Any mom will tell you that the most beautiful and most difficult time of a woman’s life is immediately after the birth of a child. At Acupuncture Fertility Specialists, we are experts at relieving the difficult so the new mom can enjoy the beautiful.
We believe that every new Mom is different and presents to us with unique needs. At Acupuncture Fertility Specialists, we tailor each woman’s therapy to her individual needs. We also believe that there is a deep spiritual connection that occurs between the new parents and the baby that is established during this very special time.
Acupuncture, traditional Chinese herbal medicine and dietary therapy are part of a multifaceted approach to recovery during the postpartum period of a woman’s life. This is the ancient Chinese practice of Zuo Yue Zi, or postpartum recovery, also known as “sitting the moon”. Traditionally this implies one month of recovery wherein the new mom and baby stay home, rest, recover and bond.
Acupuncture helps to restore the energy balance of the body, and accelerates healing. Breastfeeding is very important, as it helps to establish the newborn babies immune system for a lifetime. If there is a problem with lactation, it should be corrected early, as changing hormones will make fixing it more difficult as time goes by. Acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine stimulate lactation, and have been used successfully for centuries as a treatment for insufficient lactation. Herbal medicines and dietary therapy help to rebuild the blood and fluids of the body and regulate hormone production.
We prescribe traditional Asian herbal formulas according to the needs of each individual Mom. Our herbal formulas are all organic, freeze dried traditional formulas, very high in quality and potency. We also make traditional dietary recommendations, and provide recipes that have been used by women for centuries to reestablish hormone balance, increase lactation, and improve postpartum recovery in general. We recommend that the new Mom partake in recovery type recipes at least three times per week for the first eight weeks postpartum. Abdominal girdling can help the abdomen to return to its pre-pregnancy state, or better, and can treat diastasis recti, a common and problematic separation of the abdominal muscles that can happen during late pregnancy, especially in women who have twins or have had more than one child.
As part of our postpartum program, we also recommend, but of course do not require, encapsulation and consumption of the placenta, which improves lactation and virtually eliminates postpartum depression. While it may seem foreign or weird to some people, consumption of the placenta is a practice indigenous to cultures all over the world. Acupuncture, traditional Chinese herbal medicine, and Asian dietary therapy can be used in the postpartum period to treat the following:
- Fatigue and lack of energy
- Insufficient lactation Poor nutrition
- Hormonal imbalances Physical injury from childbirth
- Diastasis recti (injury to abdominal muscles from pregnancy)
- Postpartum depression
Our postpartum recovery program may be used as a continuity of care from our infertility and prenatal programs, or we also welcome new Moms who have just delivered and want to utilize acupuncture, herbal medicines, and dietary therapy as part of their recovery. We generally recommend an acupuncture weekly for eight weeks postpartum.