Acupuncture & Labour
In today’s blog post I am so excited to share information for all of my pregnant people out there about acupuncture and labour! Pregnancy is such an exciting time and wonderful journey. As a chiropractor, it is a privilege to help parents-to-be with all of their pregnancy aches and pains. One of the most exhilarating parts is when the baby is finally on their way and the labour process is starting!
3RD TRIMESTER CHANGES
In the last few weeks of pregnancy there are changes that happen as the pregnant person’s body and baby are preparing for the labour and birth (2). This can include baby “dropping down” into the pelvis, the cervix softening, and even potentially experiencing irregular contractions (1). You might be wondering; how do our bodies know to start this labour process? While there are still many unknowns surrounding it, researchers believe that when the baby is ready to come, they are able to signal hormones to begin labour (1).
LABOUR INDUCTION
Even though our bodies know how to kick start the labour process, there are times when the medical professional overseeing your pregnancy may deem it necessary to stimulate the labour process. This is known as labour induction (1-4) and is ideally only offered when it is thought to be best and healthiest for both the pregnant person and baby (2).
Some reasons for induction can include:
the pregnancy going beyond the due date
pre-labour rupture of the membranes
concerns about the health of the mother/baby such as pre-eclampsia (2).
While there are conventional medical approaches to starting labour, some people are open to exploring complementary therapies, one of them being acupuncture (1-4).
WHAT EXACTLY IS ACUPUNCTURE?
Medical acupuncture, adapted from traditional Chinese acupuncture, involves the knowledge of anatomy, physiology, and evidence based care (3). Very fine needles are inserted into specific points of the body simultaneously, and can be connected to electrostimulation (2). This can have positive effects on the body such as increasing local blood flow, decreasing pain, and influencing the body’s healing response (3).
ACUPUNCTURE & LABOUR INDUCTION
There has been researched to determine if acupuncture is a safe and effective way to induce labour (1-4), and have no adverse events reported (1). Studies have shown that acupuncture may increase the readiness of the cervix for labour (2).
It’s thought that the reason why this happens, is that the acupuncture stimulates the uterus by hormonal changes, which can increase uterine contractility (2). One small study with 8 pregnant people showed that after one treatment all 8 women went into labour, which suggests that electrostimulation acupuncture may be a way to induce labor (4).
IS ACUPUNCTURE RIGHT FOR ME?
There are many different types of practitioners that can provide medical acupuncture, after taking additional acupuncture certification. As a chiropractor, acupuncture is a treatment option I use often with all of my patients as a way to help decrease pain, plus the added perks for my pregnant patients. While more research is always beneficial to provide additional evidence, acupuncture may be an option to try at the end of pregnancy, as a way to speed up the labour process and finally meet your little bundle of joy.
How cute is my friend Jill?! She’s the lovely lady who made my logo, and is also a fellow business owner of: See her amazing work at Jaye Designs here
References
Big thank you to Lifetime of Love Doulas for having me be a guest blogger and sharing this article on their website, check it out here!
