How to Prepare for a Natural Birth with Prenatal Chiropractic Care
If you’re pregnant, then you’ve probably spent a decent amount of time thinking about labor and birth. If you’re like many women, you may be researching how to prepare for a natural birth - and wondering if it’s even possible for you!
While there’s no way to completely control what happens during labor and birth, having a birth plan and a goal can help you have the birth you’ve been envisioning. And if a natural birth is part of your birth plan, there are plenty of things you can do to prepare for a natural birth.
Keep reading for our best tips on how to prepare for natural labor from our team of prenatal chiropractors in South Lincoln, NE.
Prepare for a Natural Birth With These Tips
From daily stretching and massage therapy to improving your mindset and building an awesome birth team, there’s plenty you can do to prepare for a natural birth.
Gentle Daily Movement
One of the simplest ways to prepare for a natural birth - but also one of the most powerful - is to incorporate a short stretching routine with some gentle birth-prep exercises into your daily routine.
Even just 10-15 minutes per day can help in a huge way when it comes to the birthing process, as well as your healing afterwards, said Lincoln, NE chiropractor ZoAnn Mader.
Self-Care for Your Nervous System
In addition to exercising and taking care of your body, it’s important to take care of your nervous system when you prepare for a natural birth. You can help keep your nervous system calm with self care activities and the help of practitioners, such as prenatal massage therapists and acupuncturists.
If you’re looking for prenatal massage in Lincoln, NE, don’t hesitate to reach out. We offer massage within our South Lincoln, NE chiropractic office and can offer recommendations for other local natural health practitioners.
Address Limiting Beliefs
While taking care of your physical being is important when preparing for a natural birth, it’s also important to take care of your mindset. Limiting beliefs around birth can be some of the most challenging parts to overcome when going through labor and delivery.
Throughout your pregnancy, you can use journaling, meditation, talk therapy or even just a trusted friend to work through any fears, concerns and frustrations you may have around the birthing process. This work can make a huge difference when preparing for natural labor.
Build a Solid Birth Team
Who you have around you during labor and birth is also incredibly important when it comes to having a natural birth.
Make sure to spend time communicating with your partner and your provider about your birth plan. Even though your labor likely won’t go exactly as planned, sharing your plan with the others involved in your birth process will help ensure as much of it goes smoothly as possible.
You may also want to add additional practitioners to your birth team, including a doula for emotional and birth support, a prenatal chiropractor and any other family or friends you want present at your delivery.
Seek Prenatal Chiropractic Care
Seeking prenatal chiropractic care is one of the best ways to prepare for natural birth. Pregnancy chiropractors are focused on balancing the intricate pelvic system.
When the external structures of the pelvis are well balanced, it means that each joint in the pelvis is moving well, each ligament is helping suspend the uterus and each muscle is doing its job without adding extra tension to the system.
This allows a pregnant mom to be more comfortable and enjoy her pregnancy more, but also helps balance the internal structures and provides the baby with the best possible internal environment.
It helps ensure there is plenty of room for the baby to get comfy and in the optimal position for birth and can support a relaxed and inviting cervix to encourage the baby down the birth canal when that time comes. It also ensures that all the moving parts of the pelvis are able to expand and create space in the pelvic girdle during labor.
All of this work can make a natural birth easier on the body and can also boost the healing process after birth.
How To Prepare for a Natural Birth With a Breech Baby
In our South Lincoln, NE chiropractor office, one of the commons concerns we hear from pregnant moms is about having a breech baby. Especially if you’re hoping to prepare for a natural birth, a baby in the breech position can be stressful - and can potentially disrupt your birth plans.
Luckily, prenatal chiropractic care is a safe solution to help with a breech baby.
When a baby is breech it’s often a sign that there is an imbalance in the pelvic system. This imbalance could be caused by a number of issues, including that:
The joints are not moving and allowing expansion in the pelvic girdle
The ligaments helping suspend the uterus are holding tension
The muscles that are needed to hold the system in place are overworked or not turned on at all
