptoms.
If you already have spinal issues, getting pregnant can aggravate the problems, increase the load on your musculoskeletal structures, decrease spinal stability, and cause discomfort or pain. We will discuss how chiropractic and pregnancy go hand-in-hand and improve these conditions later in this post!
Why is a Balanced Pelvis Important During Pregnancy?
A 2019 research study examines the importance of a balanced pelvis during pregnancy. The study highlights that a woman's pelvis supports the uterus throughout the first, second, and third trimesters.
A balanced pelvis ensures an optimal symmetry of uterus growth and aligns with the baby's developmental stages. On the other hand, a misaligned or unbalanced pelvis can negatively affect the uterus and hinder fetal development.
These problems or imbalances can severely affect the uterus and cause twists or torques, reducing the overall space for the developing fetus. Sometimes, the little room for the developing baby causes a condition called a uterine constraint.
So, this condition can compromise the baby's position and negatively affect its development. In addition, the constraint also prevents the fetus from moving freely in the uterus.
It prevents the baby from moving in the "head down" position, particularly during the final trimester. Therefore, a balanced pelvis is critical for a pregnant woman's health and the developing fetus/baby.
Chiropractic and Pregnancy
Chiropractic and pregnancy are interrelated because this alternative medicine or treatment works on a pregnant woman's pelvis throughout the first, second, and third trimesters.
Chiropractor manipulations and adjustments aim to restore a state of balance in the uterus and create a safe environment for delivery. Besides, chiropractic adjustments relieve joint discomfort and restrictions, allowing your body to function accurately and optimally.
Every woman wants to give birth to a healthy baby and experience amazing feelings during delivery. At the same time, a pregnant woman giving birth to a baby does not want to experience severe back pain or uterine constraint because this can lead to complications.
So, chiropractic and pregnancy have a solid connection because this treatment or holistic care helps a pregnant woman and:
Corrects abnormal joint movements
Reduces pain and improves body functions
Maintains joint function and enhances spinal balance
Maintains optimal posture and weight distribution
Relieves upper/mid/low back pain
May help balance the uterus to assist the baby's movements
Improve pelvic expansion to support head-down movement in the final trimester
Dr Tracy (Chiropractor) - Aaron Chiropractic
Improves Comfort for the Mother and Developing Baby
A professional and experienced chiropractor uses modified spinal adjustment and manipulation techniques for a pregnant woman to ensure ease, comfort, and reliability.
Adjustments are gentle enough, and the chiropractor uses less force because a woman's ligaments already have increased laxity. We recommend hiring a professional health provider with years of experience in chiropractic and pregnancy to avoid complications and streamline the entire process.
An experienced chiropractor incorporates unique adjustive positions to ensure the comfort and safety of the pregnant woman and her developing baby. One study shows chiropractic care is an excellent way to reduce back pain during pregnancy.
Decreases Labor Time and Enhances Health
A growing body of research evidence shows that chiropractic manipulation and adjustment techniques result in easier and pain-reduced pregnancies. Not only may chiropractic care decrease labor time, but it may help restore a woman's pre-pregnancy health, making it a practical approach for women.
The study highlighted that woman who received chiropractic care during their pregnancies had improved health and experienced 24% shorter labor times than women who had not received chiropractic care.
Similarly, women who had multiple pregnancies and underwent chiropractic care had 39% shorter labor. The same study stated that 84% of participants reported less discomfort, decreased pain, and relieving muscle stress during pregnancy.
Breech Births and the Webster Technique
Although the fetal position does not matter until the thirty-second week, the baby starts turning its head down to get ready for birth. A breech delivery means another body part passes through the mother's birth canal instead of the head.
A book with evidence-based information published on NCBI states that breech births occur in 3% to 4% of full-term pregnancies. Pregnancy causes significant changes to a woman's internal and external body structure and functions.
These rapid changes can increase the risk of biomechanical dysfunctions, misalignments, and deformities. The problem worsens when biomechanical misalignments occur in the pelvis and tightens the muscles, ligaments, and other soft tissues around the uterus.
Research highlights that a professional chiropractor uses the Webster Technique to examine the pelvic region and correct misalignments. The purpose of this technique is to restore the pelvis and tailbone's biomechanics, relieving stress on a pregnant woman's body and creating more room for fetal movement.
Final Words
Pregnancy and childbirth are the most beautiful and memorable moments in a woman's life. However, pregnancy can cause significant changes, including metabolic, homeostatic, musculoskeletal, and reproductive changes, causing neck, back, arm, groin, leg, and pelvic pain.
Numerous research studies have confirmed a solid connection between chiropractic and pregnancy, as mentioned in this article. Chiropractic care can ease discomfort, inflammation, swelling, and pain, improve the range of motion and pelvic balance, and decrease labor time. Contact us today!
