 |
Breech
Babies
At Putney Chiropractic we have many
clients who come for regular adjustments throughout their
pregnancy, to ensure they are aligned as their bodies and
the stresses within them change.
We are often asked if Chiropractic can assist with encouraging
a baby that is not in the usual position for the commencement
of labour to move, so we put together the following information.
Safe ways to assist the turning of a breech baby
A baby is breech when their bottom, feet, or foot - instead
of the head - are presenting into the lower part of the uterus.
Many breech babies spontaneously correct before, or even during
labour, without assistance. There are ways to encourage
the baby to turn around naturally using a combination
of stretching and posturing, and ensuring that the mothers
body and pelvis are balanced and aligned correctly.
If the pelvis or spine are misaligned this has the double
effect of creating a smaller / asymmetrical pelvic space,
and creating an ‘unbalanced’ pelvis due to increased and uneven
tension on ligaments and joints coupled with
weaker and tighter musculature. Gentle chiropractic adjustments
are capable of helping with this even in the later stages
of pregnancy (although it is better to do it as early as possible!).
The mothers body is carefully assessed for positional (postural)
changes, areas of ligamentous laxity,
and muscle weakness. Safe, light,
non-manipulative techniques are then applied to the mothers
body to rebalance it. The Webster Technique
can in some cases also be applied to assist the turning of
a baby naturally. The mother can then do specific postural
exercises to encourage the baby to shift by
itself.
There is no contact with the baby,
and therefore is not stressful to the unborn child at all,
and the baby will only move when it is ‘ready’. This is a
different technique to external cephalic version
(ECV) which is performed by qualified obstetricians and midwifes,
and involves manually shifting the baby out of breech position.
|
|
