Chiropractic Benefits During Pregnancy

So after my first attempt to push out my son I heard a loud pop and my midwife said I had de-fused my tailbone. This ended up being more painful postpartum than my c-section scar. I took months of regular chiropractic care to even be about to sit down without pain.

This time I am being proactive. I just started seeing a new chiropractor to start regular adjustment leading up to my delivery. He has said that my tailbone is a little out of alignment and he will work at getting it into an optimal position for birth during the next few week.

My insurance pays for most of my care but it is still costly to see someone 6 to 10 times over only a few weeks. With at said, it is something I would recommend to every mom to be (regardless of how many kids you have had). The less issues you have after you push out that baby, the better.

Here is a little basic information I got from another website about the benefits of chiropractic care during pregnancy:

Chiropractic care during pregnancy maintains, and can even improve, balance and alignment in your spine and pelvis. This can help your baby assume his/her optimal birthing position and reduce the risk of having a breech baby. Regular chiropractic care can also provide a more comfortable pregnancy and delivery for both mother and baby. It stimulates the nervous system to enable proper functioning of your reproductive organs, thus supporting the needs of your baby throughout pregnancy and during delivery.

The Webster Technique is a specific chiropractic adjustment for pregnant mothers. It reduces interference to the nervous system and helps balance the pelvis, muscles and ligaments. The Webster Technique is successful in relieving intrauterine constraint and allows the fetus to move freely. It can prevent, and even convert, breech birthing positions. The Webster Technique should be started as soon as you find out your baby is in the breech position. Baby’s can flip as late as 39 weeks, but anytime after 35 weeks the chances for success are reduced due to limited mobility in the womb.

My new chiropractor came recommended by my midwife and he and his wife work a lot with pregnant woman. Their website is below:

http://www.drsgoodwinchiro.com/

New Doula - Yay!

I hired a new doula today. Her name is Ruth Phy and she is super sweet and very considerate. She is touchy-feely and seems very well grounded in her faith. She is a mother of two and knows all too well the trauma of birth and c-section. I know she will be a great support for me during the rest of my pregnancy and birth and I am super excited to be adding her to my now complete team.

You can check out her website at http://www.doularuth.com/index.html

to learn more about her. She also teaches potty training which I will be inters in having her come out for once life has settled into a routine after baby Aaron comes. And she makes/sells these really cute slings/wraps.

We talked for hours and she is a really good listener. I think having her as a voice for me will ensure that whatever happens in labor that my wishes will be heard.

Looking for a new doula

So I am almost 34 weeks and I am now on the search for a new doula. While I loved my first choice in Emily, she had to step down for personal reasons. I know that God is good and in control so I truly believe this is happening for a reason. I am going to interview a new doula that seems like she would be a great fit for me (recommended by my previous doula) sometime this week. I am excited about the prospect and look forward to getting this taken care of. I have a home visit with my midwife on May 8th so I hope to have someone lined up by then so they can attend this visit.

With that, I am very excited to have my midwife visit my home. This did not happen last time and I did not even know that it was common. I love showing off where I live (even if it is an apartment) and having people see all the work I put into making my families abode a home. I am also excited for her to see and hear my plans for my birth and where things will be happening.

I was talking to my sister recently about my last visit with my midwife and my birth plan (which I posted a few post back) and she admitted to me that she felt like my first attempt at a home birth was way to familiar to her births at the hospital (she has had 4 hospital births). She said there was too much intervention, too many exams, not very much personal attention, and not what she expected. She too has watched "The Business of Being Born" and other natural home birth videos and felt like it was supposed to be this peaceful, supportive, touchy-feely atmosphere (me too, BTW). We were both greatly disappointed. I pray that this time both of us will see more of what we expect a home birth to look like. I feel like going forward with hiring a new doula is a good way to help this prayer be answered.

35 Weeks

Birth Plan

Now that I am getting a little further in my pregnancy I decided I wanted to write down some things that I would like to have as part of my birth plan. I know that birth cannot be "planned" but I also know from experience that not having a plan doesn't always work out either.

These are in no particular order:

• Leave my husband sleeping or undisturbed for as long as I can help it (this is because I think that once you have attention on you, you are more likely to "perform")
• Call my midwife and doula once I start having active contractions but advise them not to hurry unless I feel I need them sooner. (this is because once my midwife arrived last time I felt pressure and less at ease)
• Call my sister early so she has plenty of time to prepare for childcare
• Refuse having my water broken unless medically necessary
• Avoid exams unless medically necessary (obviously for lower risk of infection in the case of my water being broken, but also so I do not focus on how far I have come or have to go)
• Stay active as long as possible throughout early labor unless at night
• Take regular outside moment (as this allows your mind to remember that life still goes one as normal for the rest of the world. I do this when I watch tense movies like "I AM Legend", as well. LOL)
• Take moment to focus on my unborn baby as this process is not just happening to me but to him as well.
• When the pain gets to much to handle, turn all my focus on Jesus and what he endured for me on the cross.
• I do NOT consent to erythromycin or other medication in baby’s eyes
• I will decide after birth whether to administer vitamin K
• The umbilical cord should remain unclamped and uncut until pulsing stops or is medically necessary.

I might add more as time goes by.

Remembering Why I Am Doing This

So I love watching "A Baby Story" and "Baby's First Day" and sometimes I see the woman who choose to get pain management drugs and they are so calm and enjoying every second like it was just any other day and I think to myself, "Why am I doing this again?". Then I remember the complications of drugs and putting me and my baby int he hands of a doctor who is most likely taught there is no connection between problems in labor and drugs. I see over and over again on these shows when inductions go wrong, when a "routine" epidural causes decelerating, when Cytotec is used without care of the horrific risks to the mother and baby. I also see the occasional "all natural" birth. There is usually a point when the mom to be just feels like she can't do it. I just love the moment when that baby comes out and she forgets everything and is just in ecstasy over what she has been given and what she has accomplished. I know that will probably not be very helpful in the heat of labor but I do know that when that baby is put on my chest, I will know that it was worth all the pain. I just can't wait!