Try acupressure points to help labour progress

Many women receive acupuncture treatment to help them through the different stages of pregnancy, it is an ideal treatment during pregnancy as it is non-invasive and drug free, and will not cause any harm to the baby.

We see many women in our clinic for acupuncture whilst pregnant with the majority coming into us to get support for a natural spontaneous start to labour. With a cervical ripening program many of our clients have avoided inductions and have gone on to have shorter and smoother labour.

Luckily this has been studied and is evidence-based but the proof is literally in the pudding with many of our mothers missing their last appointment having already gone into labour.

Acupuncture in Pregnancy

Pre-birth Acupuncture can be effective in the treatment of the following conditions during pregnancy:

• Morning sickness
• Lower back pain
• Sciatica
• Anxiety
• Food cravings
• Headaches and migraines
• Depression
• Heartburn

Acupuncture has been widely researched in western medicine and there are many studies in respected medical journal to show that acupuncture is effective and can help with:

• Shorter labour times (Cervical Ripening Protocol) – studies of women who have had regular acupuncture throughout their pregnancy have been shown to have shorter labour than women who have not
• Induction of labour – acupuncture can be useful in inducing labour and midwives have found that women receiving acupuncture tend to have fewer complications
• Breech Babies – acupuncture can help turn the baby after 34 weeks if it is in a breech position
• Pain during Pregnancy – acupuncture can help with low middle and upper back pain, neck and arm pain, carpel tunnel syndrome and Pelvic girdle pain
• Low mood in pregnancy – as anti depressant and anxiety medication is contraindicated in pregnancy, acupuncture can be very useful to help with changing moods during pregnancy
• Acupuncture and Sickness – regular acupuncture can help relieve morning sickness and nausea, and positive results can occur within minutes of treatment

Our resident acupuncturist Sam Taylor has had great results in helping women overcome their ailments and illnesses throughout their pregnancy.