FINDING RELIEF

Expectant moms get rid of back pain

by Terri Dougherty

     As her pregnancy progressed, spending six hours on her feet became more painful each day for hairstylist Michelle Fuss.

    "I would have to take a lot of breaks during the day," she says.  "I would start crying it hurt so bad."

     Dr. Clint Dorn, a Greenville chiropractor, was getting a haircut at Details Design Team in Greenville and noticed her discomfort.  He suggested she try chiropractic treatment.  Fuss wanted to feel better, but was hesitant. 

     "I didn't really know if I should," the New London woman says.  "Being pregnant, you are kind of scared."

SAFE PROCEDURE

     While there are some lower back therapies a chiropractor should not do on a pregnant woman, Dorn, of Chiropractic Health and Rehab, says all chiropractors are trained to work with pregnant clients.  Most have specialized tables or pregnancy pillows that accommodate a pregnant woman's body shape.

     "Muscle work is fine, and adjustments are fine, " he says.  "The two things I'm maily checking for are muscle spasm and muscle strain, and I'll also examine the patient to see if there are any joints out of position."

     Chiropractors know which conditions mean a pregnant woman should not have chiropractic care, notes Dr. Bryan Klusendorf, who has 26 years of experience at Klusendorf Chiropractic in Appleton, and adds that a visit to a chiropractor can be a ideal way for a pregnant woman to deal with back pain, as no medications are involved.

     "We deal with the structural problem in a natural way," he says.  " Many women have had prior injuries that they tolerate, but when you add the weight gain and shifting center of gravity, as you become more pregnant it can make a lot of structural issues apparent."

CHANGING CENTER OF GRAVITY

     Pregnancy strains the lower back and pelvic muscles, notes Dr. Jolene Garvey of Garvey Chiropractic in Green Bay, who is working toward a postgraduate degree in Chiropractic Pediatrics and Pregnancy, and women may try some unusual methods to find relief on their own.

     "I've had women tell me the only way they can be comfortable is to have one leg on the counter while they're doing the dishes," she says.

     A chiropractor can give women the pain relief they're seeking through adjustments and soft tissue work.  Lisa Fisher of Shiocton visted Garvey when she was having lower back and pelvic pain while pregnant with her second daughter.  Garvey adjusted her back and also gave her some exercises to try.

     "The exercises helped a lot," Fisher notes, adding that the adjustments may have also made her daughter's delivery go quickly.

     "She adjusted me three days before I had my baby," Fisher says.  "I don't know if it was because of the chiropractic or not, but the delivery was definitely a lot faster than the first one."

     Whether it speeds delivery or not, a chiropractor's adjustments can take pressure off the nerve.

     "It's kind of like un-kinking a garden hose," Dorn says.  "We straighten it out and the nerve signals return to normal flow, which stops the pain signals."

BLAME IT ON HORMONES

     In addition to a changing center of gravity, a pregnant woman also must deal wtih changing hormone levels.  The same hormones that get a body ready to deliver a baby also may make her more likely to have back pain.

     "It's designed to get the joints to loosen up, particularly in the pelvis," Dorn says.  "Mothre Nature knows what she's doing, but sometimes that makes a woman more susceptible to back pain."

     The pain usually sets in durn the second or third trimester of pregnancy, but a woman can benefit from chiropractic care throughtout her pregnancy.

     "Some women come in every few weeks throughout their pregnancy as a preventitive measure," Dorn notes.

A NOTICEABLE DIFFERENCE

     Almost every woman feels a relief from pain after visiting the chiropractor, he says, and that was the case with Fuss.

     "The first time I tried it I noticed a huge difference," she says.  "Even my husband noticed that I wasn't coming home complaining about my back."

     "It was just wonderful.  It surprised me because I had been kind of skeptical, but the pain was completely gone."

FOLLOW-UP CARE

     Fuss visited Dorn every week for four weeks and then every other week until her son, Dean, was born on March 2.  After going back to work she noticed a few aches, so she went back to Dorn.

     "I had some follow-up appointments, and now I don't notice it at all," she says.

     It's a good idea to visit the chiropractor for a follow-up within six weeks of delivery, Dorn notes.

     "After they have the baby and the hormones levels start to decline, the joints won't be as flexible," Dorn says.  "We want to make sure we realign them in the proper position before the levels go down."

     A woman doesn't have to wait until she is pregnant to enjoy the benefits of a chiropractic adjustment, Garvey adds.

     "A lot of people aren't aware of the benefits from a wellness perspective," Garvey says.  "The brain and nervous system controls everything in your body, and the more balanced you are the better things work."