Pregnant, can I consult an osteopath?
Yes, unless there is a contraindication established by your midwife or obstetrician gynecologist, and preferably awaiting the second trimester of pregnancy. The osteopathic follow-up will have several objectives:
Help the body to adapt to its new morphology, to find a new balance with this forward weight that is the big belly, knowing that “during pregnancy, we will do the minimum to ensure the well-being of the mother and of her baby, because under the effect of hormones, the woman is very lax [souple], explains Catherine Rod de Verchère. So now is not the time to fix everything ”.
Fight against certain ailments of pregnancy: pain in the pelvis, coccyx, pubis and of course, the back; gastric reflux, hemorrhoids, constipation; sleeping troubles.
Help fight against the descent of the baby (not pathological) via manipulation, but also specific abdominal exercises.
Prepare the body for childbirth and give advice to the mother-to-be: how to push well, use his abs and his breath …
Attention: legally, the osteopath cannot perform gyneco-obstetrical manipulations or pelvic touches.
Can we take my baby to an osteoarthritis?
If pregnancy is a physical ordeal for the mother, it is also one for the baby ! The nine months spent in the space (very narrow in the last few weeks) of the mother’s womb, the contractions, are all traumas for the body of a small being in full development. Thus, frequent contractions in utero can compress the hips or the pelvis and later have repercussions on the acquisition of a sitting and walking position; compressions on the vertebrae can cause digestive difficulties. Ditto for childbirth. Hours of labor and contractions, passing through very narrow areas, even possible fetal pain or a cord around the neck, are not without consequences on the baby’s body. A long and difficult birth or on the contrary very fast will both have repercussions on the mobility of the skull, the latter being very malleable with its sutures and fontanelles which act as articulation between the different bony pieces. However, blockages can have repercussions on many functions of the body. “In babies, the objective of osteopathy will be to give them the best of their potential”, explains Catherine Rod de Verchère, who advises a consultation at a month and a half, except for specific problems (frequent crying, for example) which would require a session earlier.
Why consult?
A “deformed” head, in “sugar loaf”, flattened (plagiocephaly)
A congenital torticollis (the baby always keeps the head on the same side)
Digestive concerns: colic, regurgitation, constipation, painful stomach
Restless sleep
Repeated rhino or ear infections
A blocked tear duct
Warning: under no circumstances can a consultation with an osteopath replace traditional pediatric monitoring. Faced with these different apparently benign warning signs, medical advice is essential to rule out any organic cause.