Prepare to challenge your preconceptions about pregnancy and childbirth as we tap into the expertise of our featured guest, Dr. Betel Aklilu, a chiropractor who passionately champions for chiropractic care during pregnancy. She spotlights how chiropractic adjustments can realign the pelvis and sacrum, creating a more conducive environment for the baby to descend during the birth process. Join us as we unveil the transformative potential of chiropractic care, debunking common myths, and serving as a valuable educational tool for expecting individuals.
We delve into the how chiropractic care leads to better outcomes in labor and delivery. We also explore the rising trend of midwives and OB/GYNs endorsing chiropractic care for malpositioned babies and stress the importance of embracing all forms of assistance during this pivotal journey. Sharing heartfelt testimonials and experiences, we aim to influence a paradigm shift, highlighting the positive impacts of chiropractic care during pregnancy.
As we wrap up this informative episode, we underscore the importance of thorough preparation and awareness around the entire birthing process. A standout story is shared of a mother diagnosed with preeclampsia who experienced a successful natural birth at the hospital, thanks to a thorough education and a supportive team including a doula and a chiropractor. We share the importance of advocating for more awareness and available options for pregnant women. Dr. Aklilu's staunch belief in the advantages of staying active during pregnancy and the role of chiropractic care in facilitating this, shines through. We aim to spark a productive dialogue among providers, with the goal of allaying fear-based decisions, focusing solely on the ultimate prize: a healthy mom and a healthy baby.
Medical Disclaimer: This podcast is intended as a safe space for women to share their birth experiences. It is not intended to provide medical advice. Each woman’s medical course of action is individual and may not appropriately transfer to another similar situation. Please speak to your medical provider before making any medical decisions. Additionally, it is important to keep in mind that evidence based practice evolves as our knowledge of science improves. To the best of my ability I will attempt to present the most current ACOG and AWHONN recommendations at the time the podcast is recorded, but that may not necessarily reflect the best practices at the time the podcast is heard. Additionally, guests sharing their stories have the right to autonomy in their medical decisions, and may share their choice to go against current practice recommendations. I intend to hold space for people to share their decisions. I will attempt to share the current recommendations so that my audience is informed, but it is up to each individual to choose what is best for them.
Prepare to challenge your preconceptions about pregnancy and childbirth as we tap into the expertise of our featured guest, Dr. Betel Aklilu, a chiropractor who passionately champions for chiropractic care during pregnancy. She spotlights how chiropractic adjustments can realign the pelvis and sacrum, creating a more conducive environment for the baby to descend during the birth process. Join us as we unveil the transformative potential of chiropractic care, debunking common myths, and serving as a valuable educational tool for expecting individuals.
We delve into the how chiropractic care leads to better outcomes in labor and delivery. We also explore the rising trend of midwives and OB/GYNs endorsing chiropractic care for malpositioned babies and stress the importance of embracing all forms of assistance during this pivotal journey. Sharing heartfelt testimonials and experiences, we aim to influence a paradigm shift, highlighting the positive impacts of chiropractic care during pregnancy.
As we wrap up this informative episode, we underscore the importance of thorough preparation and awareness around the entire birthing process. A standout story is shared of a mother diagnosed with preeclampsia who experienced a successful natural birth at the hospital, thanks to a thorough education and a supportive team including a doula and a chiropractor. We share the importance of advocating for more awareness and available options for pregnant women. Dr. Aklilu's staunch belief in the advantages of staying active during pregnancy and the role of chiropractic care in facilitating this, shines through. We aim to spark a productive dialogue among providers, with the goal of allaying fear-based decisions, focusing solely on the ultimate prize: a healthy mom and a healthy baby.
Medical Disclaimer: This podcast is intended as a safe space for women to share their birth experiences. It is not intended to provide medical advice. Each woman’s medical course of action is individual and may not appropriately transfer to another similar situation. Please speak to your medical provider before making any medical decisions. Additionally, it is important to keep in mind that evidence based practice evolves as our knowledge of science improves. To the best of my ability I will attempt to present the most current ACOG and AWHONN recommendations at the time the podcast is recorded, but that may not necessarily reflect the best practices at the time the podcast is heard. Additionally, guests sharing their stories have the right to autonomy in their medical decisions, and may share their choice to go against current practice recommendations. I intend to hold space for people to share their decisions. I will attempt to share the current recommendations so that my audience is informed, but it is up to each individual to choose what is best for them.
Speaker 1:
Hello, today I have with me Dr Batel Aklelu. Dr Aklelu is a doctor of chiropractic medicine and the owner of Kali chiropractic. She is certified in Webster Technique, which is beneficial for pregnancy, and she is certified to care for babies and children as well. Today she's here to talk about chiropractic care in pregnancy. Dr Aklelu, welcome and thank you for joining me.
Speaker 2:
Thank you, kelly, for having me. I'm excited to be here. This is one of my favorite topics.
Speaker 1:
I really think every pregnant person should be seeing a chiropractor period. I honestly don't know how people get through pregnancy without chiropractors.
Speaker 2:
I don't see why they should.
Speaker 1:
Right, no, it is basically suffering if you're not going to the chiropractor.
Speaker 2:
Right. I mean, what a time for self-care, what a time for being good alignment and best alignment right, Mind, body, soul, all of it. So it's a beautiful time in the office. I think your body is changing every single day. It's amazing. It takes a lot of toll on the body and I have the pleasure of helping, expecting where I was really navigating that time.
Speaker 1:
Yeah. So what are the benefits?
Speaker 2:
if you're just going to summarize the main benefits of chiropractic character and pregnancy, I make it really simple because I want both birthing parent and partner to really understand there's space that the baby needs to get out of and we need to make sure that that space is as round and as comfortable and as aligned as possible. You don't want it twisted, you don't want it shifted upside down or whatever have you. You want it to be as comfortable as possible. One so that baby's comfortable in the belly as baby's growing, and two, so that birth is as comfortable as possible. Right, because why try to fit something circular into something that's not fully circular, right, right. And so when I say that, everyone in the room kind of goes, oh, I'm like, yeah, just making sure it stays a circle, I mean.
Speaker 1:
I don't think, honestly, I don't think everybody knows that babies actually go through the pelvis. What I explain this to a lot of people you know like I don't think that they've connected the dots, that the baby actually that hole in the pelvis, that's where the baby goes through.
Speaker 2:
So I maybe thank you for that, because I we have to change what I'm saying and doing. I typically have a model with me yeah, like here, and I go see here, this is what's happening and this misalignment is happening, and I show them the different ways that it could be misaligned. And if these things are happening, it's going to take longer, it's going to be uncomfortable, it's not going to be fun for either party. And that's my job to make sure that this is as well aligned as possible. And because it's the foundation of the spine, well then it helps with the back, the neck, the shoulder, all of that good stuff, right? So we align the pelvis for birth.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, absolutely. Well the thing. Yeah, I have a model of the pelvis as well because I just think it's so important and, like what you're talking about, it can twist, it can turn, it can, it articulates with everything, and the sacrum as well. I didn't know, in nursing school or medical school they don't make a big point to talk about how the sacrum is mobile.
Speaker 2:
Wait, okay, these are the moments where I just I get taken aback. But the sacrum has to move right. And I tell everyone the sacrum nods its head, it goes up and down and so it's that nodding of the head that allows the baby to descend. Yeah, we need that sacrum to move, we need that sacrum to be stuck, and so I empower as many people as I can that, hey, if this happens, if you feel this, if you see this, even during labor, all of that, there are things that you can do. There are ways that you can to help things move along right the exercises like the spin babies exercises and different other techniques that I show them in the office, that I say, hey, this is how you keep moving, and if we had more pregnant people as moving right during that time, we'd have better results. We would.
Speaker 1:
At the very least, even if the baby and the pelvis are not the right size to fit together, we would have more educated people, at the very least.
Speaker 1:
But there are things that can you can do, and there's things on my end, as well as a nurse helping someone burst their baby that I can do to help optimize the space in the pelvis, and hopefully, when they get to me they've already been to you. It will make my job easier, and then I will only have to make sure that everybody's still in alignment and watch where the baby's head is in the pelvis, in what area of the pelvis, to be able to figure out if I have to move the sacrum this way or that way. Correct. So what do you do before they get to me to make sure that the pelvis is as mobile as possible so that baby can get into that comfortable head down position that they need to be, without being the, you know, twisted the wrong way or facing up or all those things that cause difficulty they want, we want their chin tucked. We want their arms not at their, not above their head.
Speaker 2:
I start with one educating the person on what chiropractic is, because for a lot of, for a lot of people it's the first time they're seeing a chiropractor, because either their doula or their midwife has recommended it, or a pregnant person that they know, or you know someone who's been pregnant, has said, hey, you need to see a chiropractor, and that's typically how they get to me. I find it to be a little sad because it's not. It's not usually from a recommendation from their GYN or OBGYN or their fertility specialist in some cases. So we start with educating this is what chiropractic is, this is what I'm going to do and it's not going to harm your baby at all. So that's the first point, because a lot of moms come even on the first visit and they're thinking should I be doing this? So once we get over that table and we're just having fun, we get adjusted.
Speaker 1:
My table has a piece of it that I don't know, my favorite thing in the world moves down, so the belly can my moves up and I have a nice pillow.
Speaker 2:
Oh nice, put your baby inside of the pillow belly inside of the pillow, and it's very comfortable. And then another pillow for your head. This time you can lay on your belly, yes, and it's wonderful. So we start from the bottom up and I look, and the first thing I look for is where is the sacrum in space, where are those SI joints and what's going on there?
Speaker 2:
And I either have my clients lifting their legs or I bend their knees and I push to see okay, is there tension here? That shouldn't be there. And immediately the person on the table was able to say Dr A, this, that side doesn't feel like that side. Or when you push here, that doesn't feel like this, they don't feel the same. And based off of that, I say, okay, let me do this, and I will either take my activator or I'll use my hands and I'll make an adjustment and I'll say, okay, well, let's do it again. And then we check it and we go okay, is that better, same, better or worse? Right, and then we have that conversation. We do that throughout.
Speaker 2:
So we go from aligning the pelvis to going through the lower back, mid back, where you carry a lot of tension because as your belly grows, lowering so much of that in the middle of your back where you're trying to keep yourself upright, center of gravity is changing and then we go all the way up. A lot of people have tension in their shoulders and in the first two, three, four ribs and that actually makes the tension that's used to help belly grow lift up Because we want our people to descend. So if I have something that's holding my shoulders up, that's pulling my baby up, right, and if we're pulling our babies up, then baby isn't engaging with the pelvic floor on time. Now we have another question.
Speaker 2:
I call it the t-shirt effect in my office because I take their t-shirt and go. You see, you pull your t-shirt up on the right like it pulls on the left side of your hip. Yeah, that makes sense. So we go all the way up and these adjustments are really going in an order where, okay, this is what's supposed to be happening. We should be here, our body should be experiencing this. I'm saying making sure things make sense, so just making sure things move.
Speaker 1:
Let me just tell you you had me at laying face down during pregnancy. If that isn't the best argument for going to a chiropractor that feels so good.
Speaker 2:
When your chiropractic care for a pregnant person involves a lot of soft tissue work.
Speaker 1:
Mm-hmm.
Speaker 2:
So it's not, as it's not the quick in and out five minute session, right, or it shouldn't be. There's a lot of massaging and soft tissue work that I do because we have to get into the glutes right, get into those muscles that are still trying to hold you up right, and you can't test in your glutes, you can't work out as much as you used to. Yeah, then we're stronger and now weaker. You have to consider all of these different things, so it takes more time, but we do that in order to honor the body and all of the different changes that are coming about. In addition to the chiropractic adjustments, there's a lot of exercising and soft tissue work and lifestyle changes that we talk about. So those are the ways that we can keep people empowered at home. Well, no more chair for you. Now you get a ball.
Speaker 1:
Yes, that ball and the right size ball Exactly.
Speaker 2:
So I show them a video on ball sizing and show you're sitting on the ball properly and how to get on the ball, how to get off the ball all of those different things, because we want to ensure that they're safe during this time as well. So lots of different exercises that go into it. But I think that society has told us that you should be uncomfortable, you should be in pain and maybe not like being pregnant and that at the end of it all it's going to hurt. And a lot of my job is mindset shifting, because we can't go into pregnancy or continue throughout our pregnancy and come into labor and delivery with that mindset. Yeah, so we have space for that, we have time for that. We talk about what are your fears? What are you talking to Do? We need to have other providers here to make sure that you're ready.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, absolutely. I love that you talk about sizing the ball. That is great, because if they have already sized their ball because it's not going to change, it's based on height Then you can bring your ball to the hospital and not worry about using a community ball. That's probably not the right size and if you're worried about packing space, that's what your husband's for. Deflate the ball, put it in your suitcase, bring something to pump it up with, or your partner. But the goal is to not have your pelvis be stagnant. You want your pelvis to be dynamic while you're in labor and just always.
Speaker 2:
Absolutely, and it's about so many of us sit for a living and that pressure that we put on our pelvis. It's a lot of pressure and you also have pressure from baby, so it's a comfortable thing to do, right, but we also have to sit for our jobs. So this is where we talk about ergonomics so much, and the balls. I encourage people to take the balls to work. Take the ball wherever you're going. You know you're expecting and your body is changing and this is something that the world should be aware of and accommodating to.
Speaker 2:
But the pressure that you put onto your pelvis matters. So if you're sitting for eight, nine hours of the day on a hard care and then you're coming in to get adjustments, it's simply not going to be enough. We don't want to undo what we're doing, so I have to give you the tools and remind you what we should be doing when we're at home, at work, to keep that pelvis mobile and in keeping it mobile too. You know a lot of people use the belly bands right, and from my experience, there's a time and place for the belly bands. A lot of people that come to me are not wearing them correctly and they didn't follow the instructions and they don't even have them on right, so we fix that, and then we talk about when to put the band on and not to put it on while you're sitting down, because we still need room for baby to grow, we still need space for those ligaments to stretch. So there are all those different things that are important as well.
Speaker 1:
I used tape because I hate the belly band I love tape.
Speaker 2:
Everybody loves tape, but I love tape and I've seen it be so helpful. Front and back, I prefer the back, but you know and that's just I like there's so much wrong ligament tension and tightness that a lot of times people don't even realize like that's what that is. But it's tension on those ligaments and the muscles. So I I talked to them about well, if you're sitting down it's going to be tight and if you're wearing a belt that's super tight.
Speaker 1:
There it's going to be uncomfortable. Your baby's going to be upset.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, and the tape is a great alternative.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, because I mean the band just slides up and it's never in the right position and it's uncomfortable and it's too tight. I noticed lately that there are options and maybe this has been around for a while, but as far as the ball it's got like there's like a stabilizer thing, like where you can get something that makes it not roll. Have you seen that I'll go around on the floor, on the floor.
Speaker 2:
Yes, I have seen that. I think that's helpful if you're at home and you're working and you're not in the most comfortable, like your desk is up and you're not in the most comfortable position, you're just kind of working and you're not thinking about it. I tell people you could do the same thing with, like, a sheet. You can roll a sheet and use that to keep the ball from moving around, certainly if my mom is concerned about falling. But otherwise we want that ball to roll, we want that ball to move, and it's not just bouncing on the ball, it's moving Right. So act, practice the infinity sign. So I go, let's not just go in circles, let's do the infinity sign. I go hip up, hip down, back to the center, hip up and down on the opposite side, back to the center. And that infinity, that figure eight, is extremely beneficial.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, when they're in labor, I hand somebody the ball, the first instinct is for them to start bouncing. And I'm like, first of all, I can't monitor your baby if you're bouncing and second of all, that's not doing anything except for making your baby mad. So let's not do that, it's just fun.
Speaker 2:
I guess Maybe we bounce on balls when we're kids, right?
Speaker 1:
Yeah, and it's about rocking the pelvis and moving the pelvis, not necessarily bouncing the pelvis. That doesn't help. I mean, we joke, you know, if someone's not going into labor, sometimes I'll joke. You know, go jump on a trampoline, please don't do that. That's a joke, not recommended at all. But I don't know.
Speaker 2:
Maybe that's where that comes from, Maybe you're just trying to get the baby out at that point Exactly.
Speaker 1:
So I know a lot of the midwives. If we notice that the baby's malpositioned or briefed and we want to address this before we get to full term, a lot of times they'll say you know, before we do anything like the external cephalic version, we would want the patient to go see the chiropractor first, because keeping all those joints and everything mobile can actually help the baby turn on its own.
Speaker 2:
Just to make sure I'm understanding correctly is that a recommendation that the midwives make what doctors are making?
Speaker 1:
Mostly the midwives. I've occasionally heard doctors, but it's rare.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, you know it's interesting. I was talking to some midwives I've talked to some doulas too when I asked, well, when do you refer to a chiropractor? They said that when a baby is breached, right, which is really interesting. Right Because it's going back to that thought process of when something's wrong, well now a chiropractor can fix it right when really not all the time right Because babies do what babies do. But having the pelvis in the best position and the most optimal position can prevent some of this from happening.
Speaker 2:
Now, when we have breached positions, yes, we get an amni-adjust, and oftentimes not 100% of the time, oftentimes this is the first. Two adjustments alone. We'll get baby to move. I have a case right now where baby was in the best position and I don't know what baby decided to do. But baby moved positions and because of the specific position she was sitting straight up.
Speaker 2:
I said you know what? Let's get this to move a little quicker for us, just because of where we are in pregnancy. And I said let's see an acupuncturist. So I had her see an acupuncturist and that moved baby just enough. That followed by a few adjustments. Afterwards we're in a much better position. So it's kind of a give and take, just listening to the body and understanding what needs to be done, but spending baby's courses and classes, the chiropractic adjustments, infusions for the most part right for those who can tolerate them and just continuing to keep that pelvis as well adjusted as possible and moms as comfortable and as relaxed as possible. It's kind of one of those things where, uh-oh, my baby's not in good position. Now all these things are being said, I'm getting stressed, my muscles are tense and I have to do as much work as possible to keep that from being the case.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, so I've noticed I feel like the midwives are tending to tell their patients to go to the chiropractor sooner, not necessarily because they have a baby that's breech but I do know that they are very much pushing it if the baby is malposition. I did work with an OB who is recently not retired. But a lot of times at the end of their career, when they're starting to want to not be up all night, multiple nights a week, they start doing different things, so they move into gynecology only so that they're just doing office stuff, and so that's what he's doing now. But I remember one of the last shifts I had with him. We were talking about somebody that was having the ECV, the external cephalic version, and he was like, wow, why didn't they just try some moxibustion? Go to the acupuncturist. It's like whoa. He's like I don't know why, but it works. There you go. So I mean it's not like it's unheard of, but I just I don't know. I don't know why we can't all just work together and try to use the least invasive approach.
Speaker 2:
And honestly, we are helping. Why not get all the help you can get? Because ultimately I'm not in the room for the labor recovery portion. So up until then, if I can do all these different things to help make your jobs easier, then why not? Right Over the years, I've definitely seen a transition, with OBGYNs being much more open to recommending and saying hey, yeah, maybe you should see a chiropractor. Oftentimes it's because the patient has asked hey, I was thinking about seeing a chiropractor, what do you think? And I want providers to realize what you say matters. And so saying I don't know is perfectly fine. If you don't know and you're not sure, that's okay. It's okay to say that we don't want to play on fears or go down that road. But if you have concerns, voice or my thoughts are this this is what would concern me. Make sure to ask these questions. Now, that's completely appropriate as a provider, because I don't limit my clients on whoever they see. Are you safe? Ask questions, how did you feel afterwards? That kind of a thing. But we have to be open to I know I have to be open to everything that's out there. Yeah, you know everything that's out there. That's gonna help.
Speaker 2:
The experience and after hearing stories after stories, after stories, it has made me such a Stronger advocate for what I do before what one of my clients told me. This is a dad. He said you say everything with a smile. So what? Are you being serious? But it was, it was true. Because of my demeanor and because I work with mom and because I work with babies, I'm smiling all the time, I'm happy and I'm putting out positive energy and I'm talking about okay, well, how can we change this? Right? But it's true. When we're discussing some of the statistics that are out here, some of the rates of cesarean, the Traumatic birth experiences yeah, that's what our experiencing there has to be a time and place where we go. Actually, I'm not just suggesting chiropractic care anymore, I'm now demanding that doctors say, okay, I don't know, maybe you should look into it. Yeah, I should look into it. Right, and now I get to say that without a smile, and so that's been fun.
Speaker 2:
This, this journey in perinatal care, has been very. I've evolved through it Really, because at first you know, you just kind of start with I want to help everyone. I want to get these moms on the table because I know I'm gonna help them have beautiful labor and it's just gonna be so much better right. Then I had a few experiences where moms came back and said, oh, no, like this, and this happened and and it. It wasn't because they weren't well adjusted or anything like that, so not not that at all. But there were other things that were happening, other pressures that that came into play that I I said, hey, you know, maybe you should talk to you, do about that, maybe maybe you should, you know, reconsider.
Speaker 2:
And I didn't necessarily take such a strong stance right, and over the years I've decided actually, no, I need you to ask for research when this is being said to you, I need you to use your voice and I need you to ask for help. I need you to ask for a second opinion and really pushing for that, because when they come back and they tell you these stories, no for you, kelly, like you experience this, it is traumatic. Yeah, I need therapy, right, girl, me too. What happened? So I'm such an advocate for everyone taking spending babies, courses, everyone just being well informed about what's going on, partners included, asking questions and and really determining like are you, is this, is this because it's common? Why are you saying that big example, your baby's gonna be really big, or your baby's really really, really small, everything's measuring, okay, but and then you know, so it's turned into that too. It's been medicalized. It's very much. Birth has absolutely been medicalized, and but it's a natural process, reflexive process, right?
Speaker 1:
Yeah, it's. It's good to have information, but take it with a grain of salt, because I've never had an ultrasound be 100% correct. In fact, most of the time we're surprised. It's generally we're watching trends and and it should be a discussion between you and your doctor if you don't feel comfortable attempting the birth, if you would prefer a 100% guarantee that this baby is gonna fit through your pelvis, otherwise you want a C-section, then get a C-section, because we can't give you 100% guarantee, but we also can't give you 100% guarantee that it's not gonna fit through your pelvis.
Speaker 1:
And so then that's when we're gonna talk about the risks and benefits and what we're gonna do if the baby doesn't fit in the pelvis. And if that doesn't sound good to you, then you need to make an informed decision. But we also don't know that your baby is gonna be that big. Let's talk about what's gonna happen leading up. Where are we gonna hit the stop button? At what point are you willing to attempt this? And then, at what point do you want to tap out? And that's how the conversation should go. It shouldn't just be you have a big baby per this ultrasound, let's not even try do parents come to you?
Speaker 2:
Mm-hmm birth plans.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, okay, but most of the time they're downloaded from the internet and just boxes being checked off without any kind of education done. Yeah great.
Speaker 2:
And you see there, they're just not having, and that's why I. So I push for doulas, mm-hmm, much possible and say, hey, have somebody in your corner that you can bounce ideas, love, understand, talk to get all the education, this and hold your hand in all of it, all of the all of the things. And we Need more providers like you.
Speaker 1:
I definitely love doulas. I love when we have a great doula relationship and they're doing everything to help the patient be comfortable. And I'm Bouncing ideas off the doula and vice versa, and we're talking about this is where the baby feels like it is in the pelvis. What do you want to do? What do you think, what haven't we tried? What ideas do you have that I haven't done? And let's move her this way, let's try this, let's work on this, and then I can say, well, based on what the baby is showing us on the monitor, this side may not be working very well, although optimally, I would love for the pregnant person to be on that side and stressing the baby out right. So that's the kind of relationship that I want to have with provider, with nurse, with doula.
Speaker 1:
Right, doesn't always work out that way because some I mean everybody's got their opinions right. So the doctors that have their opinions on natural birth and all that stuff that are like, no, that's stupid, versus the doulas that are like, well, hospital birth, birth is stupid. So we have to have a nice. We have to have a nice alignment, with everybody trying to do its best for the mom, not necessarily standing in their corner, but, yes, a doula is great, but I'm really leaning towards trying to educate people on my wheelhouse, which is hospital births right, if that's what you want and you want to do it with all the options and understand all the options, I'm trying to put it out there so that we can have that education and not just the podcast.
Speaker 1:
I think that's a roundabout way through storytelling that we can, you know, listen to some of the options, but I'm trying to get content out there that you know, maybe even a course, so that we know what we're doing, so that we can talk about birthing in a hospital, because there's a lot of like general how to birth a baby, wherever you are. But let's talk about how to try to still have a natural delivery. If you have preeclampsia, if it's deemed Safe to do so, if you're not seizing in Eclampsia, if you're not throwing pressures that are gonna make you have a stroke, if you are Managed, we can start talking about how we can have this, this delivery, as natural as possible and when to have those stopping points, and so I think that there is a place where allopathic medicine and chiropractics or doulas, and all of the holistic things can come together. We just have to keep an open mind, we have to work together, Right.
Speaker 2:
It's all based off of understanding that we all have the same goal, Right. And so if that's the case and we keep that in mind a happy baby, a healthy baby, a healthy, happy mommy then I think we can get there. I think we just got to play. Nice, we do. Yeah, I just had a mom who was diagnosed with preclampsia admitted into the hospital and she was so well informed and so well prepared for birth and for everything that came her way. She understood it, she took it in and she said, okay, so, based off of that, here are my choices. And she was able to make decisions the entire time and she was texting me saying, okay, this is how far along I am now on this. So for me, that's just a joy on this end going okay.
Speaker 2:
I'm like go ahead, go ahead. I know you're well aligned. And she was able to have a beautiful natural bird at the hospital and take care of herself and she was in a space where she was safe and is doing well now at home with baby, and I think about that and I go. Okay, in that scenario, she had her doula, she had the hospital that she wanted to be in, she had all of her providers and she, ultimately, afterwards, I asked her you know, what would you do different? And she's like well, not really sure, because I did all the things. I did all of the things and I think that we need more push and more encouragement for expecting people to get prepared, to get adjusted, of course, and to know your providers come up with your birth plan and be prepared for what's to happen. You might just hit lots of different, it can go lots of different ways. Just have to make decisions that are best for you.
Speaker 1:
And a birth plan doesn't mean this is what we're going to do come hell or have water, no, no, no. That means I have educated myself on the options and the reasons behind the interventions and what they're needed for, and in this circumstance, I understand that the safest thing to do might be this option.
Speaker 1:
Exactly Because honestly, no provider wants to just walk in and have a C-section. No provider wants to walk in and have an apesiaotomy. No provider wants to come in and put a vacuum on a baby's head. That's not what we want to do. What we want is for mom that go into labor at home, come in, water breaks naturally in the hospital and baby slides out. That is our hope.
Speaker 1:
It just doesn't happen that way all the time and we want to help you come as close to that as possible. Yes, yes. And if we veer off course, we want to try to get you back on that course and we're going to do every single thing as far as utilizing the tools that we have which is sometimes an intervention to get you back on that course, to make that happen. And if we get far enough awry that we need to have a C-section we hope it's not an emergency C-section. We hope we sit down and we talk about it. But we have a lot of tricks in our tool bag once you get to the hospital to be able to work towards that common goal of having a vaginal delivery and, if that's not an option, having a safe delivery.
Speaker 2:
Right.
Speaker 1:
So it is something where you need to be a part of that conversation and, the same time, the doctor or the midwife or the nurse or the doula needs to be open and communicative and not so stuck in their beliefs that we can't have an open conversation. And the same thing for mom or the birthing person, however you identify. You want to make sure that in your education you don't approach it with defensiveness. And it's hard because there's so much. There's such a history and obstetrics of this culture, of this is what you're going to do. So there's reason to be defensive, but let's try and work together and put down our guard and communicate what it is we actually want, what our actual goals are, remembering what our goal is Exactly and I write it up on the board healthy mom, healthy baby. That's our goal.
Speaker 1:
Remember that looks and you're going to have choices along the way. We're going to recommend different things based on what is going on with you and your baby. So there may be things that slowly are taken off the table just based on safety, but you still get to choose. You still get to look at the situation, evaluate and choose, and the more educated you are about what those options are and what they're for, the better, because they're just tools. We're just asking you which tool you want to use. Here's our toolbox you choose. I just want everybody to go to the chiropractor.
Speaker 2:
I do Because for me, in hearing all of these stories and in all the different ways that I have plans for right, whether it's at home, at a birthing center or at the hospital, my goal is that that I have prepared you as much as possible so that your body is ready to do what it's intended and is able to do, and then you have everybody else that's there with you, that's cheering you on, that's helping that to be possible, and so that's really it. I hope that from conversations like this, there are more providers who are open to recommending chiropractic care and understanding that our goals are aligned.
Speaker 2:
And the more pelvis, the more what's the plural of pelvis, pelvis the more we can adjust and keep those pelvis, pelvis, palvices, people aligned. Then we're getting closer and closer to that goal and the repercussions of that having beautiful, safe birthing experiences how that impacts everything after for that person, for that birthing person, for that child. That's why we're here, that's why we're having this conversation, right, right.
Speaker 1:
And ultimately everybody involved in that birth, because when it's traumatic for mom, it's traumatic for all of us. Oh yes, Absolutely.
Speaker 2:
I think too, when there's more conversation amongst providers, we can kind of alleviate some of the fear-based things that happen and maybe not jump to conclusions early on. I know for me that's been one of my pain points where I go wait, we haven't tried like a breech baby, like we've already scheduled the cesarean. We've done these things With thought of already scheduling that to a mom who, of course, is going to do that, and I would not tell her not to right, but just doing that without having a conversation. Okay, you may have some options, you may have some time. Let's try to do these things. That has already taken steps back, and so my hope is that especially hospital providers understand that people are on your side. We want this to go well, we want the whole thing to go well, so there are other options. You may not have the time to do all the research and find these different things, so that's where this and platforms like yours, kelly, makes a huge impact.
Speaker 2:
You're allowing people to be more aware of who's out there and what's out there. So hopefully there's more and more of that, maybe a whole directory and platforms and go lower, go do this and do that and come back and you know like it just becomes a little bit more smooth, yeah.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, I think it will. I think we're all moving towards that direction. I think we're all slowly trying to take steps towards each other and say are you friends?
Speaker 2:
I genuinely do think so. Conversations like this, like this, is how I know it's happening. We're heading towards that direction and I'm grateful for it.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, me too. Well, I'm so glad that you're able to come on. Is there anything else that we didn't touch on that you wanted to talk about?
Speaker 2:
Stay, moving, stay moving, my goodness, stay moving. And if you're moving, but not moving with ease, that may be the time for you to see a chiropractor. If you're not already, yeah, please do go find one. Yeah, and of course, I'm always willing and able if you're in the Alexandria DNP area.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, absolutely Well, I will have your information in the show notes of how you can. You have lovely videos on Instagram and on your website as well, so I'm going to have that information on where you can be contacted in the show notes, dr Klee-Lew, thank you so much. I really appreciated this conversation and I hope all new moms hear it so that they can go to the chiropractor and you don't have to suffer during pregnancy.