Berry Chiropractic

Berry Chiropractic Registered Chiropractor with a special interest in paediatric and pregnancy care. Based in Bergvliet.

Perinatal, paediatric and family chiropractor in Bergvliet, southern suburbs.

Soon after that my body started to involuntary move up and bear down with each contraction. I can’t seem to find the wor...
11/03/2024

Soon after that my body started to involuntary move up and bear down with each contraction. I can’t seem to find the words to describe the power I was experiencing. Even while writing this its like I can go back to that moment and recall exactly what it felt like and how powerful it felt to be so in control, so at peace during this birth.

With each contraction that came I felt like I needed something or someone to push back on, the fishy pool unfortunately did not provide much stability so My husband then jumped into the pool with me and he was that source of counter pressure. (My sister captured the most perfect picture of it). I was really getting proper breaks between each contraction, well it at least it felt like that as there was enough time to smile and chat. It was a few contractions later where he had moved all the way down to be met with the ring of fire. And man oh man was it the ring of fire indeed. At this point I had so much adrenaline running through my veins that I was definitely shaking a little, but comforted in the fact that I was minutes away from meeting my baby. I waited patiently for the next contraction to arrive. With its arrival his head emerged below the water. I never birthed Beau in the water so it was such a strange sensation seeing your baby’s head under the water. I could see his long dark hair move- its such a beautiful thing to watch hair move like that . Susan reassured me that he was fine underneath the water. Again I waited patiently for the next contraction and it was during the next one where I asked Susan to help me. She so gracefully helped guide his body into my hands and onto my chest. What a feeling!

PART 6 Soon after that my body started to involuntary move up and bear down with each contraction. I can’t seem to find ...
11/03/2024

PART 6

Soon after that my body started to involuntary move up and bear down with each contraction. I can’t seem to find the words to describe the power I was experiencing. Even while writing this its like I can go back to that moment and recall exactly what it felt like and how powerful it felt to be so in control, so at peace during this birth.

With each contraction that came I felt like I needed something or someone to push back on, the fishy pool unfortunately did not provide much stability so My husband then jumped into the pool with me and he was that source of counter pressure, I squeezed his legs with everything I had in me! (My sister captured the most perfect picture of it). I was really getting proper breaks between each contraction, well it at least it felt like that as there was enough time to smile and chat. It was a few contractions later where he had moved all the way down to be met with the ring of fire. And man oh man was it the ring of fire indeed. At this point I had so much adrenaline running through my veins that I was definitely shaking a little, but comforted in the fact that I was minutes away from meeting my baby.

PART 5had instinctively positioned myself on my all fours and each time a tightening would come I just swayed my hips to...
11/03/2024

PART 5

had instinctively positioned myself on my all fours and each time a tightening would come I just swayed my hips to the rhythm of the music, Thanks Ben Bohmer! I also felt that I needed some counter-pressure on my hips. I called to my husband and told him that I needed the pressure and he did an amazing job to support me through each one. The intensity had revved up so quickly that I needed to vomit once or twice but despite the intensity I was so calm and so present, dancing my way through them, eyes closed, swaying hips and a bopping head, knowing that each tightening was a step closet to meeting my baby.

I was in desperate need of the water. I asked my husband if he had filled the pool and he had. I got into the water and the weightlessness of it was incredible. But suddenly, everything stopped. No more contractions, no tightenings. I took a few minutes to catch my breath and then got out the pool. Within seconds of getting out the pool the sensations started up again.

It was not longer after this that Susan arrived. She kissed me on the cheek and asked how I was and I said I was doing great. I danced a little more and then decided I needed to get back in the pool. This time the temperature was below 37 (it had apparently been 40 the first time) and the intensity slowed down but they were still happening regularly. I continued to dance to the music with my eyes closed. I didn’t even notice Theresa arriving. After a little more head bopping and dancing I remember thinking to myself that this was very intense and I’m not sure how much longer I can take. In my mind I thought I’m probably only 4 cms dilated (due to the fact id only been having intense contractions for about an hour), I then decided to check myself (like I would even know what 4 cms dilated feels like) and to my surprise I felt his head! I took my earphones out and gleefully shouted to everyone that I could feel his head. I knew that he was close.

PART 4 So imagine my disappointment when I woke up on Wednesday 24th Jan and nothing had happened? In fact I had hardly ...
11/03/2024

PART 4

So imagine my disappointment when I woke up on Wednesday 24th Jan and nothing had happened? In fact I had hardly had any Braxton hicks the previous evening and actually had a pretty good sleep. I showered and got dressed for the day. Beau woke up and I got him dressed and ready. While he was getting ready I began to feel those familiar period pains and wondered if this could be it? I mentioned to my husband that something feels a little bit different, but didn’t think too much of it considering I had been having these feelings for 2 weeks, this was at about 7:45 am. My husband dropped beau at school around 08:00 am and that’s when I was definitely feeling them consistently, although they felt very mild (again comparing what the first contractions felt like with Beaudys birth). I timed them and they seemed to be happening every 3 minutes and lasting for about 45 seconds long. My husband got back from dropping our son at school around 08:15 ish and I said to him that I think he should let Susan know. I was still in denial that labour had in fact started.

He phoned Susan to tell her that I think things had started. She said that she was going to be finishing up at a pilates class and would be at the house around 09:45. She asked how I was and I said I’m all good, there was no intensity yet so I thought I still had a long way to go. I then put my earphones in my ears and turned my music on and started dancing. The music I was listening to was not your typical birth music. It was the music you will find at a festival and it gave me all the feels. It was at this point that I completely lost track of time as I closed my eyes and danced. I remember there was some movement in the house as josh started to get the pool ready. He had laid all the contents of the pool beautifully out and said that he was going to wait until Susan arrived before filling it. I had firmly said no, start filling it now as the intensity was increasing at a rapid pace.

PART 3 Saturday 22nd Jan I picked my sister and Caroline up from the airport, and went for a quick dip in the ocean. My ...
11/03/2024

PART 3

Saturday 22nd Jan I picked my sister and Caroline up from the airport, and went for a quick dip in the ocean. My sister Rebecca is a Chiro and she did multiple treatments on me to ensure that my pelvis was beautifully balanced and also to just make sure that my nervous system was firing properly. My mind and my body had never felt more ready and calm as it did in those days leading up to the birth.

Tuesday 23rd Jan. This was the day I was convinced you were going to come. The day started out as a normal day but was soon rattled by the unfortunate events of my receptionist being asked not to come back. Later that afternoon we did a full Chiro session, my sister also did some acupuncture and her and Caroline looked after Beauden and this allowed me to do the full miles circuit. 90 mins of uninterrupted relaxation. After dinner I was looking at my schedule (I have a practice from home and my locum was due to be working the next morning and I was planning on sitting in reception and manning the desk). I had jokingly said to my sister, “in case I’m in labour tomorrow and one of you need to man the desk, this is what needs to be done.” I gave them a quick crash course on what the expectations of the reception desk was.

PART 2The following Thursday afternoon I started experiencing sensations what felt like deep period pains and some more ...
11/03/2024

PART 2

The following Thursday afternoon I started experiencing sensations what felt like deep period pains and some more mucus plug came away. I was convinced that “tonight” was going to be the night. I had made the necessary arrangements with my receptionist that should labour start that night to move things around in the practice with the patients that were booked. I said to my husband, something is brewing. We went to bed that night hopeful that we would soon be meeting our little boy. I was woken up a number of times by intense tightenings of my tummy, nothing was sore or uncomfortable and I was able to fall asleep each time. I woke up the next morning as if nothing had happened. I felt completely normal and all the sensations had disappeared.

The same thing happened the next night, and the next and for the next two weeks this pattern repeated itself.

My husband, who was working on a big film shoot during this period and who was scheduled to be away in Springbok the week of my due date was on high alert, I needed to use my words wisely when sending a message or making a phone call. As mentally and as physically exhausting as it was to have these false starts each evening I was so proud of what my body was already doing and to be honest I was in no rush to go into labour.

During this 2 week period of prodromal labour I managed to get some life admin sorted, I went for a very much needed birth story medicine session, I went for massages, plenty swims and a salt water float as well as I welcomed my sister and her partner Caroline who flew in from the Netherlands to come and look after me and give me my very own Kramzorg (literally what saved me post-partum).

📷: chiro

KOA PHOENIX DOWNES BIRTHSTORY 24/02/202411:09 AM 4.11 KG PART 1The pregnancy with you came with a level of serenity that...
11/03/2024

KOA PHOENIX DOWNES BIRTHSTORY
24/02/2024
11:09 AM
4.11 KG

PART 1

The pregnancy with you came with a level of serenity that I will always be grateful for. You taught me to trust myself and body on the deepest level. You also soared into our lives exactly when we needed you.

I use the word serene in my first sentence because despite there being a ‘whirlwind’ of things going on in the background particularly in those last few weeks, you kept me grounded through it all. You taught me a lot about myself and what I stand for.

I had always had the idea that you were going to come early and that I would labour in the day. Seems I was only right about the later.

For any one that has been pregnant and is waiting for the arrival of their baby will know that in the last few weeks you look out for ANY sign and google a 10000 variations of “am I in labour”. Also being a second time mom I could not help but compare the final days with that of my first pregnancy (For some context, my first labour had zero signs leading up to the start), so when I lost a big chunck of my mucus plug on Friday 05th Jan at nearly 38 weeks, I could not help but think to myself that labour was imminent. The weekend came and went with nothing too exciting to report. It did however bring with it an obsession of checking if more mucus plug had come away and thinking anything could be a sign.

📷:

A reflection of the past 12 weeks of pregnancy… I’ve been challenged physically, emotionally and mentally to the utmost ...
06/01/2024

A reflection of the past 12 weeks of pregnancy…

I’ve been challenged physically, emotionally and mentally to the utmost limits. Finding solitude that soon I’ll get to go through the beautiful journey that is birth and meet you.

As I begin to close myself off to the outer world to protect this scared space, I’m so grateful for all that’s happened and all that is about to come.

Beaudy giving his little brother a kiss…We are well into the 3rd trimester and I’ve had a few “oh my word time is runnin...
06/11/2023

Beaudy giving his little brother a kiss…

We are well into the 3rd trimester and I’ve had a few “oh my word time is running out moments”

I’ve almost done nothing to mentally prepare myself for the birth, or postpartum period, there has been to many other things filling that space and gently reminding myself to make space for Whats to come.

I will say that I have been extremely calm throughout the pregnancy. I have not carried any of the stress and anxiety that I experienced with Beaus pregnancy and that in itself has been the one the greatest gifts.

I’ve drowned out the noise, trusted my body and my gut and despite all the heartburn and other fun things, it’s been the most magical journey of growing this human.

Moms of multiple kids, what did you do to prepare yourself for your subsequent births?

2022.Phew 😥 what a year it was. With all the new year posts I’ve read lately as well as taking into account the year my ...
02/01/2023

2022.

Phew 😥 what a year it was. With all the new year posts I’ve read lately as well as taking into account the year my nearest and dearest had, It was tough. Physically, mentally emotionally.

For myself personally it was certainly one of the more challenging ones. What I love about a new year is not the endless setting of ridiculous resolutions but rather the symbolic closure of the last 365 days. And the start of a new journey with 365 days of possibilities.

Difficult times, as hard as they are, are so necessary to keep us in a state of homeostasis.

I’ve never been one for New Years resolutions, somehow our psychology just works in a way that means we often fail at keeping them. But what I am doing is prioritising myself and my mental health buy implementing small subtle changes so that I don’t find myself in the same situation again.

Here is to a kinder 2023, cheers 🥂


#2023

Why my husband loves using Pokkelokkie] I am so incredibly lucky that my husband has always been on board with how I wan...
22/11/2022

Why my husband loves using Pokkelokkie]

I am so incredibly lucky that my husband has always been on board with how I wanted to parent, including when I said I wanted to use cloth nappies.

We have used cloth since birth and have a variety of brands in our stash but our Pokkelokkie] has been a game changer for my husband.

Some of his favourite things about them.

🧷 Velcro instead of snappits. Anybody who has tried to change the nappy of a wriggly worm toddler knows how difficult nappy changing time can be. Velcro makes it 1000 times easier. Also it’s much easier to use Velcro with bigger bulkier hands.

🧷 Easy to build. My husband has loved the ease of building the nappies. It’s colour coded, and the snappits, which are a genius alternative to the pocket are straight forward. I have not test convinced him to put a flat on by himself… maybe for the next baby 😂

🧷 My husband who has a clothing brand himself just absolutely loves how well made the nappies are. The fabrics which are used are top quality and the product is so well made. And the best part is that they are LOCALLY made.

is a proud cloth dad 🌈

Did any of your partners have any objection to using cloth? Let us know in the comments below 👇

They said that if I respond to your cries, I’m spoiling you.They said that if I let you contact nap, I would create bad ...
27/10/2022

They said that if I respond to your cries, I’m spoiling you.

They said that if I let you contact nap, I would create bad habits.

They said that if I rocked you to sleep, I would be rocking forever.

They said that if I let you sleep in my bed, I would stop you from becoming independent.

They were wrong.

Responding to your cries appropriately has give you a sense of trust. Trust in me, trust in yourself and trust in the world around you.

Allowing you to sleep on me when you have needed to, has made you feel safe.

Supporting you to sleep has deepened the attachment between us.

Independence is not something we can force upon our children. It comes from a place of feeling safe, secure and confident.

Address

11 Disa Place, Bergvliet
Cape Town

Opening Hours

Monday 07:00 - 18:00
Tuesday 07:00 - 18:00
Wednesday 07:00 - 18:00
Thursday 07:00 - 18:00
Friday 07:00 - 18:00
Saturday 09:00 - 12:00

Telephone

+27686986538

Website

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At Berry Chiropractic we are an evidence based, patient centred practice, treating each patient as an individual. Our aim is to help patients reach their health goals by providing safe, quality chiropractic care. We also place a high value on patient education so that we promote health and wellness for generations to come.

“Look well to the spine for the cause of disease.” - Hippocrates