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PREGNANCY RESOURCES
Improving Your Pregnancy with Chiropractic Care
By
the Colorado Chiropractic Association
Today's woman constantly juggles an incredible number of responsibilities:
jobs, children, friendships, marriages, errands, appointments - the list
is endless! You've got to be healthy just to keep up. Women have special
health concerns during every phase of their lives; pregnancy is certainly
one of the most important and complex phases. Although the changes women
experience from pregnancy are natural, a little extra help is sometimes
needed to cope with the dramatic changes in their bodies.
A Perfect Pregnancy
In addition to the noticeable changes pregnancy causes in a woman's body,
pregnancy can cause subtle changes in the musculo-skeletal system; changes
your chiropractor is able to detect and correct. Because the baby lies
forward in the woman's body during pregnancy, her center of gravity shifts
and the spine alters itself to accommodate this change. As a result, many
expectant mothers may experience low back and pelvic pain. These stresses
and strains can be relieved with regular chiropractic care. Many chiropractic
patients report that their deliveries were faster and more comfortable
than deliveries prior to chiropractic care.
It's especially important during pregnancy that nerve impulses flow from
the brain to all parts of the body. A slightly out-of-place vertebra can
create nerve irritation that snarls the body's communication system. Using
gentle spinal adjustments, the chiropractic doctor can relieve this nerve
irritation, allowing the body's energy to flow freely again and eliminate
periodic pain through nature's own healing power! Your chiropractic doctor
will use special, modified techniques during your pregnancy to make your
spinal adjustments easy and comfortable.
Choose chiropractic care.
It's easier to be fit, healthy, and experience a trouble-free pregnancy
when your body freely sends the right messages. Chiropractic care focuses
on the overall effects of spinal misalignment on the nerves that carry
health-giving energy to every cell of the body. Chiropractic helps women
get well and stay well - before, during, and after their pregnancies.
Careful, Mom!
Tips to Ease the Strain of Caring for a Baby
Caring for a baby is rewarding - and hard work. Like other kinds of
work that require lifting, bending, long periods of sitting, and repetitive
motions, it can be harmful to your body. Try these simple tips to prevent
problems before they begin.
- Put one foot on a box or low shelf when you stand and change diapers.
This causes your pelvis to tilt in a way that decreases pelvic fatigue.
- Keep work surfaces at a comfortable height. Put something under the
legs of the changing table, for instance, to raise it if you're tall.
- Don't try to hold the baby and wrestle the side of a crib down at
the same time. Instead, drop the crib side before you pick up the child.
- Don't bend from the waist when you lift the child. Squat with your
back straight, keep the child close to you, and use your leg muscles
to rise.
- Don't bend over into the car when putting your child in the car seat.
Sit sideways on the seat with the child on your lap, then rotate to
face front and put the child in the seat.
- Make sure your feet touch the floor and your back is supported when
you sit holding your child. Keep your knees at the same height as your
hips or slightly higher.
- Adjust stroller handles so you're not bending over when you push.
- When loading a stroller or groceries in the car trunk, rest one foot
on the bumper and keep the load close to your body.
Editorial provided
by the Colorado Chiropractic Association which represents the over 1300
doctors of chiropractic practicing in Colorado. |
