“It’s like getting your garden ready”
That’s how our client Kristine endearingly spoke about her and her husband’s journey to pregnancy. Before they attempted to get pregnant Kristine worked towards getting her body ready and in sync- which included acupuncture, and a cocktail of herbal medicine, as well as a proper diet and exercise. Full body wellness was the goal Kristine set forth.
Luckily for Kristine and her husband she got pregnant on their first try. “I felt like I was ready and my body was ready.” She attributed the acupuncture and herbal medicine to her preparedness.
Her pre-pregnancy routine included acupuncture sessions twice a week for the 2 months leading up to trying and a liquid herbal medicine concoction provided by Dr. Ko which she took once a day every day. It was important for Kristine to, “Make sure my body was in a good place so I could focus more on the baby.”
Once she was pregnant she backed off the acupuncture but kept up with the herbal remedies, “I didn’t have morning sickness, and my weight gain was normal,” she described, and had an overall good pregnancy.
Go Time
Kristine was scheduled for an October 24th induction. She returned to acupuncture 5 days prior with a strategy to speed up the induction process. Many women receive help from acupuncture to encourage the baby along before they have to resort to more invasive methods, like stripping the membranes or synthetic hormones. Acupuncture right before or after the due date is also used to help turn the baby into the optimal birth position.
Kristine received an acupuncture treatment each day for 5 days leading up to her induction date. When asked if she felt comfortable with being pregnant and getting acupuncture, Kristine responded, “I was very comfortable. I had joined a couple Facebook groups that discussed this topic. I was reassured that both me and my baby were safe.”
The baby did not come before the induction date so she checked into the hospital. She was given the Pitocin (a synthetic version of oxytocin, the hormone that your body naturally produces to induce contractions) in the early evening and was told it’s usually a 24 hour process. Well that wasn’t the case for Kristine. In only 2 hours her cervix dilated. She was told she would still have to wait but in another quick time period her cervix made it to 10 centimeters.
“The hospital staff told me they never see it happen so fast,” Kristine exclaimed, “I feel like the acupuncture in the days before made everything move quicker.” She only had to push for 5 minutes during an incredibly fast birth
Kristine and her husband welcomed their daughter, and first born, to the world just past midnight on the 25th. Congratulations to the happy family!
