Acupuncture in Early Pregnancy - Is it Recommended?

[PieMistress]

Hi,

I am in the very very early stages of pregnancy (not even 5w) and crapping myself after a m/c in May. I was having having fortnightly acupuncutre sessions when TTC but have not been for acupuncture since getting my bfp.

Does anybody know if I should keep on going as I seem to read conflicting advice on the net. I'm shit scared of having another miscarriage and don't want to do anything that might jeopardize this pregnancy but, want to do anything I can that might help me not lose this baby.

Thanks, Pie

[PieMistress]

Thanks everybody for your posts. It's horrible not knowing what to do for best, I guess miscarriage takes away all the pregnancy innocence! Whether or not the acupuncture has contributed to my getting pregnant again I don't know BUT I do think it has helped greatly in bringing my ovulation forward to a sensible date (was CD20 post m/c but then CD14) and getting blood flowing. I do find it incredibly relaxing though and always nod off!

I think I will need to mull this one over. My acupuncturist doesn't specialise in fertility as such, but he is very aware of it when TTC and in pregnancy as I did discuss this with him beforehand and he said 8 of his clients had got pregnant over the past few months.

Good luck with your pregnancies x

[wheelshavefallenoffthebus]

Sorry iPhone is auto correcting words - hoe my post makes sense!

[wheelshavefallenoffthebus]

Hi OP
Congratulations on your pregnancy
I am a Physio trained in acupuncture and we would avoid treatment in the first trimester not because there us a lit if evidence that it us dangerous but because if anything should happen (God forbid) it may be attributed to the acupuncture. We use a modified version of traditional acupuncture and are moderated by the AACP. there are other acupuncture regulators as another poster mentioned. There are a few points that were thought to induce labour and so are avoided in
Pregnancy but again there is little research to back this up.
Hope your pregnancy goes well uv you choose not to have acupuncture til you get to 12 weeks there might be other things you could do in the meantime to promote relaxation.

[iggi999]

Hi, I'm pg after 4 mc and still seeing my accupuncturist. She specialised in fertility and I am confident she know what not to do. I'm still going as I think it helps me to relax (which I need) and even just having someone to talk to about the pg is very supportive. All the best.

[changeforthebetter]

Hi, I had acupuncture to support a pregnancy after m/c and IUI. It can help to promote a healthy pregnancy but won't prevent m/c if there are problems with the fertilised egg itself. I read around the subject at the time and remember there were good studies on fertility treatment success rates combined with acupuncture. Make sure you see someone who is registered with the national body (British Acupuncture Council? sorry, it's been a while since I did this), preferably someone with a particular interest in fertility. As PP said, there are some points to avoid, but a properly trained, experienced acupuncturist will know these. I saw a Chinese doctor who was very reassuring and who was recommended by the NHS consultant we saw. That treatment resulted in my now 6 year old.

Good luck. I hope all goes really well.

[brettgirl2]

I have had acupuncture during this pregnancy. There are points that are not safe but an acupuncturist will know how to treat pregnant women. I dont know if anything positive can be done to prevent miscarriage and encourage pg to continue though? You need to discuss it with them I think.