Prepping for Pregnancy

If you're thinking about getting pregnant in the next year, consider balancing your hormones and preparing your body for pregnancy now. Pregnancy is a normal process of creating life, but it can take a toll on the body. By ensuring your body is in top shape prior to conception, you'll feel your best and give your wee one a great biological, mental and emotional foundation.

Here are some steps we would work on together to optimize your health and make sure your body is ready for pregnancy.

STEP ONE: Balance hormones!

Many women have been taking oral contraceptives or using hormonal IUDs for birth control for many years prior to trying to conceive. While many women stop using these forms of birth control and return to normal levels of fertility immediately, some women struggle to regain a natural menstrual cycle. The oral contraceptive pill can deplete levels of B6 and Magnesium which can lead to painful or missed periods, mood swings and hormonal imbalances when coming off of the pill. I use vitamins, minerals and herbs to balance your hormones and help you optimize your fertility efficiently and quickly.

STEP TWO: Nutrient Boost! 

Using high quality prenatal vitamins and/or injections if necessary, we ensure your body is ready to carry a pregnancy, not just from a hormonal perspective, but also from a nutritional perspective. We optimize your diet to support your activity level and your pregnancy. Many women do not know this, but dietary protein requirements go up in pregnancy. It's not just the calories that count, it's the type of calories. We want to ensure your baby is getting enough protein and fat to grow, and that you're getting these nutrients so you can maintain your strength.

STEP THREE: Body Balance!

If you have pre-existing back pain, pelvic pain, or a history of difficult childbirth, it is important that we prepare your body from a muscular and skeletal perspective. Using acupuncture and/or corrective exercises we can ensure your body is 'trained up' for the demands of pregnancy (and beyond).

STEP FOUR: Pregnancy and onwards!

Once you are pregnant, we do our best to prevent common symptoms such as morning sickness, back pain and fatigue. If we've had time for steps 1-3, your body (and mind) should be in good shape to support a healthy pregnancy. During your pregnancy we consider a birth plan, referrals to exercise specialists, doulas and/or midwifery care. 

Remember, pregnancy, labour and breastfeeding place significant demands on the body. While it is true that humans have existed for a long time without fancy vitamins or support, it's also true that the modern stresses and pressures of today have not been around very long (relative to human evolution). We have a lot of women in our society that are burnt out after (or even before!) childbirth. Pregnancy, labour and breastfeeding last about 2 years (depending on how long you breastfeed), and then you've got another 16 years to prepare your child to go out on their own into the world. That's a commitment.

You think running a marathon is tough? Try having babies. When you train for a marathon or any other sporting competition you prepare for months or years. Same thing for growing your tiny human, you want to be prepared so that you can have the best outcome possible.