Pregnancy and Women’s Health
Pregnancy is an amazing time for soon-to-be parents, but it can also come with some health issues for both mother and baby. Osteopathy can help alleviate some of the most common pregnancy-related discomforts.
Benefits of Osteo during Pregnancy?
Osteopathic care is tailored to the needs and conditions of each pregnant woman and is helpful in many cases.
Alleviate common pregnancy symptoms such as fatigue, fluid retention, back pain, and musculoskeletal discomfort.
Correct dysfunctional movement patterns and postural changes associated with pregnancy.
Restoring normal joint structure and increase joint mobility.
Balance your pelvis, encourage pelvic floor relaxation, and aid in healthy posture while pregnant.
Help adapting to changing hormonal conditions during pregnancy.
Relieve sciatica, headaches, and pubic bone pain/diastasis of the pubic symphysis.
Your local Osteo can enhance the functioning of your lymphatic, circulatory, neurological and hormonal systems.
This helps allow both the mother and the baby to benefit from improved physical and mental health throughout the pregnancy.
Pregnancy related symptoms we treat
Pelvic pain
During pregnancy, the body releases hormones to relax the ligaments and muscles, allowing the pelvis to open and prepare for the birth of the baby. This can cause the pelvis to become misaligned, leading to pain, discomfort and fatigue.
Through gentle massage and joint manipulation, an osteopath can help to restore balance to the pelvis and reduce symptoms.
Back Pain
As the baby grows and the ligaments of the pelvic area begin to stretch, the lower region may become unbalanced, causing back pain. Through gentle techniques, including massage, articulation and manipulation, an osteopath can provide relief.
Additionally, they can advise on exercises and postural advice to help strengthen and support the lower back region.
Headaches
During pregnancy, many women experience headaches due to changes in hormone levels, fluid retention and stress.
An osteopath can identify the source of the headache and provide relief through manual techniques such as gentle massage and manipulation of the skull, neck and upper back.
Heartburn and digestion
As the digestive organs become compressed due to the growing baby and the increase in hormone levels, many pregnant women experience indigestion and heartburn.
An osteopath can provide relief from these issues by addressing the alignment of the abdomen and spine. They may also provide advice on posture, diet and lifestyle in order to ensure optimum digestive health during pregnancy.
Sciatica/leg pain
Pregnancy can cause increased pressure on certain areas within the pelvis, leading to sciatic nerve pain.
Osteopathic techniques can help to reduce this discomfort and could potentially prevent sciatica from developing into a long-term problem.
Swelling
Pregnancy often causes swelling in the feet and ankles due to increased pressure in the lower half of the body and the build up of fluids in the body.
Osteopathy can help to reduce this swelling and improve the flow of the body’s lymphatic system.
Osteopathy is an excellent way for pregnant women to manage their pregnancy and postnatal period with relative ease and comfort.
As experts in the musculoskeletal system, osteopaths are able to assess a woman’s posture, muscle tension, and general alignment during pregnancy – helping them to ensure they remain strong, mobile, and healthy in preparation for childbirth and motherhood.
Women’s Health
Osteopathy can be a valuable and effective approach for dealing with a number of common women’s health problems, such as postpartum body aches, stress and anxiety, hormone imbalances and menstrual cramps, and headaches and migraines. But the benefits of osteopathy don’t stop there.
Osteopathy helps combat the pain, tension and imbalances associated with common health issues faced by women. It does this through manual therapy, including mediation, movement, and rehabilitation.
As movements are involved, osteopathy also helps with strengthening muscles and correcting postural alignment. Proper alignment is needed to help with reducing small muscle aches and pains.
Osteopathy also increases blood flow, which is important for reproductive health, menstrual cramps and PMS related headaches, as well Regular osteopathic treatments also help to reduce and even prevent headaches and migraines.
In combination of all of these, women have been found to have fewer period pains and a healthier menstrual cycle.