Prenatal Qi (Chi)

Qi (pronounced CH-EE) is often translated as 'life force', a sort of subtle energy that penetrates and influences each person in myriad ways. Qi permeates the universe, it can be seen in the rising of the sun, the flowering of the bud, and in the buzz of bee's wings. There are different types of qi, but the one that fascinates me, is prenatal qi.

Inherited from our parents, prenatal qi is sort of like the Western concept of the genetics we inherit from our parents, this is what we nourish throughout our life. Similar to genetics, prenatal qi can thrive with a good quality diet, air, water, and without it it can wither, or flare and cause problems. Given a good dose of strong, healthy prenatal qi, babies and children thrive in their childhood and beyond.

Other types of qi, such as lung qi, spleen qi, etc... can be improved upon, but prenatal qi is like a seed that cannot be replaced, it can only be nourished. Mothers however, can improve the quality of their health, thereby improving the prenatal qi that they pass on to their children. Dr Randall Neustaedter, says in his book, The Holistic Baby Guide, " In Chinese terms, a deficiency of Prenatal Qi is one of the primary causes of immune-system weakness and susceptibility to external pathogens. A mother who seeks out the care of a Chinese herbalist before and during her pregnancy is more likely to have a robust and healthy baby." He says that according to Chinese Medicine, a Prenatal Qi deficiency is one of the leading causes of asthma in children.

Gestating, delivering and nursing a child depletes the prenatal qi that the mother has available to pass on to the next child. Practitioners of Chinese Medicine believe that the different qualities and quantities of Prenatal Qi passed from mother to child account for the sometimes vast differences of energy and health between siblings. In order to avoid passing on any deficiencies to her baby, between and during subsequent pregnancies, it would behoove mothers to nourish and replenish these spent stores. Here are some great ways to do that:

• See an acupuncturist. Regularly. This is an excellent way to nourish yourself as a mother. Often they prescribe herbs that also replenish and build qi stores. If the cost of acupuncture is prohibitive, look for local clinics that provide these services in a group setting at a reduced rate. Such as this. If you are local, here's my beloved acupuncturist.
  
• Eat a whole foods diet. Eat real food. Broths, fermented foods, grass fed meats, organic fruits and veggies, and unpasteurized dairy, heal and nourish a body better than most things. Nutrient dense food is also great for mothers who often have no time to eat, or if pregnant, can't eat much at one sitting. Make each bite pack a nutritive punch.
• Eat lots of fish, or bump up your Omega 3's through supplements. This essential nutrient becomes especially depleted through nursing children.
  
• Drink herbs. Nettle, red raspberry leaf, oatstraw, lavender, chamomile. Drinking an herbal cup of tea each day is also a calming, relaxing way to nurture oneself.
  
• Exercise. Get some fresh air, swim, hike, yoga and strength building exercises can all be important in regaining vitality and building health. As a busy woman who doesn't have time for a yoga studio, I love Yogaglo for home practice.
• Take time for yourself. Don't let motherhood deplete you. Let it be your path to nurturing and health, for you and your family.
  

Right Side Up - Breech Babies

The women in the above photo are trying to right a baby. This directionally challenged baby is coming bottom first. The method they are using to try to turn the baby, hard to decipher in this photo, is called moxibustion. Moxa, or mugwort, is heated and, like acupuncture, used over certain pressure points to induce heat to the region, and thereby blood flow. It works incredibly well for turning babies upside down, exactly where they need to be in order to be born.

Four percent of all babies present breech at term, or 37 weeks of gestation and beyond. How do you imagine that those four percent are born? Does the doctor or midwife, pull them out by their feet? What is the danger of a breech birth? Why do we never hear of babies born breech anymore?

A recent study in Tel Aviv has challenged the wisdom of late that breech babies should be born via Cesarean section. In the 'old days' the skills to deliver a baby coming breech, feet or butt first, were taught in medical school. After 2000, this was no longer the case. The Term Breech Study, the largest of its kind on breech births, found that breech babies delivered vaginally had a 1% increase of death in the first six weeks of life. The study also found that for mothers there were more benefits to a vaginal birth. From then on, the only doctors to attempt breeches were the old school doctors who had learned from experience that babies born breech, stubbornly do just as well as their head first counterparts. There were many issues with the 2000 Term Breech Study including research bias, and the fact that it's near impossible to randomize such a study.

The Tel Aviv study is urging medical schools to reintroduce the skills of delivering breech babies. Their research shows that there is no increase risk to a baby born breech vaginally and that mothers do better with morbidity and mortality when delivered vaginally. Professor Glezerman, a researcher on the trial, states that a C-section is no minor event in a woman's reproductive life, that it impacts future pregnancies, uterine health, and subsequent labors.
Although, not mentioned in the study, increasingly the research is pointing towards health effects of babies born by C-section as well. In one of the more recent findings, babies born by Cesarean section are at a higher risk of developing celiac disease. Another reason to avoid unnecessary surgery, who would want to assign anyone to a diet that prohibits bread, pasta, cookies!! Poor baby.

So how do you reconcile the lack of skill of the current docs with a pending breech birth? Look at the photo above for some inspiration - you make all efforts to turn the baby before delivery. Here are some tips to get you started:

• Acupuncture/moxibustion is a powerful tool for breech babies. Do the moxa each day while squatting and making figure eights with your hips. I'm not kidding! One time I had an acupuncturist for a client, with a persistent breech presentation. She tried everything under the sun, before turning to her chosen profession, to turn her little girl. Two nights of these contortions and the babe turned!

• Pulsatilla 200C one time. My little girl was breech until about 35 weeks. I never resorted to this, but I was ready to. It was suggested to make it a one time event, and to do it consciously. Light some candles, pour some tea, put your hips up, and take the pulsatilla. Engage with your baby, visualize his little head snuggled tight in your pelvis. This can be a really powerful way to turn a baby.

• The breech tilt. This is an old recommendation, but really useful. The idea is to elevate your hips higher than your pelvis, to disengage the baby so that when you stand up, the baby will realign itself the proper way. You can do this by laying an ironing board angled against a coach and laying down, with your feet up and head on the floor. Or you can make a stack of pillows and put your hips atop the pillows. Do these for at least 15 minutes twice a day. Talk with your baby and shine a flashlight starting at the top and moving to the pelvis, "For now and always baby, follow the light."

• Webster's Technique is a chiropractic technique that is often employed to help turn breech babies. It's not really 'turning' the baby, it's addressing tightness and torsion, among other issues in the mother's pelvis. Let's be fair after all, there are two players at work here, it's not just the baby choosing to be breech. Fibroids, cysts, and other issues in the mother's pelvic can force the baby into a breech position. Webster's technique can address some of these problems.

• One of the interesting theories about why babies are breech is not a physical reason. There is a theory that babies who are breech do so out of a need to get their mother's attention. It's as if they are saying, "Hello, remember me, I need you to pay attention." It could be this lack of attention that is causing them to swim close to mama's heart, a gentle pull on it's strings, those tiny fingers dialing your number before you've even heard them cry. It's a sweet thought and one I found bore a lot of fruit for women who were breech beyond 35 weeks. It tended to happen to women who worked, worked, worked right up until the end, women undergoing a lot of stress, and women who maybe had some hesitancy about becoming a mother. Overall tension also produces lots of tension in the pelvic region, which can be a culprit in breech presentation. If you are breech these themes are worth exploring through journaling, art, conversation, etc...

• If none of that works, there is always frozen peas. Put a pack of frozen veggies on your babies bum. They won't much like it and will soon get the picture that that's not where they should be hanging out and will head to, uh, warmer regions!

The most important thing with breech delivery is the skill and experience of the practitioner. If none of the above work, seek out someone experienced with breech births. These tend to be the older male obstetricians and older midwives. Trust your instincts, as always. And encourage medical schools to teach the skills of delivering babies who for some reason, want to land in this world, feet first.

The Holistic Baby Guide

Dr. Randall Neustaedter's new book is now available! I'm so excited to read this book. I love that its focus is solely on babies. There are so many foundations being laid, emotional, spiritual, and physical, in that first year. This is why it's important to take care as to what we put into our babies rapidly developing systems, particularly the immune system. Antibiotics, steroids, even vaccines can all suppress a babies' immune system. Having gentle, yet effective alternatives to try before resorting to more powerful drugs is such a gift. For the past two years, I have taken the holistic pediatric seminars with Dr Neustaedter and his colleagues and have found them to be so useful both as a mother and a midwife. His level of confidence in these alternative therapies is contagious. If you are pregnant or a new parent, or know someone who is, you will benefit from this book.