Approaching your due date or Overdue?

Approaching your due date or Overdue?

by | Sep 4, 2017 | Complementary Therapies, Health Tips

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) (2008) guidelines state that information should be conveyed to women informing them that the most women will go into spontaneous labour by 42 weeks. It is possible for your midwife to offer you a membrane sweep . This is a vaginal examination in which the midwife attempts to separate the membranes of the amniotic sac from the cervix. It is thought that this then will release hormones to aide the cervix to open and initiate labour. If you have not spontaneously commenced labour by 40 weeks plus 12 days you will be offered a medical induction of labour. This method uses a medication which is referred to as a pessary which is inserted into the vagina and placed behind your cervix. This pessary contains hormones and it is expected that these hormones work to soften and dilate (open) the cervix. This then creates an opening in your cervix to enable your waters to be broken, called an amniotic rupture of the membranes (ARM). According to NICE (2008), this medical induction occurs in up to 20% of pregnancies

However, it is possible to use complementary therapies in an attempt to initiate labour from 40 weeks. Using a tailored package of care based on your individual circumstances. Therapies you may be able to use include aromatherapy, massage, acupressure and/or acupuncture. Some recent research using aromatherapy, acupressure and reflexology by Grabowska & Weston support complementary therapies alongside a membrane sweep with results showing 65% of first time labour and 74.5% of second or subsequent labour initiating spontaneous labour following treatment. Furthermore, in their most recent audit 16 women declined a sweep but all proceeded to spontaneous labour with the complementary therapies alone.

It is essential if you decide to try the complementary therapy route for any treatment during pregnancy, childbirth or during the post-natal period that you seek out a practitioner who is trained specifically in maternity care.

How can Complementary Therapies contribute?
By Christine Grabowska and Michelle Weston. Complementary Therapies for IOL. See here: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Christine_Grabowska/publication/258114438_Complementary_therapy_for_induction_of_labour/links/54dd0e7c0cf282895a3b40d5.pdf

Cochrane Systematic Review – Acupuncture for Induction of labour.
By Helen Hall, Lisa McKenna and Debra Griffiths.
See here: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD002962.pub2/full

Complementary and alternative medicine for induction of labour
See here: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S187151921100028X

Help with Morning Sickness

Help with Morning Sickness

by | Aug 22, 2017 | Health Tips

Feeling sick (nausea) or being sick (vomiting) may be the first signs that you are pregnant and tends to start at about 6 weeks of pregnancy.  This is because your hormone levels of hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin) is increasing to support your pregnancy.

Therefore, nausea and vomiting is a very common indication of pregnancy with up to 90% of women suffering with symptoms.  These may be triggered, or aggravated, by odours, tiredness, anxiety or stress, a multiple pregnancy or the time of day. Additionally, a family history of the condition or motion sickness may intensify the symptoms.  If vomiting is excessive it can lead to dehydration and weight loss which may be a condition called Hyperemesis Gravidarum which should be reported to your midwife immediately.

Regardless of the cause, the condition is often misunderstood and misinterpreted by health professionals as a minor complaint without acknowledging the debilitating and disruptive effects it has on women and their family.  It can lead to women feeling isolated, depressed and physically and emotionally exhausted.

How can Complementary Therapies contribute?

Complementary therapies offer a holistic assessment of you and your symptoms to understand and appreciate the impact of the condition on your day to day life.  Using stand alone or combinations of therapies such as acupressure, acupuncture, aromatherapy, massage, reflex zone therapy, homeopathy and herbal remedies can help to reduce and improve symptoms.  Ginger may contribute to reducing symptoms but this is not through eating ginger biscuits!

However, these therapies, whist considered natural, must only be used under the instruction of a trained professional, such as myself.  This ensures you have been assessed to have no physiological issues pertaining to the treatment which may cause harm to you or your baby.  It also will provide correct dosages to make sure you don’t take too much and cause the symptoms to return or become worse (known as reverse proving).

Interesting articles for further reading:

By.  Sheba Jarvis and  Catherine Nelson-Piercy.  Management of nausea and vomiting in pregnancy
See here: http://www.bmj.com/bmj/section-pdf/187262?path=/bmj/342/7812/Clinical_Review.full.pdf

Denise Tiran.  Ginger to reduce nausea and vomiting during pregnancy: Evidence of effectiveness is not the same as proof of safety
See here:  http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1744388111000739

Cochrane Library.   Interventions for nausea and vomiting in early pregnancy
See here: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD007575.pub3/full

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