Family Physician: A Friend to Depend On

Posted on: 5 March 2015

When you discover that you are pregnant, you couldn't be happier. And you also want to be sure that you do everything possible to keep yourself and your growing child as healthy and safe as possible. While most people rely solely on medical care through an obstetrician, this can provide you with limited options and one sided care. If you are looking for a more holistic type of pregnancy and childbirth, there are options available to you in addition to regular medical checkups with your obstetrician. So, get to know these options so you can get the best care for you and your unborn child. 

Work With A Midwife

Many people are under the misconception that midwifery is a thing of the past. However, midwives are not just a relic of times before medical care for childbirth and pregnancy. 

Today, women who work with a midwife throughout their pregnancy are given more personalized and individualized care and feel more comfortable asking questions and exploring treatment options. These women feel more empowered to choose their own birth plans and to not allow doctors or nurses to bully them into medical interventions such as inducement or cesareans (c-sections) during childbirth.

Most midwives, from places like Women's Healthcare Associates LLC, today are certified nurse midwives, meaning they have medical training as nurses. This means that if your pregnancy goes smoothly and your childbirth progresses well, you may not need a doctor to perform the birth. You may even be able to do a home birth if that is what you want.

Chiropractic Care

Pregnancy can take a serious toll on your body. Symptoms can include nausea, back pain, headaches, vomiting, muscle and joint pain, just to name a few. While standard medical care can provide you with medications to help you deal with your nausea or pain, prescription medications can have negative side effects as well. 

Rather than worry about the negative side effects of prescription medications, you may want to give chiropractic care a try. Going to the chiropractor for a spinal adjustment during pregnancy is perfectly safe, and can be beneficial in numerous ways.

Firstly, many pregnant women suffer from lower back pain during pregnancy. This is often due to a pinched nerve (sciatic nerve in most cases) due to skeletal misalignments. An adjustment with the chiropractor can realign your spine and get your joints and body back in balance, alleviating that pain and discomfort. 

Because spinal misalignments compromise the nervous system, they can also contribute to your other pregnancy symptoms such as headaches and nausea. So, regular trips to the chiropractor can help to reduce and even alleviate many of the negative pregnancy symptoms you may experience. 

Creating a holistic care plan for your pregnancy and childbirth can help to ensure that you and your unborn child remain as healthy and safe as possible over the course of your journey towards motherhood. So, keep these options in mind as you plan your pregnancy care and childbirth plan.