Childbirth is one of life’s most profound experiences. However, despite its wonders, the birthing process can be physically demanding on a baby’s delicate body, and specifically an infant’s head, neck, and brainstem regions.
In the United States, more births now involve some form of intervention, such as induction, epidurals, forceps, vacuum extraction, or cesarean sections—which account for more than 1 in 5 deliveries. Even natural births without interventions can exert significant pressure on an infant’s spine and nervous system.
As you settle into this new life with your newborn, you may notice certain behaviors that leave you wondering: Is the constant crying normal? Why are they struggling to latch properly? Is their arched back and fussiness just part of being a baby? While conventional medicine often dismisses these concerns as “normal baby problems” that they’ll outgrow, the truth is these signs often indicate underlying neurological dysfunction that can be addressed.
What many parents don’t realize is that the physical forces encountered during birth—even in seemingly smooth deliveries—can create misalignments and stress in a newborn’s spine and nervous system. This can lead to something called subluxation, which interferes with proper nerve communication throughout their body, and most commonly in the delicate areas of the brainstem and upper neck, which houses the vagus nerve.
Birth interventions and trauma that negatively affect vagus nerve function are perhaps the single most overlooked factor and trigger of both acute and chronic health challenges in kids, since these interventions and injuries have just been dismissed as normal. Even though they are quite common these days, they are normal and these interventions have a whole cascade of known short and long term side effects, just like any medical intervention.
If your infant struggles with (or did in the past) difficulty latching and nursing, troubles sleeping and soothing, digestive problems like reflux and constipation, chronic ear infections, and developmental delays or missed motor milestones, birth trauma and injury could be that original trigger and culprit that no doctor or healthcare professional has communicated to you just yet.
This is why more parents are turning to Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care for their newborns. Unlike traditional pediatricians who often take a reactive approach and only intervene with drugs and medications once the problem has become severe enough, Pediatric Chiropractors are trained to take a proactive approach and can find signs of nervous system dysregulation and brewing health challenges even before more serious symptoms or conditions take root.
Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care addresses the root cause of many common infant challenges by ensuring optimal nervous system regulation from the very beginning. While “watch and wait” is a reasonable approach for conditions like ear infections to avoid unnecessary antibiotics, when it comes to your child’s nervous system health, taking action early is crucial. Don’t delay—prioritizing this proactive healthcare step can make all the difference in their long-term well-being.
What Are Newborn Chiropractic Adjustments?
When many parents hear “chiropractic,” they often picture the more manual spinal adjustments and corrective type care performed on adults. However, Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care for newborns is vastly different—involving gentle, precise techniques specifically designed for an infant’s delicate neurospinal system. These adjustments use no more pressure than you would use to test the ripeness of an avocado or to comfortably press on your closed eyelid.
Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care for infants focuses on detecting and addressing subluxation—areas where the nervous system is experiencing stress, tension, and interference. These subluxations can occur during pregnancy due to improper positioning or constraints, and are especially common during the birth process when the baby’s spine and delicate nervous system are subjected to significant forces. Newborn adjustments are primarily focused on optimizing nervous system function during this critical developmental period.
What makes pediatric chiropractic unique is its emphasis on three key components of subluxation:
- Misalignment: If there is asymmetry and misalignment present this may present as difficulty latching and nursing, torticollis and plagiocephaly, and later on can very much alter motor coordination and development as balance is thrown off by this initial component of subluxation.
- Fixation: Movement is life, especially to a developing infant and young child, as it provides the brain with an essential “nutrient” called proprioception—when subluxation and fixation are present, it decreases proprioceptive input into the brain leading to a more stressed out and wound up infant and child.
- Neurological interference and imbalance: Once the first two components of subluxation are in play, this next one becomes automatic – interference and imbalance to the autonomic and central nervous system function.
PX Docs practitioners are specially trained in Neurologically-Focused techniques that are both safe and effective for newborns. These doctors understand the unique anatomy of infants and use specialized approaches tailored to their needs. Many utilize advanced technologies like INSiGHT Scans to identify precise areas of nervous system stress, allowing for highly specific and individualized care plans.
It’s important to understand that chiropractic care for babies isn’t about “cracking backs” or fixing pain—it’s about ensuring that your child’s nervous system, the master control system for their entire body, is functioning optimally from the very beginning of life. By addressing subluxation and dysregulation early, Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care helps establish proper neurological patterns during this time of rapid development, potentially preventing many common childhood challenges before they begin.
The Birth Process and its Impact on Infant Nervous Systems
Birth is undoubtedly one of the most physically demanding experiences your baby will ever endure. During a normal vaginal delivery, your baby experiences tremendous forces as they navigate through the birth canal. Their delicate spine and cranium must compress, twist, and bend to make this journey.
When birth interventions become necessary, forces increase substantially. Forceps deliveries can exert up to 21psi of pulling force on an infant’s head and neck, while vacuum extractions create strong suction pressure on the delicate cranial structures. C-section deliveries, though avoiding the compression of the birth canal, involve their own form of physical stress—sudden extraction, pulling, and twisting as the baby is removed through the surgical opening.
What makes these forces particularly concerning is their impact on the most neurologically rich areas of the body: the upper neck, brainstem, and cranium. This region houses the delicate vagus nerve—the longest cranial nerve in the body and the primary controller of the parasympathetic “rest, digest, and regulate” nervous system. When birth trauma creates subluxation in this area, it can significantly disrupt vagus nerve function, leading to what’s known as dysautonomia (imbalance in the autonomic nervous system).
When the vagus nerve is compromised, virtually every major system in your baby’s body can be affected:
- Digestive function: Difficulty with feeding, reflux, colic, and constipation
- Sleep regulation: Challenges establishing healthy sleep patterns
- Immune response: Increased susceptibility to infections and inflammation
- Emotional regulation: Excessive crying, difficulty self-soothing
- Sensory processing: Heightened sensitivity to stimuli or difficulty integrating sensory information
- Compromised immune function: Recurrent ear infections, poor recovery from illness
- Developmental delays: Challenges with head control, rolling, crawling, or other early milestones
This physical stress from birth is often the first component of what PX Docs calls “The Perfect Storm“—a combination of factors that can lead to nervous system dysfunction and various health challenges throughout childhood. The “Perfect Storm” begins with prenatal and birth stressors that create the initial subluxations and neurological imbalances. If left unaddressed, these early challenges can cascade into progressively more complex health issues as the child grows.
Understanding this connection between birth, physical stress on the nervous system, and common newborn challenges helps explain why so many infants benefit from early chiropractic assessment.
6 Critical Reasons for Newborn Chiropractic Check-ups
When considering your newborn’s healthcare, Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care offers unique benefits that conventional medical check-ups typically don’t address. PX Docs practitioners evaluate your baby’s nervous system function—the foundation for all aspects of health and development.
1. Birth Trauma
Birth trauma doesn’t only refer to problematic or emergency deliveries—it acknowledges the physical stress that every birth places on a newborn’s delicate body. The birthing process, whether natural or assisted, exerts significant physical forces on your baby’s spine and nervous system. Even in seemingly smooth deliveries, the combination of contractions, the journey through the birth canal, and the inevitable pulling, twisting, or compression can create misalignments and stress patterns in your baby’s neurospinal system.
Consider the different scenarios your baby might have experienced:
- Natural vaginal birth: Even without interventions, your baby’s head must rotate nearly 180 degrees as they navigate the birth canal, placing significant strain on the upper cervical spine. The pressure of contractions and the tight fit through the birth canal can create compressive force on their delicate cranium and neck.
- Assisted deliveries: When forceps or vacuum extraction become necessary, the pulling force on your baby’s head increases. This pulling and rotation can create significant tension and misalignment in the upper neck and cranial areas.
- C-section births: Though avoiding the compression of the birth canal, C-section deliveries involve their own physical stresses. The sudden extraction through a relatively small incision requires medical providers to pull and sometimes twist the baby’s head and neck. Additionally, C-section babies miss the beneficial compression sequence of the birth canal, which naturally helps clear fluid from the lungs and stimulates the nervous system.
These physical stresses predominantly affect the upper cervical spine, which houses the brainstem—the control center for many vital functions including breathing, heart rate, and nervous system regulation. When birth trauma creates subluxation in this area, it can disrupt this vital nerve communication, causing nervous system dysregulation and potentially contributing to issues with feeding, digestion, sleep, and overall neurological function.
Early detection of these birth-related subluxations is crucial because the newborn period is characterized by rapid neurological development. The nervous system is establishing patterns and connections that will influence your child’s development for years to come.
2. Optimal Nervous System Function
Your baby’s nervous system is truly the master controller of their entire body. Every breath, heartbeat, movement, and developmental milestone depends on proper nervous system function. This intricate network—consisting of the brain, spinal cord, and billions of nerve fibers—controls and coordinates every cell, tissue, organ, and system in your child’s body. When this system functions optimally, it creates the foundation for lifelong health and development.
Subluxation can significantly disrupt this vital communication. Think of your baby’s nervous system like an incredibly complex electrical system. When subluxation occurs, it’s as if certain circuits become stressed or overloaded, creating “static” in the communication between the brain and body. This interference doesn’t completely shut down function, but rather alters and compromises it.
The Autonomic Nervous System, which controls involuntary functions, is particularly vulnerable to pregnancy and birth-related stress. This system consists of two primary branches: the sympathetic “fight or flight” system and the parasympathetic “rest, digest, and regulate” system. Ideally, these systems should work in harmony, with the parasympathetic system dominant during rest, feeding, and normal daily activities.
However, birth trauma often triggers sympathetic dominance, leaving babies stuck in a stress response pattern that interferes with fundamental functions like digestion, sleep, and immune activity. Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic adjustments work to restore optimal nervous system function by removing interference and promoting proper neurological communication.
3. Prevention of Common Newborn Issues
Many of the challenges that parents face with newborns—excessive crying, difficulty feeding, sleep disturbances, reflux, and constipation—are often dismissed as “normal baby problems” by conventional pediatricians. Parents are frequently told to simply wait it out, try various medications, or make diet and formula changes. What this approach fails to recognize is that these issues are often direct manifestations of nervous system dysregulation related to birth trauma and subluxation.
When the nervous system is compromised, particularly the vagus nerve which controls many digestive and regulatory functions, it can lead to a cascade of common infant challenges:
- Colic and excessive crying: Often misattributed to gas pain or an immature digestive system, colic is frequently a manifestation of a stressed nervous system struggling to regulate itself. Research has shown that colicky babies often have increased tension in the upper cervical spine and resulting dysregulation.
- Breastfeeding difficulties: Problems with latching, sucking, and swallowing are commonly caused by upper cervical subluxation affecting the cranial nerves that control these precise movements. Breastfeeding challenges often stem from dysfunction with the baby, not the mother.
- Reflux and digestive issues: When the vagus nerve is dysfunctional, it can disrupt normal digestive function, leading to reflux, slow digestion, and constipation. Medications for these conditions merely mask signs without addressing the underlying neurological dysfunction.
- Sleep disturbances: A subluxated nervous system stuck in sympathetic dominance makes it difficult for babies to relax into deep, restorative sleep. This is why many infants struggle to sleep for extended periods despite being exhausted.
- Head shape asymmetries: Conditions like torticollis (neck muscle tightness) and plagiocephaly (flat spots on the head) often develop due to birth-related subluxation that affects muscle tone and restricts normal movement.
Early chiropractic assessment and care can help prevent these issues by addressing their root cause—nervous system dysfunction—before they become established patterns. Unlike approaches that simply manage traits, Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care supports the body’s natural healing abilities by restoring proper neurological function.
Many parents may not realize that early signs of neurological stress don’t just go away on their own. If unaddressed, they can lead to chronic issues like ear infections, asthma, allergies, sensory processing difficulties, and behavioral problems. By treating subluxation early, Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care can help prevent both immediate and future health challenges.
4. Early Growth and Development
The first year of your baby’s life represents an extraordinary period of growth and development. During this time, their brain will more than double in size, form more than a million new neural connections every second, and establish foundational patterns that will influence their health and capabilities for years to come. This rapid development doesn’t happen automatically—it depends on proper neurological function and integration, which can be compromised by birth-related subluxation.
Neurologically-Focused Chiropractors understand that early development follows a specific sequence, with each milestone building upon the previous one. When birth trauma creates subluxation and neurological dysfunction, it can disrupt this natural progression, potentially leading to developmental delays or compensatory patterns that affect future milestones.
When babies move in specific ways—lifting their head during tummy time, crawling across the floor, pulling up to stand—these movements don’t just build muscles; they stimulate specific regions of the brain and help establish crucial neural pathways. If subluxation restricts normal movement or alters muscle tone, it can impact not just physical abilities but cognitive and emotional development as well.
By ensuring proper nervous system function from the beginning, chiropractic care helps support optimal development of gross and fine motor skills, Visual and auditory development, and emotional regulation.
5. Stress Recovery and Co-Regulation With Mom
Your baby’s experience during pregnancy and birth doesn’t just affect their physical body—it profoundly influences their nervous system’s stress response. Prenatal stress (from maternal tension, challenging positioning, or intrauterine constraints) combined with the intensity of the birthing process often leaves newborns in a state of sympathetic dominance—essentially stuck in “fight or flight” mode. This heightened stress state can interfere with crucial functions like sleep, digestion, immune response, and even the ability to bond.
What makes this particularly significant is the concept of co-regulation between mother and baby. A newborn’s nervous system isn’t designed to regulate itself independently—it relies on the mother’s regulated nervous system as a guide. When birth trauma creates subluxation and dysautonomia in a baby, it not only affects their own regulation but can disrupt this vital mother-baby connection. This is why many mothers intuitively sense when something isn’t quite right with their baby, even when they’re told everything is “normal.”
Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care helps restore balance by:
- Calming the overactive Sympathetic Nervous System: Reducing the “fight or flight” response that keeps babies in a state of distress
- Activating the parasympathetic “rest, regulate, and digest” system: Promoting relaxation, better sleep, and improved digestion
- Stimulating the vagus nerve: Supporting emotional regulation and social engagement
- Facilitating the release of birth tension patterns: Allowing the body to move out of protective postures and into balanced function
This neurological rebalancing doesn’t just benefit the baby—it helps restore the natural co-regulation between mother and child. Parents often report that after their babies receive chiropractic care, they not only seem more comfortable in their own bodies but also more connected and responsive to soothing. This improved co-regulation reduces stress for the entire family and supports the crucial bonding process that lays the foundation for secure attachment and emotional well-being.
6. Education, Empowerment, and Community
Beyond the physical adjustments, one of the most valuable aspects of Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care is the emphasis on education, empowerment, and community support. Unlike traditional medical models that often position the doctor as the authority and the parent as a passive recipient of care, PX Docs practitioners work in partnership with families, providing the knowledge and resources needed to make informed decisions about their child’s health.
We very much honor and respect parents as the chief decision makers for every component of health and development for their child, and we continually remind them to listen to their “gut” and innate instincts on exactly what’s right for their family. When you combine high levels of research and informed consent, education and empowerment, honoring those gut instincts, and partnering with a trained and experienced PX Doc – it goes a long way to ensuring optimal health and development for that child and entire family!
This educational component includes helping parents understand:
- The connection between neurological function and common childhood challenges
- How to recognize signs of nervous system stress in their children
- Supportive strategies for promoting optimal nervous system development at home
- The impact of nutrition, sleep, movement, and environment on neurological health
- How to advocate effectively for their child in various healthcare settings
Additionally, PX Docs practices typically create supportive communities where families connect with others on similar health journeys. These communities provide not just emotional support but practical resources, referrals to complementary providers, and a network of like-minded parents. For many families, finding this community of support is as valuable as the clinical care itself, creating a comprehensive support system that nurtures both child and parent.
The PX Docs Approach to Newborn Care
The PX Docs approach to newborn care begins with comprehensive assessment using advanced technology like INSiGHT Scans, which provide objective measurements of nervous system function. These scans help identify areas of subluxation and dysautonomia that might not be visible to the naked eye, allowing for precise, targeted care tailored to each baby’s unique needs.
The scan above is from an infant named Juniper who presented for care struggling with constipation along with some sleep and mood dysregulation challenges. These scans show quite clearly the subluxation present not only in the upper cervical and brainstem regions, but also how her vagus nerve and digestive system were likely being negatively affected in her mid thoracic region, leading to her food to be incompletely broken down and digested properly. After completing her care plan, Juniper’s parents reported that her “poop button” and function had been restored to proper function and that overall she was a much happier, calmer, and fully regulated baby once again!
Unlike general chiropractic techniques, Neurologically-Focused adjustments for newborns are extremely gentle and specific. They involve light pressure applied with the fingertips to precise points on the spine, cranium, or pelvis. There is no twisting, cracking, or forceful manipulation. These subtle adjustments are designed to release tension patterns and restore proper nervous system communication, allowing the body’s innate healing mechanisms to function optimally.
A typical newborn assessment includes:
- A detailed health history, including pregnancy and birth experience
- Gentle physical examination to identify areas of tension or restriction
- Assessment of primitive reflexes and developmental milestones
- Observation of posture, movement patterns, and muscle tone
- INSiGHT Scans to measure nervous system function (when appropriate)
- Development of a personalized care plan based on the child’s specific needs
Following the initial assessment, care plans are tailored to the individual baby, with frequency and duration based on the severity of subluxation and presenting challenges. As function improves, visits become less frequent, transitioning to wellness care that supports ongoing development and health.
Starting Your Child’s Journey to Optimal Health
The decision to have your newborn checked by a Neurologically-Focused Chiropractor is so important. By addressing subluxation and nervous system dysregulation from the very beginning, you’re providing your child with the foundation they need to not just survive but truly thrive.
By ensuring that your baby’s nervous system is operating at its best from the start, you’re setting them up for optimal development, stronger immunity, better regulation, and a lifetime of improved health outcomes.
Finding a qualified Neurologically-Focused Chiropractor who specializes in pediatric care is essential. PX Docs practitioners receive extensive training beyond standard chiropractic education. They understand not just the physical aspects of care but the crucial neurological connections that influence your baby’s overall health and development.
If you’re ready to give your newborn the advantage of optimal nervous system function, visit the PX Docs directory to find a qualified practitioner near you. Your child deserves to start life with their nervous system functioning at its best—free from the effects of birth trauma and positioned for a lifetime of health and vitality.
And if you’re looking for more information about related topics, make sure to check out some of our similar articles:
The Guide to Growing Healthy Babies
Understanding and Managing Prenatal Stress
Exploring the Lifelong Negative Effects of Birth Trauma
The Vagus Nerve’s Role in the Journey From Conception to Birth
