Breech Babies: The Nitty Gritty Details

When I first started this practice, I always wondered why moms always waited until the last minute to reach out to me with a breech baby. Then I asked my friends who are midwives and OB/Gyns and they told me they don’t diagnose breech babies until 33 weeks. Cool. 

You see, when a baby is small and still pretty mobile, there is no reason to be concerned about them being in the right or wrong position. There are many factors as to why they may not be positioned correctly. It could be prior trauma, previous surgeries, multiple pregnancies, poor pelvic and lumbar bony and muscular function, and some freak accidents in between. 

As a chiropractor, I have been trained to evaluate the function of joints and soft tissues in the bony. As a Webster Certified chiropractor, I have been trained to zero in on the muscles, ligaments and joints that are found in the lumbar spine and pelvis. 

The Webster Technique looks is synonymous with the round ligament of the uterus, but it addresses (or at least should address) so much more than that. The round ligament is basically like an anchor for the uterus to the pelvis. It is one of the few ligaments that has muscular fibers within it in the human body, that’s why you can have a direct effect on it. Often pregnant women will feel round ligament pain when they sneeze, cough or laugh. You will feel it on the outside of the bottom of your belly. It is only ever felt in pregnant women, though it’s present in women all of the time. Another ligament that lives in the same area is the broad ligament of the uterus. Chiropractors who use the Webster Technique will also affect this ligament, but it isn’t thought of as frequently as the round ligament. 

But remember how I said the Webster Technique should address more than just the round ligament? 

Your chiropractor should be looking at how your low back and pelvis and how they are moving and functioning and if they are hyper- or hypo-mobile and then addressing the dysfunction via an adjustment, however that may be. Another important structure for a chiropractor to look at is the musculature. The psoas, the lumbar spine erectors and the muscles of the core are important for encouraging proper fetal positioning. 

If your chiropractor is trying to help your baby get into the right position and they are only addressing one of these elements, get yourself a new chiropractor who does. I can’t tell you how many moms I see who called because they were seeing a pregnancy and pediatric chiropractor during this pregnancy or a previous pregnancy with a breech baby and they saw me and had no idea what i was doing because their other chiropractor didn’t do what I was doing (which is more, from what I am told by the patient, than their other provider). 

Look at the ICPA’s website to find a Webster Certified Chiropractor in your area, but if you are local to San Antonio and would like to schedule with me to address whatever is going on in your pregnancy, low back pain, neck pain, breech presentation, just let me know...I’ve seen it all :) 

If you feel like I am a good fit for you, my number is (210) 323-2163, we can chat and get you on the schedule.

Exercises for Common Problems

No body is perfect, hopefully if you follow these exercises we can help your body function more perfectly.

TMJ

If you’ve ever noticed your jaw popping or clicking (or getting stuck open or closed), you may have TMJ. You will also notice some ear or jaw pain associated with it. Most of the time, if you’re like me, it’s from clenching your teeth, especially while sleeping. Our favorite exercise for TMJ to instruct patients on is super easy to do, no one will be able to even tell you’re doing it at all. So, first, check and see where your tongue is sitting in your mouth. It should be lightly pressed against the back of the two top front teeth. That’s the exercise (yeah, really). I told you it’d be easy. In fact it’s so easy, that’s actually where the tongue should automatically go when at rest, like we’re talking anatomical position, correct biomechanics stuff (...<3). When you do this, it is virtually impossible to clench your teeth because it inhibits the muscles responsible for closing the jaw. 

The hard part comes into play when we need to train your brain into putting it there. 

So, what we suggest doing is pick a trigger (whatever it is, a text, a phone call, your kids shouting for your attention, etc.), make it something that happens throughout the day pretty regularly and then check and see where your tongue is. From a fellow TMJD patient, this really works. I’ve alleviated my symptoms and my tongue automatically goes behind my top front teeth. 

Neck Pain

Neck pain is the worst. Most of the time it is followed up with a headache, which can range from not that bad to turn-off-all-of-the-lights-and-no-one-talk-to-me-until-I-am-ready bad. Lucky for you, we have some easy ways to help the neck pain you’re already experiencing and may prevent it from happening again. 

First start off sitting, then you will tap yourself on your shoulders with your fingers (right to right/left to left). Relax your shoulders (but keep them where they are) and lower your arms down to your sides. Now you will want to take your neck through all of the ranges of motion. Look up, down, side to side and tilt your head from right to left. 

You want to try to do this throughout your day, so there will be natural triggers to remind you to do your neck stretches (hopefully). We also like to do these when we are taking a shower or just trying to relax. 

Low Back Pain

FACT. Low back pain is one of the most common excuses for people to either not go into work or participate in activities they would like to, but feel that they can’t. 

This one may have to be done at home. First, get on your hands and knees on the ground. You’re then going to drop your bellybutton down toward the ground and look up (think of a cow standing in a field), then bring your bellybutton toward your spine/spine toward the ceiling (like a hissing cat).

If you are experiencing any of the above, we have so many more things left in our back pocket to help you. Give us a call, set up an appointment and then we can go over so much more detail. Our number is (210) 323-2163, give us a call anytime.

Tongue Ties: Sally Isn't Selling These by the Seashore

I will be honest, when I first started working with babies and tongue/lip ties, I had no idea what I was talking about (sorry to my first few patients, I know so much more now). I honestly thought they meant tongue twisters and had to go home and look them up. 

I still send people to the professionals on the subjects, IBCLCs and pediatric dentists as I can only tell when they are really bad. I always say we all would do better for our patients if we just stayed in our lanes. 

Are you like I used to be and confused? 

I got you! Tongue ties and lip ties are a common diagnosis I hear about from patients when they are having breast feeding issues with their babies. When there is a tie of the tongue or the lip, it changes the way the mouth and tongue can work. If the tongue and/or the mouth can’t work at their best, then breastfeeding will be difficult for the baby (and in turn, the mom). Oftentimes, there will be pain on the mother’s part and frustration and colic on the baby’s end. Luckily, there are almost instantaneous ways to fix them via tongue/lip tie revisions as well as adjustments and soft tissue work.

When I’ve spoken with the dentists in town that do tongue tie and lip tie revisions, they prefer that their patients get body work done prior to and following the treatment. The exercises they give you following a revision are important to prevent scar tissue from forming, which opens up a whole other can of worms when it comes to breastfeeding. 

As a chiropractor, I am always trying to get a patient’s body to move as close to optimum as possible. When we can do this, everything just goes smoother, including breastfeeding. However, when it comes to tongue ties, looking at breastfeeding is SO SHORT-SIGHTED. It can affect someone their entire life (just ask me). It can lead to TMJD, texture issues, speech problems, etc.

I was a formula baby and never had a problem eating or gaining weight (Awesome.), I was happy all the time and never showed any signs of discomfort, so my parents (and many at the time) never even heard of tongue ties or lip ties. So now I am one of the lucky ones who gets to deal with TMJD, a texture problem and neck tightness. Sure, I could get it revised, but I’ve figure life out now and am lucky to be married to someone who can fix it. 

My adult patients who have had their ties revised have some pretty amazing things to say about it. 

What I typically look for and notice is that a baby may only open one side of their mouth or have a side preference. They may also have tightness at the top of their neck. By using an adjustment and some soft tissue work, we are often able to get them back to feeling better quickly and their recovery following a revision is quick. 

If you suspect your child has a tongue tie or a lip tie, please reach out to see if we can help and as always, if not, I will be glad to give you the names of our favorite professionals. 

Our number is (210) 323-2163.