Birth. It’s supposed to be one of the most beautiful, empowering experiences of your life. And for many moms, it is. But let’s be real—it’s also intense, unpredictable, and sometimes traumatic.
What a lot of parents don’t realize is that birth trauma doesn’t just affect moms.
It can leave a lasting imprint on your baby’s nervous system, too.
If your little one struggled with colic, reflux, constipation, latching difficulties, or seemed extra stiff and tense from the start—their birth experience may still be affecting them. And if those struggles continued into toddlerhood and beyond—showing up as sensory issues, emotional dysregulation, ADHD, anxiety, or learning difficulties—it’s very likely that their nervous system has been stuck in stress mode since day one.
What we’re talking about here is dysautonomia, a nervous system imbalance that can begin at birth and set the stage for lifelong challenges—but thankfully, it’s something we can address and help correct.
Birth Trauma and the Nervous System: What Parents Need to Know
Your child’s nervous system has two main operating modes:
- Parasympathetic (Rest, Digest, Heal, Grow) – This is where we WANT babies and kids to be—calm, connected, developing properly, sleeping well, and able to regulate their emotions and behavior.
- Sympathetic (Fight-or-Flight, Survival Mode) – This is the stress response, designed for emergencies. But when a baby experiences trauma during birth, their system can get stuck in this mode, making them wired, tense, and overwhelmed instead of relaxed and regulated.
What Causes Birth Trauma?
Birth trauma isn’t just about dramatic emergencies like C-sections or forceps deliveries. Sometimes it’s subtle, but still significant enough to cause lasting stress on a baby’s delicate nervous system.
Here are some of the most common causes of birth trauma we see:
- Long, exhausting labor – Too much prolonged pressure on baby’s body and nervous system.
- Fast, intense delivery – The system gets overwhelmed by rapid transitions and forceful contractions.
- Inductions and interventions – Pitocin, epidurals, forceps, vacuum extraction, and other interventions can increase stress on the baby’s nervous system.
- C-sections (planned or emergency) – While sometimes necessary, they bypass the natural birth process, leading to shock in the nervous system.
- Cord complications – A tight umbilical cord, cord compression, or nuchal cord (cord wrapped around the neck) can restrict oxygen and create added birth stress.
- Positioning issues – Breech, transverse, or posterior positioning can add strain before, during, or after birth.
Signs of Birth Trauma and Dysautonomia in Babies
In newborns, an overwhelmed nervous system often looks like:
- Colic or excessive crying (even when fed, changed, and comforted)
- Reflux, gas, or constipation (gut issues often stem from nervous system imbalance)
- Latching and feeding difficulties (weak suck, preference for one breast, or clicking sounds while feeding)
- Stiffness or arching of the back (hypertonic muscles due to nervous system stress)
- Trouble sleeping unless constantly held (they can’t shift into a calm, restful state)
If dysautonomia isn’t addressed early, it can lead to ongoing challenges as your child grows:
- Sensory issues – Avoids loud sounds, hates certain textures, struggles with clothing seams or tags.
- Emotional dysregulation – Big meltdowns, difficulty calming down, extreme reactions to small stressors.
- ADHD and focus issues – Always moving, easily distracted, difficulty sitting still or paying attention.
- Anxiety and mood challenges – Worry, difficulty adapting to change, heightened fear responses.
How Can Chiropractic Help?
Here’s the good news: A stressed-out nervous system isn’t permanently broken—it’s just stuck in survival mode. And that means we can help gently reset it, allowing your child to finally calm, regulate, and thrive.
Neurologically focused chiropractic care is not about cracking bones—it’s about restoring balance to the nervous system. Through gentle, specific adjustments, we help:
- Release tension in the nervous system caused by birth trauma
- Shift kids out of fight-or-flight mode and into a state of calm and connection
- Improve digestion, sleep, and immune function by restoring proper nerve communication
- Support emotional regulation, focus, and learning by optimizing nervous system function
What’s Next? How to Get Answers for Your Child
If your little one has struggled since birth—whether it’s colic, sleep issues, emotional regulation, or focus—you don’t have to wait and see if they grow out of it.
Many parents are told to just give it time, but when you’re living in constant stress and overwhelm, time doesn’t always fix the root problem.
- You don’t have to wait for things to get worse.
- You don’t have to rely on medications or therapies that don’t address the underlying cause.
- There is another way.
At Rooted Wellness Chiropractic, we specialize in helping babies and kids calm their nervous systems and thrive. Our neurologically focused chiropractic assessments allow us to see exactly where stress is stuck in your child’s nervous system and create a plan to help them heal.
If your gut is telling you that something is off, let’s chat. You’re not alone, and we’re here to help.