She has worked with many of the highly regarded obstetricians and midwives in the Los Angeles area, attended many births (in hospitals and at private homes), and cared for hundreds of pregnant and postpartum women with Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine. She combines clinical expertise with a strong sense of intuition and listens carefully to each woman. She learns something from every single session.
Abigail believes that in most cases, pregnancy is a normal process, not a disease or a disaster waiting to happen, and that mothers need to be supported and encouraged to listen to their bodies and trust birth.
Abigail works in tandem with your Obstetrician or Midwife to help treat these complications, including but not limited to:
IS YOUR BABY BREECH?
Abigail uses the ancient Chinese technique of moxibustion to help turn breech babies to a vertex (or head-down) presentation, which is preferable for labor. Patients will be given instruction on how to do self-moxa at home between appointments. In her clinical experience, Abigail has found that the best time to turn a breech baby is between 32-34 weeks, although she has successfully helped breech babies turn as late as 37 weeks. If you are 34-36 weeks pregnant, it’s not too late to come in for treatment, but Abigail gets the best results between 32-34 weeks. The process generally takes between 1-4 treatments, spread closely together, and including acupuncture, moxibustion and deep tissue massage. Often, prenatal chiropractic (the Webster Technique) can be helpful in conjunction with moxibustion; we refer to, and work in conjunction with, local prenatal chiropractors who have expertise in this method.
Please call us AS SOON AS YOU KNOW YOUR BABY IS BREECH; it is best to do the moxibustion technique before the baby’s butt (or other presenting part) has descended into the mother’s pelvis. Before Abigail treats you, she will do a phone consultation with your OB/Gyn or Midwife.
A Randomized Controlled Trial by Cardini et al, published in 1998 in JAMA, demonstrated the effectiveness of moxibustion for breech presentation.
LABOR PREPARATION / PRE-BIRTH ACUPUNCTURE PROTOCOL
Abigail specializes in helping to prepare women for labor and birth. She uses a gentle “pre-birth protocol” adapted from the work of Debra Betts (renowned Obstetric Acupuncturist and nurse in New Zealand) and modified for each patient, to help physically and emotionally prepare the mother for labor and birth. Acupuncture, moxibustion and massage are used in once-weekly treatments from 36 weeks until the patient goes into labor. These treatments help increase blood flow, reduce Qi Stagation and help the mother become calm and centered. When the Parasympathetic Nervous System is calm and the baby is ready to be born, a woman’s body will secrete the hormones that naturally stimulate labor; in a state of “Sympathetic Overdrive” (or “fight-or-flight”), the hormones of fear and anxiety work may suppress the release of oxytocin (the hormone that stimulates uterine contractions). In Abigail’s clinical experience, she has found that the majority of women who undergo the pre-birth protocol do not end up needing to be induced and have healthy, effective labors with excellent outcomes.
The Pre-Birth protocol is particularly helpful for first-time moms hoping to achieve a natural birth, for women planning a VBAC, for second- or third-time mothers hoping to avoid a repeat of a previous labor that was medically induced, and for anyone with fear about going into labor and/or giving birth. Abigail is happy to speak with any mother’s OB/Gyn, midwife or doula who might have questions about the pre-birth protocol.
