Natural Birth and Chiropractic
My husband is a Chiropractor, and recently has switched over to Upper Cervical Chiropractic. I obviously, am a natural birth nut, teach Bradley, and basically try to convince people I am right! Despite any disagreements in our marriage, one thing we agree on is the amazing ability of the body to do its job.
The Amazing Human Body
We were talking last night about real Chiropractic. There are all kinds of chiropractors out there, practicing seemingly endless kinds of Chiropractic, from AK docs who hardly even adjust to the basic Diversified chiro. Nathan, my hubby is probably on the other end of things, he only adjusts the first two bones in the spine, C1 and C2. He genuinely believes that the body has an amazing ability to heal itself. He just opens up the channel so that the body can fix itself, he doesn't really heal anything- just lets the body do it on its own.
Think about that for a minute- because it is very different from traditional medicine. The body wants to be well. It can heal a cut, a burn, a cold, a broken leg. It can digest food, cool itself, and beat your heart all without being consciously told - it knows what to do. Some Chiropractors call this the innate intelligence. It is your body's inherent ability to do it's job without instruction from outside of it. A real chiropractor just opens the channel, by adjusting the atlas and lets the body heal its own disease. It is not just about pain- it is about healing and wellness.
Now think about traditional medicine and how it looks at the body. Your blood pressure is high- take a pill to lower it. That one doesn't work- thats cool- take another. Feeling depressed- take a pill. Bad knee- well-the body doesn't last forever- get surgery- we can fix it. Backed up- take a laxative. And around and around we go.
What is wrong with this outlook? It comes down to looking at the human body like it is flawed. It colors every aspect of traditional medicine and it makes for an outside in approach rather than an inside out approach. Instead of letting the body that knows how to work, heal itself, we give it pills or surgery to fix its imperfections.
What Does This Have To Do With Childbirth?
Everything. If your doctor or midwife thinks that the human body is flawed and needs help, if they think that your body and your birth are nothing more than an accident waiting to happen, it will change the way they view labor and birth. It will change the way they treat you. It will change your entire birth experience.
Do you think I'm kidding? I heard of a doctor in Dallas, who refereed to a c-section as a "vaginal bypass". He actually thought that the female body had a design flaw. He was a friendly, funny guy, but he did mostly c-sections.
You need to know how your care provider looks at the female body and the beauty of birth. If they think it is dangerous and you are not capable of doing it on your own most of the time, you have a problem. It does not matter how nice they are. It does not matter if they are funny. What matters is if they actually believe that women are designed to birth babies. They must believe that birth is inherently safe- with occasional emergencies. They must view themselves as lifeguards in this beautiful dance rather than a savior in a white coat with a shining scalpel. They must believe in birth and believe in you and your body. Too bad chiropractors don't catch babies....
But there are all these great gals called home-birth midwives.
The Amazing Human Body
We were talking last night about real Chiropractic. There are all kinds of chiropractors out there, practicing seemingly endless kinds of Chiropractic, from AK docs who hardly even adjust to the basic Diversified chiro. Nathan, my hubby is probably on the other end of things, he only adjusts the first two bones in the spine, C1 and C2. He genuinely believes that the body has an amazing ability to heal itself. He just opens up the channel so that the body can fix itself, he doesn't really heal anything- just lets the body do it on its own.
Think about that for a minute- because it is very different from traditional medicine. The body wants to be well. It can heal a cut, a burn, a cold, a broken leg. It can digest food, cool itself, and beat your heart all without being consciously told - it knows what to do. Some Chiropractors call this the innate intelligence. It is your body's inherent ability to do it's job without instruction from outside of it. A real chiropractor just opens the channel, by adjusting the atlas and lets the body heal its own disease. It is not just about pain- it is about healing and wellness.
Now think about traditional medicine and how it looks at the body. Your blood pressure is high- take a pill to lower it. That one doesn't work- thats cool- take another. Feeling depressed- take a pill. Bad knee- well-the body doesn't last forever- get surgery- we can fix it. Backed up- take a laxative. And around and around we go.
What is wrong with this outlook? It comes down to looking at the human body like it is flawed. It colors every aspect of traditional medicine and it makes for an outside in approach rather than an inside out approach. Instead of letting the body that knows how to work, heal itself, we give it pills or surgery to fix its imperfections.
What Does This Have To Do With Childbirth?
Everything. If your doctor or midwife thinks that the human body is flawed and needs help, if they think that your body and your birth are nothing more than an accident waiting to happen, it will change the way they view labor and birth. It will change the way they treat you. It will change your entire birth experience.
Do you think I'm kidding? I heard of a doctor in Dallas, who refereed to a c-section as a "vaginal bypass". He actually thought that the female body had a design flaw. He was a friendly, funny guy, but he did mostly c-sections.
You need to know how your care provider looks at the female body and the beauty of birth. If they think it is dangerous and you are not capable of doing it on your own most of the time, you have a problem. It does not matter how nice they are. It does not matter if they are funny. What matters is if they actually believe that women are designed to birth babies. They must believe that birth is inherently safe- with occasional emergencies. They must view themselves as lifeguards in this beautiful dance rather than a savior in a white coat with a shining scalpel. They must believe in birth and believe in you and your body. Too bad chiropractors don't catch babies....
But there are all these great gals called home-birth midwives.
Comments