Osteopathy during pregnancy explained | LSO

Osteopathy during pregnancy explained

Osteopaths treat people at all stages of life, addressing a wide range of conditions from childhood through to later adulthood, including during pregnancy. If you or your partner is expecting a baby, you may be wondering how osteopathy could help you during this special time.

While pregnancy is an exciting and transformative time, it also brings significant physical changes that can lead to discomfort and a variety of health concerns. Osteopathic treatment during pregnancy can help manage these issues by easing strain, improving mobility and supporting the body’s natural adaptations. This approach not only offers relief but may also help reduce the likelihood of symptoms progressing, promoting wellbeing throughout the pregnancy.

Here’s a closer look at osteopathy during pregnancy and how it can support you in alleviating various symptoms that often arise.

Is osteopathy safe during pregnancy?

Osteopathy for pregnancy is safe, providing that it’s carried out by a suitably trained osteopath. Not only is it safe, but the facts on osteopathic treatment shows that it’s beneficial to both the mother and the baby, providing a crucial part of healthcare during a pregnancy. Because pregnancy brings physiological and anatomical changes, such as shifting hormones, altered posture, increasing weight and load on joints and muscles, your body has to adapt.

Osteopathy offers gentle, patient-centred holistic treatment that respects these changes and supports you.

All our osteopathic treatments are completely drug free, providing a natural and holistic option for supporting comfort during pregnancy. This hands-on approach focuses on easing tension, improving mobility and encouraging relaxation, offering gentle support for both mother and baby without the need for medication.

It’s important to choose an osteopath who has experience with pregnant clients and understands the specific needs of this time.  Osteopathy during pregnancy is a specialist area that benefits from refined skills and tailored techniques. Always inform your practitioner that you are pregnant (and how far along you are), so they can adapt your treatment appropriately and ensure the highest level of care.

If you have special medical conditions, complications, or are under obstetric care for particular issues, check with your midwife or obstetrician that osteopathic treatment is suitable for you and discuss how it fits with your overall care plan.

What does osteopathy treat during pregnancy?

During pregnancy, your body can present with a high number of common complaints. Alongside the usual treatments offered in a standard osteopathy appointment, osteopathy can also help manage concerns that are more specific to pregnancy, including:

• Headaches: Treatment may ease tension in the neck, shoulders and upper back, which can contribute to headaches that arise from postural changes.
• Nausea: Gentle osteopathic techniques can encourage relaxation and ease physical tension, which may indirectly support those experiencing pregnancy-related nausea. While it is not a treatment for nausea itself, creating better overall comfort and reducing stress can contribute to managing symptoms more effectively.
• Heartburn: By improving the mobility of the diaphragm and surrounding structures, osteopathy may help ease the pressure on your stomach and lessen reflux symptoms.
• Shortness of breath or changes in breathing patterns: Releasing tension around the ribs and diaphragm can support more comfortable breathing as your body adapts.
• Sciatica or nerve pain: Improving pelvic alignment and reducing mechanical strain around the lower back and hips may help ease sciatic-type symptoms that develop due to postural changes during pregnancy.
• Muscle tension: Techniques that improve mobility and balance can help reduce tightness in the back, neck, hips and shoulders as your posture shifts throughout pregnancy.

   

By addressing how your body’s structure and function are adapting to pregnancy, an osteopath can help you feel more comfortable in all these areas, making it easier to enjoy this special time.

The benefits of osteopathy during pregnancy

As well as helping to ease common areas of discomfort, osteopathy during pregnancy can offer wider support for your overall wellbeing as your body adapts to the demands of each trimester and prepares for birth.

Even if you’re not dealing with any of the above, here are some of the key benefits you may notice from osteopathic treatment during pregnancy:

Easier delivery

By helping minimise stress and discomfort during pregnancy, osteopathy may contribute to a smoother delivery experience. Enhancing flexibility of the abdomen and pelvis, and improving how your body is aligned and functioning, can ease the delivery process and make it more comfortable for you.

Improved alignment

As your baby grows, your centre of gravity shifts, your pelvis adapts and your ligaments naturally loosen in preparation for delivery. These changes can influence posture and comfort, and in some cases affect the baby’s position. Gentle osteopathic techniques may help to support pelvic alignment and offer guidance on posture and movement, helping you feel more balanced throughout pregnancy.

Relived muscle tension

Pregnancy places extra load on joints and soft tissues that aren’t used to heavy loads. Osteopathic joint mobilisation and soft-tissue techniques can improve range of motion, release muscle tension and provide deep relaxation. The result is that you may move more freely, experience less discomfort and feel more at ease.

When to see an osteopath during pregnancy?

Osteopathic care can be helpful at several stages of pregnancy, particularly before and after the birth of your baby.

Pre-natal osteopathy

Pre-natal osteopathy refers to osteopathic care provided during the pregnancy itself. In this phase the osteopath works with you while you’re pregnant,  adapting their techniques for your changing body, supporting posture, alignment, joint and muscle health, and overall comfort. They may also advise on positions for rest, movement, and preparing for birth (e.g., pelvic mobility, hip/torso alignment) as part of your antenatal care.

Post-natal osteopathy

Osteopathic care can also be valuable after your baby is born. Your body continues to adjust following delivery, from hormonal changes to the physical demands of feeding, carrying, lifting and caring for your newborn.

Post-natal osteopathy aims to support recovery by restoring balance, easing strain on joints and soft tissues and helping you return to comfortable, confident movement. Whether you are experiencing back or hip discomfort, or simply feel less mobile than before, treatment can offer meaningful support during the post-natal period.

How do you become an osteopath for pregnancy?

Specialist osteopathic care for pregnancy is developed after completing undergraduate osteopathy training and registering with the General Osteopathic Council (GOsC). Many practitioners choose to undertake additional postgraduate training or certification in areas such as women’s health, antenatal and post-natal care and manual techniques tailored to the needs of pregnant clients.

This further training helps ensure that osteopaths working with pregnant people can deliver safe, high-quality and appropriately adapted care. If you are seeking treatment during pregnancy, you are welcome to ask your osteopath about their experience and any specialist qualifications they hold to help you feel confident in your choice.

If you’re interested in becoming an osteopath to help support pregnant people, the London School of Osteopathy offers both part-time or full-time study options. As you progress through your training, you will gain the clinical skills and experience required to pursue this type of osteopathy career.

Become an osteopath today

If providing this area of care appeals to you, your journey begins with a strong foundation in osteopathy. At the London School of Osteopathy, you will learn in a supportive, hands-on environment and develop the core clinical skills required for registration with the General Osteopathic Council. Once qualified, you can choose to expand your expertise with further training in antenatal and post-natal care as a professional specialism.

Explore what our school offers and discover the education and training available when you study at LSO. Take the first step toward your osteopathy career today.