About Chiropractic And Prenatal Care
During pregnancy, a woman’s center of gravity shifts forward to the front of her pelvis. This additional weight in front, causes stress to the joints of the pelvis and low back. As the baby grows in size, the added weight causes the curvature of her lower back to increase, placing extra stress on the fragile facet joints on the back side of the spine. Any pre-existing problems in a woman’s spine tend to be exacerbated as the spine and pelvis become overtaxed, often leading to pain and difficulty performing normal daily activities.
Studies have found that about half of all expectant mothers develop low-back pain at some point during their pregnancies. This is especially true during the third trimester when the baby’s body gains the most weight. Chiropractic care throughout pregnancy can relieve and even prevent the pain and discomfort frequently experienced in pregnancy, and creates an environment for an easier, safer delivery. It is one safe and effective way to help the spine and pelvis cope with the rapid increase in physical stress by restoring a state of balance. In fact, most women have found that chiropractic care helped them avoid the use of pain medications during their pregnancy, and studies have shown that chiropractic adjustments help to reduce time in labor. Your chiropractor should be your partner for a healthy pregnancy. They can provide adjustments, as well as offer nutritional, ergonomic and exercise advice to help address your special needs.
Chiropractic Tips for Pregnant Woman
Be sure to get adjusted regularly. Chiropractic care is important to help maintain a healthy skeletal structure and nervous system function throughout a pregnancy and childbirth.
Do some gentle exercise each day. Walking, swimming, or stationary cycling are relatively safe cardiovascular exercises for pregnant women. Avoid any activities that involve jerking or bouncing movements. Stop exercise immediately if you notice any unusual symptom, such as nausea, dizziness or weakness.
Wear flat shoes with arch supports. Your feet become more susceptible to injury during pregnancy, partially due to a rapidly increasing body weight, but also because the ligaments that support the feet become more lax.
When picking up children, bend from the knees, not the waist. Your low back is much more prone to injury during pregnancy.
When sleeping, lay on your side with a pillow between your knees to take pressure off your lower back. Full-length “body pillows” or “pregnancy wedges” are very popular and can be helpful.
Eat several small meals or snacks every few hours, rather than three large meals per day. This will help alleviate nausea, stabilize blood sugar and allow your body to extract the maximum amount of nutrients from the foods that you eat.
Take a prenatal vitamin with folic acid every day. Folic acid has been shown to dramatically reduce the risk of neural tube defects in a developing fetus. Be sure to check with your doctor before taking any vitamin or herbal supplement to make sure it’s safe for you and the baby.
Chiropractic care can help the spine and pelvis cope with the effects of pregnancy by restoring a state of balance.
Annular Tearing (Internal Disc Disruption)
Situation: Annular Tearing occurs when there is internal damage to the discs in your back. The discs—technically referred to as intervertebral discs—are part of a strong but elastic suspension system that sits between the vertebrae of the spinal column. These joints allow your body to twist and bend. The intervertebral discs are composed of two basic structures, the inner viscous nucleus pulposus and the durable outer portion called the annulus fibrosis. When these two layers break down, the result is disc herniation.
Causes: Annular tears—sometimes referred to as internal disc disruption—are often the first step to a disc herniation. Annular tearing begins when small radial slits occur, allowing the viscous nuclear material to leak to the outer third of the disc, irritating sensitive nerve endings. Annular tearing can occur throughout life resulting in episodic back pain. If left unchecked, the damage and deformation of the disc’s annular fibers can produce a complete disc herniation. Nerve root compression does not have to take place for pain or radiating pain to occur. Annular tears are seen on MRI. Age, trauma, work, diet, social activities, weight and genetics can all play a role in causing an annular tear.
Symptoms: Symptoms can start with general stiffness, tightness and occasional sharp pain with movement. Over time, symptoms can progress to achy pain that radiates in nature, as well as muscle spasms and altered posture.
Treatment: Treatments options can include chiropractic care, acupuncture, physical therapy, and massage therapy. The chiropractor will help determine what type of treatments and modalities are appropriate for you. Upon examination the doctor may order special testing such as an MRI. A concurrent referral may be placed to your medical doctor for specific medications to help make you comfortable.
How Back Pain Begins
Situation: Back pain usually begins withdamage, degeneration, or disease to the discs in the back. The disc—frequently called the intervertebral discs—are a strong but elastic suspension system in between the vertebrae of the spinal column. These joints allow movements like twisting and bending. The intervertebral discs are composed of two basic structures, the inner viscous nucleus pulposis and the durable outer portion called the annulus fibrosis.
Causes: Annular tears—sometimes referred to as internal disc disruption—are often the first step to a disc herniation. Annular tearing begins when small radial slits occur, allowing the viscous nuclear material to leak to the outer third of the disc, irritating sensitive nerve endings. Annular tearing can occur throughout life resulting in episodic back pain. If left unchecked, the damage and deformation of the disc’s annular fibers can produce a complete disc herniation.
Symptoms: Symptoms can start with general stiffness, tightness and occasional sharp pain with movement. Symptoms over time can progress to achy pain that radiates in nature, muscle spasms, and altered posture.
Treatment: Treatments options can include chiropractic care, acupuncture, physical therapy, and massage therapy. The chiropractor will help determine what type of treatments and modalities are appropriate for you. Upon examination the doctor may order special testing such as an MRI. A concurrent referral may be placed to your medical doctor for specific medications to help make you comfortable.
Lumbar Disc Herniation
Situation: Intervertebral discs act as a strong yet elastic suspension system between each of the vertebrae of the spinal column. These joints, along with others, allow for very dynamic movements such as twisting and bending. Discs are composed of two basic structures, the inner gelatinous layer called the nucleus pulposus and the durable outer disc wall called the annulus fibrosis. The breakdown of these two layers leads to a disc herniation.
Causes: A herniation begins with small tears that create a fragile site within the disc wall. This weakness allows the material of the nucleus to leak into the disc wall where sensitive nerve receptors are concentrated. The leaking can cause localized back pain and muscle stiffness. If enough material leaks out a deformation of the disc can occur causing the compression of spinal nerves or the spinal cord. This pressure can cause an array of symptoms including radiating pain, tingling and loss of function on one or both sides of the body.
The herniation of an intervertebral disc can happen suddenly and without warning causing excruciating pain and loss of function to the body. Age, social activities, work, diet, weight, genetics and trauma can all factor into the development of disc herniations.
Symptoms: Symptoms can start with general stiffness, tightness and occasional sharp pain with movement. Over time, symptoms can progress to shooting pain in the buttocks, thighs and legs, constant achy pain, muscle spasms and altered posture. In severe cases symptoms can include muscle weakness, loss of strength in the hips, thighs, legs and feet. You may also experience an agonizing electrical type pain, decreased reflexes, difficulty walking, and loss of bowel and bladder control.
Treatment: Treatment options can include chiropractic care, acupuncture, physical therapy, and massage therapy. Your chiropractor will help determine which treatments and modalities are appropriate for your specific condition. The doctor might also order special testing such as an MRI or make a referral to your medical doctor for specific medications to help make you comfortable. In non-responsive or severe cases surgery may be needed.
If you have any questions about prenatal care please don’t hesitate to contact us today at (303) 766-5588!