Acupuncture in the first trimester
Acupuncture reduced the intensity and frequency of her morning sickness
and improved her overall energy .
It was the first trimester of my third pregnancy and the morning sickness was just as debilitating as ever. My first trimester is usually a rollercoaster of emotions, intense all-day nausea, and an inability to live life “normally.”
But this time around, I got acupuncture treatment. I had already experienced incredible results with acupuncture for labour preparation with a previous baby, so I went to visit my acupuncturist around week 6 and through week 12. My weekly acupuncture appointments were therapeutic physically and emotionally and changed my experience of the beginning of the pregnancy journey.
At the beginning of the appointment, my acupuncturist would carefully listen to my recent symptoms and quietly set to work. Inevitably, after the appointments, I felt a relief in nausea, an ability to stomach a meal, and an increase of energy (and even morale) for a few days. If I was struggling with digestion, she would address that, which in turn, would help decrease the nausea. If sleep or excessive emotional upheaval was my struggle, she would address those questions
It wasn’t as though my nausea was “erased” but it became bearable; I survived it on my feet. Acupuncture also seems to have constricted the window of extreme nausea to a shorter time frame. In general, the treatments improved the quality of my life. It was my acupuncturist slow and careful work in harmony with my body that helped me retain strength and enter the second trimester with a positive frame of mind.
In my experience, acupuncture during the first trimester, and alternative medicine in general, is not a magic pill you pop and suddenly feel ideal; it is a gradual process where you work with your body to achieve a sustainable position of balance. While people may find the more measured progress of acupuncture to require too much patience, it is its sustainability and focus on your overall, long term health and well being that makes it a brilliant option for treatment during pregnanc
