10 Moons of Pregnancy

December 19, 2022

瓜熟蒂落 Guā shú dì luò - A Chinese idiom that means when the time is right, things will naturally succeed. Come learn about the 10 moons of pregnancy that is often referred to in TCM. Our Birth Affirmation and Motherhood Inspirational Cards draw on the 10 moons as a woman progresses through her pregnancy.

瓜熟蒂落

Guā shú dì luò

This Chinese idiom literally translated reads when the melon is ripe and ready, it will fall. It means that when the time is right, things will naturally succeed.

In TCM, the gestational period is referred to as being 十个月 which translates to

10 months or 10 moons.

It is calculated from a woman's last menstrual period. There is no expected due date and the beauty of it is that women don't feel pressure for a baby to arrive on a particular date. They can arrive anytime between a new moon and a full moon, and if not, the cycle continues.

Did you know?...

Only about 5% of babies arrive on their expected due date?

It is important for women to understand that pregnancy and birth are miraculous works of nature and it is near impossible to set a date for when baby will arrive earthside.

What the pressure of an expected due date ends up doing to women:

Feeling their bodies are not doing the right thing.
Pressure them to resort to methods of bringing on labor before the body is truly ready.
Opting for intervention like inductions and caesarean sections which can then lead to a cascade of further intervention.

Some figures from the recently released Australian mothers and babies report of 2020:

In 2020, the main reasons for inducing labour were diabetes (15%), pre-labour rupture of membranes (11%) and prolonged pregnancy (12%).
An increase in caesarean section births (from 29% in 2004 to 37% in 2020).
An increase in induction of labour (from 26% in 1998 to 36% in 2020).

When induction may be necessary:

Obstetric cholestatis
Pre-eclampsia / eclampsia

Most common reasons for inductions:

Being full term or "close to the due date"
Elective inductions without medical indication

Final comments:

There is a lot to unpack from these statistics that we hope to cover at another time. But what we want to make aware is that often women are pressured into an induction or a c-section by confusing a common social practice with a true medical need. This can have detrimental impact on mother and child. Undoubtedly there are instances where intervention is required for medical reasons but what society deems as a "prolonged pregnancy" should not be one of them.

Remember, when the time is right, things will naturally succeed - 瓜熟蒂落.

References:

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
https://www.aihw.gov.au/getmedia/bba093ef-a623-4cfd-818b-1bb5af9f0d20/Australia-s-mothers-and-babies.pdf.aspx?inline=true

Evidence Backs 37 Weeks' Induction for Mild Preeclampsia
https://www.medpagetoday.com/obgyn/pregnancy/15360

Oh Baby Nutrition - Pregnancy Nutrition

Healthy Birth Practice #4: Avoid Interventions

Unless They Are Medically Necessary
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4235054/

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