Acupuncture for Labor Induction 101
by Lailee Mussivand, Registered Acupuncturist
Did you know that Acupuncture can be used as a natural, gentle way to encourage the onset of labour?
Here at Sage, I have been inducing quite a few ladies in the past couple of months with great success. Acupuncture is an excellent alternative to medical induction as it has no adverse affects and simply helps along the body’s own natural processes. In parts of Asia, it has been used for centuries to jump-start labour. Traditional Chinese Medicine uses Acupuncture on specific points of the body to naturally release hormones which soften and ripen the cervix and help bring on contractions.
Most women who have reached 40 weeks of pregnancy need between 1-3 treatments before labour begins, which typically starts anywhere between 6-24 hours after a treatment – although, I have seen a few women start contractions during the 1 hour session. With Doctor or Midwife approval, it is safe for a mother who is post-due to receive Acupuncture Induction Treatments on consecutive days. Pregnant women can benefit from labour induction acupuncture with no prior acupuncture experience.
It’s important to note that because Acupuncture is a natural way to encourage labor, needling will NOT cause contractions before the baby is ready to be delivered. The process of labour in actually triggered by signals from the baby’s body – but Acupuncture works on preparing the mother’s body to be as ready and supported as possible. Acupuncture keeps a mother’s body open, strong and relaxed so that when the baby is ready, labour will progress smoothly.
Acupuncture Labour Induction decreases a mother’s stress and anxiety which can be crucial in promoting a healthy, complication free delivery. In some cases, Acupuncture has been said to reduce active labour time and mother and child will experience a gradual, less traumatic onset of labour than with medical induction.
If you would like to book in to be induced with Acupuncture or have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me at Sage.
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