Acupuncture During Pregnancy

Acupuncture is ideally suited for use during pregnancy, as it offers a drug free way of effectively treating a wide range of conditions. Pregnancy should be a time you are able to enjoy and share with your partner and unborn child. However, the pace at which we are used to leading our everyday lives is not the most conducive way of achieving this. Acupuncture can provide you with a way of controlling many of the conditions that can get in the way of you enjoying this wonderful and exciting time.

First Trimester
In your first trimester your body is starting to adapt to hormonal changes. There are five main conditions that arise during this period, namely; nausea & vomiting, sleep disturbance, exhaustion, constipation and anxiety. Most mothers will experience a few of these symptoms to some extent during your first 12 weeks, with one or two being more prominent. Some women unfortunately, will have to deal with all of them.

Acupuncture helps to control all of these symptoms and ease your body into pregnancy instead of feeling like it has just been dropped on you all in one go.

Second Trimester
The second trimester should see all of the previous conditions clear and most mothers will find they have renewed energy levels and take on the pregnancy ‘glow’. However, some of the symptoms can reoccur in the second trimester along with some additional physical symptom such as back pain, pelvic pain (SPD), sciatica etc. as baby starts to grow and demand more of your body.

Acupuncture can provide prompt relief from pain conditions if caught early, controlling nerve activity and helping your body regulate hormones which relax muscles and tendons during pregnancy.

Third Trimester
The third trimester can see a stepping up of the pain conditions, as baby continues to grow and gain weight. Circulation is also affected and conditions such as carpel tunnel syndrome and swollen ankles tend to appear.

Acupuncture can play multiple roles in the final trimester, as you approach the birth of your baby. It continues to control pain conditions and also helps more serious conditions such as high blood pressure (preeclampsia) and gestational diabetes. Acupuncture can also be used to turn breech and transverse babies. Moxibustion is actually recommended in the NICE guidelines for this.

Acupuncture also provides you with a natural way to prepare for labour, by calming the mind and gently stimulating the hormones and uterus as you approach your due date. If you go past your due date, it can also be utilised as a form of natural induction.

If you would like to find out more about how acupuncture can help you during your pregnancy or to book an appointment with Alex, please  contact him on 07813 184180 or visit www.alexowenacupuncture.com

Your practitioner
Alex Owen – BSc (Hons) TCM, BM (China), MATCM

Alex has been practicing for over 17 years and holds qualifications from both the UK and China. In 2006 he helped setup the UK’s first, full time, maternity acupuncture service on the NHS, at Whittington Hospital in London. This service still runs today providing around 150 treatments each month. Alex worked on the service for four years, gaining a huge amount of experience in using acupuncture specifically for women during pregnancy and even during labour.