Giving birth is a powerful experience and postpartum chiropractic care can be the healing you need. Women undergo intense physical and emotional strain throughout birth, and it can take time for a new mother to return to equilibrium.
Which is why it can be beneficial for moms to consider seeing a chiropractor for postpartum care. An experienced chiropractor can assist in restoring pelvic adjustment that may have changed or moved out of alignment with birth.
Postpartum Chiropractic Care
A new mom’s body has a lot of healing to do. And that healing is happening while you’re trying to take care of a newborn who is likely relying on you for sustenance. Finding some time to take care of yourself can be an important component to staying sane.
An adjustment with an experienced chiropractor can give you a chance to get out of the house and also alleviate some of the aches and pains brought about through the birthing process.
Pelvic Misalignment
As arguably everyone knows, birth is a trying process for a mother to endure. A woman’s pelvis experiences a large amount of strain and movement. This can result in misalignment of the pubic bone, sacrum, and hips after birth.
Misalignment throughout the torso can cause many frustrating or painful symptoms like difficulties sleeping, pain with movement through the hips or back, and pain with walking or standing. Leaving a pelvic misalignment untreated is likely to further exacerbate these problems, so it’s always good to visit a chiropractor after giving birth to address any pains or strains.
Babies Can Be Heavy
While a newborn baby may seem unlikely to cause strain with their weight, even little newborns require unwieldy and oftentimes heavy infant car seats and strollers. Babies can also strain a mother’s back with breastfeeding, carrying position, or the bending used to place a child in their crib or car seat. These movements may seem benign, but they can aggravate previous misalignments or create new ones.
Chiropractic care can ensure that your body is carrying and bending with correct alignment. Even a few small adjustments can improve strain or pain associated with lifting or carrying your baby’s weight.
An experienced chiropractor can also recommend modifications to routines like breastfeeding or rocking your child to decrease stress throughout the body.
Ligaments Are Softer After Birth
When a woman’s body is preparing to give birth it releases the hormone relaxin. This hormone functions to loosen ligaments in the pelvis to allow the space for birth. Relaxin remains in the body for up to six months postpartum and effects ligaments throughout the body, not just in the pelvis.
Softer ligaments mean there is less tension holding muscles and bones in position throughout the body. This effect makes it easier for new moms to suffer spinal or pelvic misalignments. With frequent holding of their baby, women may also notice pain throughout the wrists, elbows, and shoulders.
Fortunately, since ligaments are softer throughout the body, chiropractic adjustments are easier for both chiropractor and new mom. Postpartum corrective alignments can address issues that arose throughout pregnancy and birth or reoccurring issues unrelated to or exacerbated by carrying a child.
Proper Alignment is Always Beneficial
Maintaining our biomechanics to be neutral, benefits everyone. Your spine is a central nervous system highway, with nerves branching off to travel through every part of your body. Misalignment through your spine or supporting structures can send your whole body in a tailspin, which your brain translates as pain or strain.
[Tweet “Your spine is a central nervous system highway, with nerves branching off to travel through every part of your body.”]When the body undergoes any kind of trauma (like the intense exertion and recovery required with giving birth) the spine and other musculoskeletal regions of the body often shift or move. While this movement doesn’t always result in a misalignment, it can be a common result.
So even if you’re not experiencing any frustrating or limiting pain in your postpartum body, consider seeing a chiropractor in your local area, whether that’s Anchorage, Alaska or Miami, Florida, to benefit your body (and as a great excuse to get out of the house without a baby in tow!).
Identity Magazine is all about guiding women to discover their powers of Self-Acceptance, Appreciation, and Personal Achievement. We ask that every contributor and expert answer the Identity 5 questions in keeping with our theme.
Their answers can be random and in the moment or they can be aligned with the current article they have written. In that way, and as a team, we hope to encourage and motivate each other, thus inspiring you to Get All A’s.
1. What have you accepted within your life, physically and/or mentally? Additionally, what are you still working on accepting? Now, we’re not talking about resignation, rather stepping into, embraced, and owned.
I’ve accepted that life is always changing. There’s very little in life that stays the same forever, which is what makes it so worthwhile. Along with that, I’m still working on my ability to let go of happy moments so the next change in my life can occur.
2. Appreciation is everything. What have you learned to appreciate about yourself and/or within your life, physically and mentally? On the other hand OR in contrast, are there elements of who you are that you’re still working on appreciating?
My strength. Through various challenges in life I’ve come to realize I have a lot of physical and emotional resilience and I appreciate that everyday. I’m still working on my confidence. It’s easy to get scared of new experiences, and I’m learning to face those with confidence instead of worry.
3. Share with us one of your most rewarding achievements in life? Tell us not only what makes YOU most proud but also share the goals and dreams that you still have.
I’m tremendously proud of the relationships I’ve cultivated throughout my life so far. It’s rewarding to find the people who I click with and who bring light into my life, and seeking out the people who engage positively with the world is something I hope to do long into the future.
4. Of course, we all have imperfections, or so we think. In truth, we are all perfectly imperfect. What are your not-so-perfect ways? Likewise, what imperfections and quirks create who you are–your Identity?
I’m not so perfect at my ability to let go. I tend to hold onto things with both hands. Alternately, that imperfection has enhanced my sense of humor, which is a big part of who I am.
5. “I Love My…” is an outlet for you to appreciate and express all the positive traits that make you…well…YOU! In fact, sharing what you love about yourself will make you smile, feel empowered, and uplift your spirit and soul. (We assure you!) Therefore, Identity challenges you to complete the phrase “I Love My…?”
I love my laugh! Humor is a big part of my communication style and daily life. So I love to laugh.
Photo by Xavier Mouton Photographie on Unsplash
