How an Adjustment Promotes our Laboring Success
Have you heard of the idea of birthing with chiropractic? As a chiropractor, I see miracles all the time in my office. I always knew chiropractic was powerful and life changing. But, I never understood the depth of it until I had the experience of chiropractic care during labor.
Going into Labor
I had heard birth stories of first-time moms having 40-, 50-, 60-, 70-, 80-hour labors! I was prepared for a marathon for our first child, Naomi. We were giving birth at a birth center with midwifery care. We chose this birth center because of their philosophy around birth and the incredible prenatal and postpartum care they provide. It just so happens that my good friend Dr. Stephanie Libs practices right next door. I knew I would have regular chiropractic care throughout my pregnancy but never thought about getting adjusted during labor until Steph mentioned it. Fast forward to our labor on a hot and sunny Thursday morning in the middle of summer in San Diego.
I started having contractions at 12:30 in the morning on Thursday. My midwives and doula informed me that I would probably have the baby Friday and maybe even Saturday. But I knew in the depths of my soul that I was going to meet our baby that same day. I labored long and hard at home for close to 10 hours before our doula came to our home. She did some bodywork and counterpressure that really sped up the labor. I was on hands and knees on our kitchen floor and felt this immense surge of the need to push. I remember in one of the birth classes one of the doula’s said, “No one tells you when you need to push, your body instinctively knows.” And it did!
Time to Deliver!
The next thing I know we were in the car on the way to the birth center. It was everything I could do to not push my baby out in the car or even in the parking lot when we got there! We finally made it to one of the birthing suites at the birthing center. Even though it was just a short walk down a hallway, my contractions had slowed down tremendously.
It was unbelievably frustrating and also confusing to me. It almost felt like my contractions had stopped and the labor had regressed. An hour went by of feeling disappointed and confused. I went from the tub to the bed to the floor to the birthing stool. Nothing felt right, no position felt comfortable. Our midwife suggested I sit backwards on a toilet seat to open up my pelvis and give my body a little bit of a break.
I felt physically exhausted and emotionally depleted. I heard a familiar and gentle voice of Dr. Steph asking me if I wanted her to check me. Despite not wanting any sort of touch at that moment, my voice said yes. I felt her hands on my sacrum as she adjusted a posterior base. Her hands felt stable on my hips as she did counterpressure following the adjustment. I gently laid back and let my body sink as she adjusted my atlas. The energy in the room shifted. The energy in my body shifted. I felt my pelvis open up for the first time during labor. Something felt different.
Minutes later, I felt the most intense contraction yet. I stood up from the toilet, took five to six steps into the birthing suite, got on hands and knees, and my beautiful baby girl exited my body and made her presence earth side.
In Summary
People can argue and say that’s just the process of labor. But we know differently. We know that when the nervous system is clear, innate intelligence can flow through our body and processes (such as labor) can and will happen as intended.
–Deborah Nikolin, DC
Appears in Pathways to
Family Wellness Magazine Issue #82
Provided and published by ICPA. For more information, visit discoverkidshealth.com
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