By Amanda Troelsen

Pregnancy is a time of great physical and emotional change. Expectant mothers need to take extraordinary care of themselves to provide optimal health and nourishment for their growing baby. Their entire life has changed and must carefully be managed to make sure they are not consuming anything or doing anything that could interfere with the development of their baby.

What this means is that women are often left without any remedy or solution for health issues that arise due to pregnancy or during pregnancy. The good news is that acupuncture is a very safe, natural, and effective means of healthcare for the expectant mother and baby.

What types of symptoms can acupuncture help treat? First and foremost - morning sickness! Acupuncture is truly amazing at alleviating symptoms of morning sickness from mild nausea to severe vomiting and dehydration. In just a few treatments, women with even the most severe morning sickness usually find relief and are able to begin to feel like themselves and eat again.

During the initial appointment, an acupuncturist will complete an intake interview to understand your total health picture so that s/he is able to determine what underlying factors may be contributing to your morning sickness. Part of the reason that acupuncture is so effective is because it takes into consideration the entire body for each patient individually.

An acupuncturist will probably ask questions that seem unrelated to morning sickness to you, but all the questions she asks will help to form a complete picture of your health. From an acupuncturist’s viewpoint, there is usually some level of digestive weakness and/or emotional upset and stress underlying most cases of morning sickness. Your acupuncturist will needle acupuncture points according to what signs and symptoms you have. Patients generally notice a difference even after the first treatment. The total number of treatments depends on the severity of symptoms.

Acupuncture can help during all trimesters of pregnancy, from prior to conception through postpartum. In addition to morning sickness it is useful in treating fertility, back pain, insomnia, stress, anxiety, varicose veins, headache, hemorrhoids, constipation, edema, breech baby, labor, and delivery, insufficient lactation and other postpartum issues.

So, what is acupuncture anyway and how does it work? Acupuncture is part of a complete system of medicine called Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). TCM originated in China over 3,000 years ago and consists of a variety of methods used to promote health and wellness. These modalities include acupuncture, herbal medicine, tuina (medical massage), qi gong, cupping (dermal friction), and moxibustion (heat therapy). Acupuncture, specifically, is the insertion of very thin and flexible needles in the body. All of the modalities are centered around the main goal of optimal quantity and movement of the body’s qi (pronounced “chee”).

Qi is in all living things and is the nourishment and energy that feeds every cell and tissue in the body. Qi flows in the channels of the body. You can think of these channels like highways. When qi flows unobstructed we feel great and we have no health issues. However, when qi becomes stuck, just like traffic jams due to accidents or road construction, it cannot move properly and the body does not receive the nourishment it needs. The result of stuck qi is areas of excess and areas of deficiency.

Qi can become blocked or stuck due to poor diet and lifestyle, emotional stress, trauma and accidents, and genetics. When it is stuck we can experience all kinds of symptoms of unbalanced health including digestive issues, pain, disease, gynecological and fertility issues, emotional imbalance, and many more health issues. Acupuncture needles tap into the qi via acupuncture points to unblock the qi, which in turn restores the body to a state of health and balance. In fact, the WHO (World Health Organization) recognizes that acupuncture and TCM is effective at treating more than 40 different conditions.

When seeking out acupuncture treatment it is important to find a Licensed Acupuncturist (L.Ac.). Practitioners with these credentials are licensed by the Minnesota State Board of Medical Practice, have passed national certification exams, have had more than 2300 hours of training, and are the most educated, skilled practitioners. Due to their high level of training, L.Ac.s are able to provide the safest and most effective acupuncture treatments available. To find an L.Ac., follow these links: www.aomam.org (Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine Association of Minnesota) or www.nccaom.org (National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine).