The Webster Technique — can chiropractors turn breech babies?
Can chiropractors turn breech babies? That is a question I’ve been asked before, and since I’m now teaching for the ICPA (teaching Perinatal Care with Webster Technique certification), it’s a question I ask and answer to the doctors at each seminar. The answer is simply no, that is not what we are doing, we leave the turning of babies up to the Obstetricians, or really, it’s up to the baby to turn them themselves. And that is exactly where chiropractors come in.
The Webster Technique is a chiropractic analysis and adjustment, and it’s all about balancing out the pelvic bones, muscles and ligaments. When you do that, you create a better (or ideal) environment for the baby. And if you are making that environment as ideal as possible, then the baby has more space to move around. The baby knows what is best, they have an amazing intelligence within them that created their body – mom didn’t take a special pill to form the legs or heart or eyes, the miracle of life within that little body is what created itself. And that same intelligence within their body that created them, is what will help birth them. Babies will move into the head down position if they have the ideal environment, if the space they are in allows them to move head down, they will. That is where they want to be.
A baby will be breech, or sideways, or perhaps even posterior if they don’t have that ideal environment to live in. If their cord is wrapped around their neck too many times, or if mom’s pelvis is subluxated and is not moving properly, then the space for the baby to be in is restricted, and baby can’t always freely move. The baby knows what is best.
The body has an amazing ability to heal and regulate itself, and interference in the nervous system may negatively affect the ability to adapt and function optimally. I take care of pregnant women every day, every week, every month. And making a difference in their life and in the lives of their babies is truly amazing. The Webster Technique is so effective, especially if done accurately and specifically, and with positive intentions.
I’ve always said that any chiropractor can adjust a sacrum and rub on a belly, but the specific contact points are what set a Webster certified doctor apart from a general chiropractor. During pregnancy, a woman picks her birth provider, either an Obstetrician or a midwife, someone who is specifically trained in pregnancy. They wouldn’t choose an internist or cardiologist for the perinatal care, they chose a specialist for their situation. And pregnancy and chiropractic should be no different – pick someone who is certified in it. Anyone can say they are specialists, but are they really? Yes, I’m biased, but if I’m ever looking for a chiropractor for a pregnant person in a different city, someone who has the certification through the ICPA (ideally DACCP, CACCP or at the very least Webster Certified) is the place I send them.
Taking care of pregnant women is so exciting, I love being on the journey with these people. To see their body change, to see how they change, to see how they handle pregnancy and then birth is just super exciting. I love adjusting them and checking the babies soon after. And I know that the Webster Technique can make such a big difference in their pregnancy and with labor. No, we aren’t turning babies, we are taking care of someone during pregnancy, reducing any interference in the nervous system, creating better movement in the pelvis, balancing out muscular and ligament stress, and allowing a better environment for baby to be in. When done specifically and accurately, it can be so life changing. I’m grateful to be able to serve those within my office and beyond.
