Pre-Symposium Talk Descrption:

In this course we will spend a whole day looking at considerations for pre-conception, IVF, pre-natal, pre-birth, intra-partum and post-partum support for our patients. The emphasis of the day is to give you a rich cache of acupoints and point combinations to take back into your clinic. This will be a point heavy course!

In addition to detailed discussion of acupuncture treatment for all these different stages of childbearing, we will take a significant look at the practical considerations for clinical maternity provision, including pre-conception and assisted conception support.

One of the more difficult aspects of having a maternity practice is the variability of when babies might choose to come (on-call for 5 weeks!), the variability of how they present (foetal positioning), and then there is the variability of IVF egg collection and transfer dates to consider. 

Jani brings her extensive experience of working in a large team, the Acupuncture Childbirth Team (UK), and also of working in a smaller ‘share-care’ system whereby 2 or 3 practitioners buddy-up for one client, and we will also discuss setting up and running a specialist Fertility & Pregnancy multi-bed service.

Jani would like to offer insights into how one can potentially provide a 24/7 service that means patients can have the peace of mind to know that their acupuncture support is always available, no matter what the medical or biological schedule may be.

Jani will discuss:

• First trimester, when symptomology requires treatment more than once a week
• Using moxa to turn breech, timing, dosage, and prescription in the context of scheduled ECV (External Cephalic Version)
• Pre-birth, gauging the prescription between 34 to 41 weeks
• Preparing for labour, lifestyle & dietary guidelines according to constitutional diagnosis
• Acupuncture ‘induction’: point scripts, timing and dosage of treatment - what makes the right difference? There’s more to this than just the forbidden points!
• Having a labour practice, the practicalities of being on-call
• Intra-partum acupuncture, top tips for needling in labour
• Structuring team or share-care rotas
• Post-partum: hospital visits, home visits, how much to treat in the early weeks, support up to 12 weeks
• Post-partum, lifestyle & dietary guidelines according to constitutional diagnosis
• Post-partum, treating breastfeeding issues, physical and emotional
• Post-partum, supporting the debriefing of a bad labour experience
• Secondary infertility: the importance of thorough note-taking of the first pregnancy

Come and share a day steeped in the joys of maternity care, influenced by the collective experience of the more than 250 specialist obstetric acupuncture practitioners in the UK. Jani brings to this day her vast experience (since the 1990’s) of maternity experience, her work as an Obs & Gynae acupuncturist and her extensive experience as a doula and pre-natal teacher.