I gave birth to my son C., my third child, at home in 1999. He cried quite a bit, so we wondered if he might be in some kind of pain. He had several issues from birth, which made things all the more confusing. One of them was itchy eczema from head to toe (that’s another story for another day). But that seemed unrelated to a noticeable neck weakness. He couldn’t hold his head up straight, nor could he turn it side to side.
Our pediatrician said he probably had torticollis, permanent nerve damage in the neck area, and he might not ever get better. She said, “Let’s just wait and see.”
Our midwife, who had been with us for two home births, suggested we see a chiropractor. She knew of one who believed so strongly in newborn adjustments that he did them for free! When I called his office and explained what was happening with C., they gave us a next-day appointment. C. was 2-1/2 months old, much of which time he’d spent crying.
I remember the appointment day so clearly. It just so happened that we had an appointment with the pediatrician right before the visit with the chiropractor. By the way, I was the only one going to these appointments; my daughters stayed behind with my mother-in-love, while Jeff (my husband) was working.
I think I should tell you that I am the kind of person that tends to trust everyone and sometimes says too much. So, with my usual naive style, I told the pediatrician how we were going to the chiropractor next and why. She was already politely skeptical about our having had two home births, our resistance to topical steroid creams for eczema, and our hesitation to immunize. Her response surprised me, but it shouldn’t have. She advised that we not go to the chiropractor because she didn’t think it would do any good, and she even thought it could hurt C..
I left her office and called my husband Jeff from the parking lot. I was ready to cancel the chiropractor visit. Jeff said, “You already have the appointment. Keep it. If you feel uncomfortable with something, you don’t have to do it. But it won’t hurt to give it a shot.” Neither of us had any prior experience with chiropractors, so we had no idea what to expect, if anything…
Click here to read the rest of this story… (I’m guest posting at Keeper of the Home.)
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Thanks for sharing your story. My sister who lives in Washington state takes her children to the chiropractor for ear infections. After an adjustment or two, the ear infection clears up. No tubes for their ears. I totally believe in the healing ability as I have suffered from nerve pain in my hip on occasions. (When I climb a ladder too many times cleaning ceiling fans, bulk heads, etc.)
Thank you for sharing your experience–I believe that I can still hear the awe and relief in your voice that C. was okay:).
Several years ago, my hairstylist had her second baby, and all seemed to be well except that the baby seemed to have a bad case of colic. The parents tried every suggestion and were searching for some help. The pediatrician basically said to them, “Make sure you have a good support network because this is probably going to hang around for a few months, and there’s nothing you can really do about it.” Well, they didn’t feel that was really the end of it. Somehow they heard about a chiropractor in our area who treated infants, and they decided to try it. They were not experienced or familiar with chiropractic care, and yet they were not going to leave any stoned unturned to help this baby!
Well, when the mother took her baby in, the chiropractor examined the baby and felt that there was a kink (my word) in the lumbar region of the spine, which would affect the nerves in and around the digestive tract. He explained that after he adjusted the baby, she would have a blow out diaper before her mother made it back to the parking lot (which did end up happening!).
Providentially, chircopractic care made a huge difference in that family’s life. I’m sure it must have cost them some courage to entrust their tiny, precious baby to something unfamiliar, and yet it did help. Praise the Lord! Several years later, my husband began to use chiropractic care, and though his results weren’t as dramatic, the benefits have been so valuable to us.
Wardee, so glad you wrote this post, commented over on KOTH to you & several others! This is something I am so passionate about as my hubby is a wellnes chiro! Blessings!
I was so happy to see this post. I have worked for a chiropractor for 12 years. I remember the first time someone brought in a newborn. He wasn’t eating. He was a week old. The DR did an adjustment on his tiny little body. Within a day the little baby was eating and within a week he was gaining weight. Today he is almost 4 years old and perfect. We have many babies and children in the practice. I have see it with my own eyes, it is truly amazing.
Have a wonderful day!
Diane
http://mamaldiane.com/
I would certainly like to hear about C.’s experience with eczema. My son has had this condition since he was 2 months. He is now almost 10. We’ve tried eliminating foods, herbal remedies and supplements…so many things. But we’ve always had to come back to the topical creams. I’m curious what you did and how it helped. Thanks!
PS My parents were very pro-chiropractor, and I’ve been going since I was a child. I still go today. It certainly has helped me over the years!
I had a similar experience with my second born. It was a hospital birth and there was meconium in my waters, so my doctor was concerned and wanted him out fast… so he took hold of my baby’s head and did that awful figure 8 thing they do trying to dislodge the shoulders. Painful. At any rate, we were out of the hospital and home by 10pm that night. My baby cried and cried and I could not console him. I bounced, rocked, walked and nursed him but he couldn’t sleep for more than a few minutes at a time. Then he caught the cold that my older son had, and the doctor was concerned that he had aspirated meconium into his lungs so he was hospitalized for three days. When my son was 10 days old, and finding no way to console him, I finally contacted my doula and she suggested her chiropractor. She said that figure 8 technique had likely injured his neck. We were so apprehensive, but desperate. With one simple adjustment, my baby was able to sleep three hours, the longest he had in his 10 day old life. It wasn’t an instant fix however, we had to go in Monday, Wednesday and Friday. He was great all week long, but he seemed to need that adjustment every two days. By Sunday it was difficult to console him and he was crying constantly again. But the chiropractor appointment early Monday morning fixed him right up. I have told people about our experience over the past 22 years because I am a believer that it can help.
Each of my children were adjusted at just a couple of days old in my home by my wonderful chiropractor. For my older daughter it made a huge difference in her nursing. We were struggling and I just thought this was how it went but after one adjustment (that she slept through) suddenly her latch was completely different and so much better! I didn’t hesitate to have my second baby adjusted right away even though she didn’t have any obvious symptoms. Being born is hard work! I had long difficult labors and deliveries and my babies were plenty squished. I’m so grateful for the chiropractors who have helped us over the years.
Wardee, I appreciate what you said within this article, and I am excited I bumped into your website. I am a Chiropractor here in the Charlotte NC area, and am always looking for different articles and topics to reference with my patients. For the past few days I have been focusing on chiropractic care and how important it is for newborns, because I have had a few patients that have recently given birth to some wonderful children. We are all very excited! I just want to say that it is these types of articles out on the net that have helped me break through some of the objections that I have come across with my patients. Thank you so much!