Pregnancy and Post Birth Care
While
pregnancy is a beautiful and natural time in a woman’s life, there are a
number of minor and major health complaints that may occur at this
time. The ancient, art of Traditional Chinese
Acupuncture provides a drug free, safe and effective way of gently
restoring optimal health during pregnancy.
Symptoms
Common
pregnancy related health conditions, which can be addressed with
acupuncture, include:
*Morning sickness
*Hyperemesis
*Heart
burn
*Insomnia
*Low
energy
*Anxiety
*Back
and hip pain
*High
blood pressure
*Preparation for
labour
*Labor
induction.
*Turning breech
babies
*Post
natal depression
Treatment
MORNING
SICKNESS
Pregnancy
profoundly and immediately changes the energetics of the
body. A part of this change, often involves problems
with disordered qi flow in the stomach meridian. As stomach qi fails to descend through the body,
“rebellious” qi begins to rise upwards causing nausea and
vomiting. There are several different typical energy
imbalances that contribute to morning sickness. Acupuncture point selection is different
depending on which particular imbalance a woman has.
Acupuncture treatment is usually twice a week for the
first two to three weeks, depending on severity of
symptoms. By this time there is usually enough of an
improvement for treatment to be decreased to once a week.
Dietary
adjustment, increased rest, and the use of Chinese herbs or B6 and ginger
therapy are also advised.
LABOUR
PREPARATION
Pre birth
acupuncture is routinely recommend to all pregnant patients I work
with. A series of four treatments given over the last
month of pregnancy is the usual approach. Sometimes extra treatments are given if a woman
goes past due dates, and acupuncture induction is required.
In
clinical trials, the average time in labour for a group of women giving
birth for the first time was reduced from 8 hours (no acupuncture given)
to 6 ½ hours for women given pre birth acupuncture. Midwives report that their mums who have received
this treatment have straightforward labours with a reduced rate of
medical intervention.
Pre birth
acupuncture aims to regulate a woman’s qi and blood, to ensure she is
strong and balanced for the rigors of
childbirth.
LABOUR
INDUCTION
Going past
due dates often leads to a medical induction, which in turn increases the
likelihood of further interventions including an epidural and forceps
delivery.
Acupuncture can often induce labour when a woman goes
past her due date. Ideally, acupuncture is performed in the two to
three day period before a woman is booked in for medical
induction. After one to three acupuncture induction
treatments, labour will often begin, in a gentle, natural way, rather
than with the intensely painful contractions which often accompany a
medical induction.
TURNING
BREECH AND POSTERIOR PRESENTATION BABIES
A baby in
a breech presentation (feet down, head up) increases the potential
complications in labour, and usually will be routinely delivered by
Caesarian. Sometimes a doctor or midwife will attempt to
turn a breech baby by external manipulation of the
belly. This is not always successful, and must only be
attempted when the medical practitioner is prepared for an emergency
caesarian if there is cord compression.
Traditional Chinese Acupuncture offers a highly
effective and simple acupuncture treatment for turning breech
babies. Moxibustion (warming with a stick of herbs called
moxa) is applied to point BL67 near the outside of the little toe
nail. This point is warmed for 20 minutes bilaterally,
for 10 consecutive days. The first treatment is performed in the clinic,
and then the following treatments are performed by the woman or her
husband, at home.
Most
studies suggest that this treatment is most effective in the
34th week of pregnancy before the baby has grown too
large. In real life, women often do not present for
treatment until the 36th to
38th week. Some babies do still turn at this late stage,
especially if the woman has had a baby before.
A similar
treatment is performed to help turn posterior babies in the last few
weeks of pregnancy. While this treatment is often successful, there
is a higher incidence of these babies reverting back to their posterior
position during labour.
POST NATAL
ACUPUNCTURE
TCM
recommends that all women should receive acupuncture treatment in the
days and weeks following either a vaginal or caesarian
birth. Childbirth is a huge event, and can lead to
draining and deficiency of qi and blood, especially if labour is
prolonged, or there is excessive blood loss. Using tonifying (strengthening) acupuncture, and
moxibustion (very pleasant warming of the needles with moxa) for the one
to two months after childbirth gently strengthens and restores a woman’s
vital force.
Acupuncture is performed preferably at 4 to 5 days post
birth, and then again around day 10 to 14 post birth. Then weekly treatments may be recommended for
three to five weeks depending on the state of the mother’s qi and blood.
Common
post natal health challenges which can be effectively improved with TCM
include:
*Fatigue
*Anxiety
*Depression
*Mastitis
*Poor milk
production
*post
caesarian scar pain
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