3 Reasons To Try Acupuncture During Pregnancy
Pregnancy is often accompanied by a variety of symptoms that range from uncomfortable to debilitating. Unfortunately for mothers, relieving those symptoms can be tricky. Many common remedies used to treat the same types of symptoms in people who are not pregnant are considered risky for pregnant women or are simply untested in pregnant women. You may want to eliminate your symptoms, but you don't want to risk harming your baby. Acupuncture can be a good solution for some of these symptoms – it's not a drug, it can't cross the placenta or disturb the uterus, and it poses no risk to the unborn baby. Take a look at some good reasons why you may want to try acupuncture during your pregnancy:
Relieve Morning Sickness
Morning sickness – a misnomer that refers to nausea that afflicts pregnant women at any time of the day or night – is one of the more common side effects of pregnancy. Morning sickness can have a variety of causes, from stress to hormonal changes to tension in the abdominal muscles.
Acupuncturists work to determine the underlying cause of the morning sickness in order to specifically target the treatment in the way that will help the most. So, for example, a woman experiencing morning sickness aggravated by tension in the abdominal muscles might benefit more from needles placed in that area, while a woman whose morning sickness is aggravated by hormones might receive treatment in another area to best relieve her symptoms.
Reduce Pregnancy Depression
Depression during pregnancy often takes mothers by surprise. Though post-partum depression, or depression occurring after birth, is widely known about, depression that occurs during pregnancy is not as commonly discussed. However, pregnancy is often a stressful and emotional time for a mother, and it's also a time of profound physical changes and life changes. It's not surprising that many women experience depression.
A study of pregnant women who received acupuncture treatments for depression showed that 63% of these women experienced a reduction in depression symptoms – significantly more than those who reported improvement after receiving massage therapy or acupuncture treatments not targeted for depression. For women who have concerns about using depression medications during pregnancy, acupuncture could be an effective and safe treatment.
Eliminate Back Pain
Pregnancy often results in back pain, especially in the later months of the pregnancy, as the mother's belly becomes larger and may lead to more pressure on the muscles in the back.
Back pain is difficult to treat even in patients who are not pregnant, and all kinds of people find themselves consulting an acupuncturist when other methods of back pain relief don't work. Back pain is one of the top reasons why patients seek out acupuncture treatments. It works by stimulating the nervous system, which can help release chemicals in the brain that eliminate pain. For pregnant patients who may not have the option of trying drugs or other back pain treatments first, this can be the ideal solution.
If you're a pregnant woman interested in acupuncture, make sure to seek out an acupuncturist with experience working with pregnant women. Acupuncture may be your key to a more comfortable and happier pregnancy. Contact a company like Acupractic Natural Healing Center for more information and assistance.