Acupuncture for cervical ripening

Why get acupuncture at the end of pregnancy?

The end of pregnancy feels like a waiting game. Something life-changing is about to happen but you don’t know exactly when, or exactly how it’s going to be. It feels like the only thing you can do is hurry up and wait. But there are things you can do to prepare your body for giving birth and acupuncture is at the top of the list.

A recent study confirmed that women who received regular acupuncture treatments gave birth sooner and experienced fewer unwanted interventions such as oxytocin induction and c-sections.

In addition, the researchers found that when women in the acupuncture group did need to be induced, they required less oxytocin to initiate labour than women in the non-acupuncture group. This is good news because administered oxytocin is associated with a higher risk of various adverse effects.

What does it do?

Acupuncture helps the cervix to “ripen.” In other words to begin the process of softening and dilating. But that’s not all. The researchers who conducted the study mentioned above theorise that acupuncture works by “optimising uterine contractility.” If you want a visual demonstration of how uterine contractions shorten and dilate the cervix, watch this video. You can just see by the way she squeezes the balloon that contractions can be so efficient when they are properly organised and coming down from the top. And also way less effective (for the same amount of effort) when the contraction is disorganised.

When to begin acupuncture treatments?

Previous studies have shown that acupuncture is more effective when begun earlier. Week 36-37 is the ideal time to start weekly birth preparation treaments. If you’re already at 39 or 40 weeks, don’t worry, it’s never too late to benefit from acupuncture! But aim for at least 2 treatments per week until baby arrives.