Pregnancy can be a joyful, yet challenging time in the lives of women and their partners. Participation in occupational therapy could help to mitigate pregnancy discomforts and provide core tools for individuals and their support people to experience an enjoyable and successful pregnancy.1 According to the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), occupational therapy is a form of therapy that helps people of all ages live life to its fullest.2 It focuses on partnering with people to people develop, recover, or maintain their daily living and work-related skills. Eight ways in which occupational therapy could benefit women during pregnancy include:
1. Improving body posture: Poor posture can exacerbate back pain, neck pain, and fatigue during pregnancy. Occupational therapists often partner with pregnant women to improve posture awareness, body mechanics, as well as develop personalized exercises to improve their posture.3
2. Increasing physical activity: Regular physical activity can women to reduce the risk of complications during pregnancy. As with body posture, occupational therapists could collaborate with pregnant women to create individualized exercise plans to empower them to remain active and healthy.4
3. Reducing stress: Pregnancy is demanding on the body, and life stressors could have an adverse effect on one’s pregnancy experience. Occupational therapy could assist pregnant women with developing tailored relaxation techniques and other stress management strategies.5
4. Addressing sleep issues: Research findings have established that sleep is a core component of a healthy pregnancy. Therefore, occupational therapy could be beneficial for pregnant women to help them develop optimal sleep habits, as well as find additional ways to improve their sleep.6, 8, 9
5. Managing pain: Aches and pains are often common complaints during pregnancy. Occupational therapists typically partner with pregnant women to explore interventions to manage their neck, back, or other type of pain and improve their quality of life.10, 11
6. Improving nutrition: It is well-known that eating a healthy diet is essential for a successful pregnancy. Pregnant women often benefit from occupational therapists through the development of healthy pregnancy-specific eating habits, as well as the creation of individualized nutrition plans.12, 13
7. Tackling anxiety: Anxiety is a pervasive issue during pregnancy. Occupational therapists could empower pregnant women to identify optimal strategies for managing their own anxiety and reducing their stress levels.7
8. Preparing for labor and delivery: Pregnant women of all ages could benefit from leveraging occupational therapists as an expert resource to provide educational and tailed support to empower them to confidently prepare for labor and delivery, and joyfully welcome their child(ren) when the time comes.14
If you are a pregnant woman looking for ways to improve your pregnancy experience, consider reaching out to us at OT by the Sea. We would love to meet you, and become a trusted partner in your pregnancy journey!
References
1. Gutke, A., Betten, C., Degerskär, K., Pousette, S., & Olsén, M. F. (2015). Treatments for pregnancy-related lumbopelvic pain: a systematic review of physiotherapy modalities. Acta obstetricia et gynecologica Scandinavica, 94(11), 1156–1167. https://doi.org/10.1111/aogs.12681
2. What is occupational therapy? (n.d.). https://www.aota.org/about/what-is-ot
3. Nascimento, S. L., Surita, F. G., & Cecatti, J. G. (2012). Physical exercise during pregnancy: a systematic review. Current opinion in obstetrics & gynecology, 24(6), 387–394. https://doi.org/10.1097/GCO.0b013e328359f131
4. Evenson, K. R., Barakat, R., Brown, W. J., Dargent-Molina, P., Haruna, M., Mikkelsen, E. M., Mottola, M. F., Owe, K. M., Rousham, E. K., & Yeo, S. (2014). Guidelines for Physical Activity during Pregnancy: Comparisons From Around the World. American journal of lifestyle medicine, 8(2), 102–121. https://doi.org/10.1177/1559827613498204
5. Bochenek, K., LeGrave, A., & Ausderau, K. (2017). Stress reduction interventions for pregnant women: A scoping review. The American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 71(4_Supplement_1), 7111515214p1-7111515214p1.
6. Howard, L. M., & Khalifeh, H. (2020). Perinatal mental health: a review of progress and challenges. World Psychiatry, 19(3), 313-327.
7. Lau, Y., Cheng, J. Y., Wong, S. H., Yen, K. Y., & Cheng, L. J. (2021). Effectiveness of digital psychotherapeutic intervention among perinatal women: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. World journal of psychiatry, 11(4), 133–152. https://doi.org/10.5498/wjp.v11.i4.133
8. Lu, Q., Zhang, X., Wang, Y., Li, J., Xu, Y., Song, X., ... & Lu, L. (2021). Sleep disturbances during pregnancy and adverse maternal and fetal outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Sleep medicine reviews, 58, 101436.
9. Yang, Q., Borges, M. C., Sanderson, E., Magnus, M. C., Kilpi, F., Collings, P. J., ... & Lawlor, D. A. (2022). Associations between insomnia and pregnancy and perinatal outcomes: Evidence from mendelian randomization and multivariable regression analyses. PLoS Medicine, 19(9), e1004090.
10. Zachariah, S. K., Fenn, M., Jacob, K., Arthungal, S. A., & Zachariah, S. A. (2019). Management of acute abdomen in pregnancy: current perspectives. International journal of women's health, 119-134.
11. Fiat, F., Merghes, P. E., Scurtu, A. D., Almajan Guta, B., Dehelean, C. A., Varan, N., & Bernad, E. (2022). The Main Changes in Pregnancy—Therapeutic Approach to Musculoskeletal Pain. Medicina, 58(8), 1115.
12. Killeen, S. L., Geraghty, A. A., O'Brien, E. C., O'Reilly, S. L., Yelverton, C. A., & McAuliffe, F. M. (2022). Addressing the gaps in nutritional care before and during pregnancy. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society, 81(1), 87-98.
13. Domínguez-Solís, E., Lima-Serrano, M., & Lima-Rodriguez, J. S. (2021). Non-pharmacological interventions to reduce anxiety in pregnancy, labour and postpartum: A systematic review. Midwifery, 102, 103126.
14. Panuccio, F., Berardi, A., Marquez, M. A., Messina, M. P., Valente, D., Tofani, M., & Galeoto, G. (2022). Development of the Pregnancy and Motherhood Evaluation Questionnaire (PMEQ) for evaluating and measuring the impact of physical disability on pregnancy and the management of motherhood: a pilot study. Disability and Rehabilitation, 44(8), 1474-1480.