Chiropractic for Pregnancy.
Pregnancy Chiropractic Brisbane
What is it, ways of treatment and how Tan Chiro Can help
Changes in Your Body During Pregnancy
Your body undergoes lots of changes during pregnancy to prepare for baby growth within the womb and eventual childbirth.
This section will only include anatomical changes (the list will be too long otherwise!).
Weight Gain
Increase in abdominal mass
Ligament Laxity
The hormone relaxin, increases flexibility of your ligaments, joints & skin
Widening of hips & rib cage
Problems That Can Arise from Pregnancy
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Low Back Pain (including general Back Pain)
Low back pain continues to be an extremely common problem that arises from pregnancy. A broad estimate of between 40-80% (1) of women experience lower back pain when pregnant. The exact cause is still unclear however we do know it stems from a combination of hormonal and structural changes.
The increase in abdomen size & weight also forces the lumbar spine to adapt to the new stress.
Pregnancy-related low back pain is often described as 3 types depending on where the pain is:
Lumbar spine pain
Posterior pelvic pain (or pelvic girdle pain)
Combination of the two above
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Sciatica
Sciatica often develops as the baby grows more, normally in the 3rd trimester though it can happen at any stage. Like most of the pregnancy symptoms, sciatica is often caused by additional weight on joints and muscles that were previously tight and unstable but these problems were not severe enough to be noticed.
It can present as a myriad of symptoms and may include:
Leg pain
Difficulty walking or standing
Poor bladder control
Numbness, tingling, or pins and needles in your legs
Burning sensation in your lower extremities
Pain that worsens with coughing, moving, or sneezing
See also: sciatica treatment Brisbane
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Round ligament pain
The round ligament is a pair of ligaments that act like a sling and hold the uterus in position.
When not pregnant, the ligaments are thick and round (hence the name). Pregnancy loosens these ligaments and the extra weight causes the ligaments to be constantly stretched - much like a rubber band.
Sudden movements can cause the ligaments to contract suddenly resulting in a sharp, sudden intense stabbing in the groin area or deep in your abdomen.
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SPD (Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction) aka PGP (Pelvic Girdle Pain)
SPD & PGP are terms that can be used interchangeably.
It’s a group of symptoms that cause discomfort in the pelvic region. It happens when the ligaments that keep your pelvis stable become too relaxed & stretchy, causing extra movement and instability.
It can be felt in the groin area, in your pubic bone, a pull under your pubic bone or in the lower back. Sometimes your pelvis may also feel wobbly or “unstable”.
How Tan Chiro can help
Pregnancy-Specific Spinal Manipulation
Chiropractors are highly trained in assessing for restriction in spinal joints (it’s the main thing we do all day, every day!).
Chiropractic manipulations and techniques are modified to suit the pregnant body. We may also recommend the use of sacroiliac or lumbar support belts to help you along.
Muscular stretching
Because your muscles are adapting to a quickly changing environment, the usual stretches that you do may either not work as well anymore or may not be enough.
We teach you pregnancy-specific stretches, some of them involving your partner to help you out (and to make sure you don’t topple over).
What You Can Do To Help Yourself
As always, though some modalities may work really well for some there is never one miracle cure for others.
Research suggests that combining chiropractic treatments, exercise and good patient education are more effective for pregnancy-related issues as compared to just doing one thing (2)
Staying Active
The fatigue and extra weight may hamper your motivation to stay active but every little bit helps. As most of the population sit at the desk for work, it’s even more crucial to keep moving as sitting increases the load on your low back, hips and spinal areas.
Wherever possible:
Take the stairs instead
Use an office standing desk if available
Engage in low impact exercises like swimming
Invest in a fit ball for pelvic floor exercises
Exercise
Hate to break this to you, but staying active does not equal exercise.
Exercise programs that target switching on the erector spinae may help as it has been shown that during pregnancy these important spinal muscles that keep your spine straight activates much slower (1).
There are various classes that include fitness, yoga & Pilates that tailor programs specifically to suit the pregnant body - find an activity that you enjoy and go for it!
Sleep
Sleep is healing, and it is guaranteed that there won’t be much of it after the baby comes along. Prioritise yourself and forget about wanting to tick everything on your to-do list - focus on the important things.
Biviá-Roig, Gemma; Lisón, Juan Francisco; Sánchez-Zuriaga, Daniel (2018). Effects of pregnancy on lumbar motion patterns and muscle responses. The Spine Journal, (), S1529943018310970–. doi:10.1016/j.spinee.2018.08.009
Liddle SD, Pennick VLiddle SD, Pennick V. Interventions for preventing and treating low-back and pelvic pain during pregnancy. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2015, Issue 9. Art. No.: CD001139. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD001139.pub4
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