This  is a Level II short course with 3 theory hours + 3 hands-on practice hours =  6 hours applicable towards your CEUs/CPDs

This short course addresses the structural changes that take place within a women who is pregnancy in her 2nd trimester of pregnancy  As a result, prior training in Cranial Osteopathy is not required for this particular course. 

Why learn how to assess and treat a woman in her 2nd trimester of Pregnancy using an osteopathic approach?



There are tremendous structural changes that take place within the body of a woman who is pregnant in her 2nd trimester of pregnancy, including postural shifts and realignments as the fetus grows, causing a variety of discomforts that can easily be reduced with osteopathic treatment. 

Often, relieving your client/patient of those discomforts allows her to progress more comfortably into the later stages of pregnancy and delivery.  

This is the stage of pregnancy where a pregnant woman will seek out your help the most.  Understanding the causes of these discomforts and learning how to treat them will be very satisfying work and your client will thank you too! 


You will have access to the  Workbook portion for 2nd Trimester of Pregnancy upon enrollment:



How the course works:

This short online course is self paced.  You can enroll and start learning immediately.  It is a practical resource if you have a pregnant client who is in her 1st trimester and you want to gain the knowledge that you need quickly in order to support her now.  To earn 6 hours of CEUs, you simply must complete the hands-on homework assignment and submit it to us for review by your Instructor who will award your Certificate of Completion. If you have a CEU deadline, just mention it in your email and we will prioritize its review.



Your Homework Assignment:

 Homework Practice Sheets, Assessment Forms, and a Step-by-Step Treatment Protocol for you to practice at your clinic or home are provided to you to download and keep. 


Practicing your Homework:

Or course we understand that not everyone will have access to Pregnant Patients within a specific Trimester to practice on.  This course's hands-on homework can also be practiced on a non-pregnant female.


Have a questions?  Email the Instructor or Registration Coordinator at

[email protected]


from Australia:

"I have thoroughly enjoyed your course, and found lots of different tips, techniques useful in my everyday practice."

From Ontario Canada:

"As for the course material, you really are amazing at what you do and making the complicated material, not so complicated and really understandable.  I thoroughly enjoyed this course!"

From Mauritius:

"Hello Maureen,

It’s going great, and more and more women have heard that I work with women’s health issues providing amazing results. It has become a passion of mine, as it has a huge effect on women’s lives and also their relationship with their partners.  

I absolutely love your courses and I’m looking forward to doing more!"


Hi Maureen,
I am thoroughly enjoying the obstetrics course (started April 15th) and can not thank you enough for the time you've put into the content!"

Jessica

Cranial Osteopathy Options

Some of the protocols in this course naturally include some Cranial Osteopathy.  We understand that training in Cranial Osteopathy as part of a Practitioner's basic DO or DOMP diploma might or might not include this important aspect of osteopathic practice depending on the school you studied with or the country that you reside in.  

For this reason, we have two options for you:

1) We have created a course bundle that includes both this course in Treating the Obstetrical Patient AND the course in the Fundamentals of Cranial Osteopathy.  You can progress through both courses concurrently, or in series. Please scroll down to the bottom of this page to view this bundle and to read about it.

2) You can request to enroll in the Fundamentals of Cranial Osteopathy course which has been set for you to work at your own accelerated rate, or at our own self-paced rate.  Please scroll down to the bottom of this page to view this bundle and to read about it.

If you are undecided what option is best for you, please email our Educational Director at ceosteopathy@!gmail.com to discuss.

Please note:

Although we have not made our course in Cranial Osteopathy a firm pre-requisite to enrolling in this course in Treating the Obstetetrical Patient, we do recommend that you consider taking this course if your knowledge is limited and you find yourself intimidated by the cranial aspect of some of this course's treatment protocols.

Course Curriculum

  • 1

    Introduction from the Author Maureen Hannah Maher Educational Director

    • Welcome!

    • Do I need training in a Biomechanical Approach to Cranial Osteopathy for this course ?

    • Download Workbook Portion Here
  • 2

    Understanding the Obstetrical Patient: Osteopathic Changes within the Body during Pregnancy

    • Osteopathic Changes within the Body during Pregnancy

    • Common Complaints During Pregnancy

    • Overview of Physical Symptoms during Pregnancy
  • 3

    2nd Trimester "The Structural Stage" 12 – 28 weeks

    • 2nd Trimester INTRODUCTION

    • The Structural Stage of Pregnancy from an Osteopathic Perspective

    • Structural Changes of the Thoracic Spine

    • The Structural Changes of the Head and Cervical Spine

    • Structural Changes of the Lumbar Spine

    • Hormonal Factors causing Structural Changes

    • Classic Pain Patterns you will find during the 2nd Trimester of Pregnancy

    • Patterns of Myofascial De-Compensation During the 2nd Trimester of Pregnancy

    • Example of a Healthy Myofascial Cross Compensation Pattern

    • Example of Un-Healthy Myofascial Cross Compensation Pattern

    • 2nd Trimester Osteopathic Treatment Protocol STEP 1

    • STEP 2 - 2nd Trimester Osteopathic Treatment Protocol

    • 2nd Trimester Osteopathic Treatment Protocol STEP 3

    • 2nd Trimester Osteopathic Treatment Protocol STEP 4
  • 4

    Contra-Indications, Scoliosis, and Postural Assessment

    • CASE STUDY OF PREGNANT PATIENT WHO RECEIVES OSTEOPATHIC TREATMENT

    • The question of contra-indications to OMT during pregnancy

    • Contra-Indications to Osteopathic Treatment during Pregnancy

    • Reducing Sympathetic Overactivation of the Cardiovascular System

    • Will Pregnancy make Scoliosis worse?

    • Incorporating your Postural Assessment Chart into your Pregnant Patient Assessment

    • Instructions for Completing your Homework

    • DOWNLOAD - Postural Assessment Chart - Front & Side Views

    • DOWNLOAD - Postural Assessment Chart - Frontal View

    • DOWNLOAD - Postural Assessment Form - Side View

    • HOMEWORK: Postural Assessment on a Spinal Deviation or Postural Imbalanced (Pregnant) Patient

    • HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS
  • 5

    2nd Trimester Treatment Protocol

    • How to listen to and watch the training videos

    • Discussion with your Instructor prior to watching 2nd trimester video

    • 2nd trimester Step 1. Mobilization of the Thoracic Spine_1

    • 2nd trimester Step 2. Anterior Thoracic & Cervical Fascia Release

    • Full Video 2nd Trimester Treatment Protocol

    • 2nd trimester Step 3. Axila Myofascia Stretch

    • 2nd trimester Step 4. Release Restrictions of the Sacrum

    • REPEAT VIDEO - Full Treatment Protocol for 2nd Trimester

  • 6

    Hands-On Practice & Homework

    • Instructions for Completing your Homework

    • HOMEWORK & DOWNLOAD - Osteopathic Treatment Protocol 2nd Trimester

    • HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS
  • 7

    Concluding Remarks from your Instructor and Farewell!

    • Conclusion and Farewell

    • HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS

Enrollment, Awarding of Certificates, and Non-Refund Policy:

Enrollment in all ICEO courses are non- refundable. It is the responsibility of every potential student to read the course curriculum to determine if this course material and its level suits their needs and expectation.

If for an unforseen and  valid personal or medical reasons, with written proof provided, a student may apply to transfer their enrollment to the same course the next time it is offered.  An administration fee of $150 applies to all re-enrollments in addition to any outstanding applicable enrollment fees. 

 Any student who falls behind in the online course without submitting any or an adequate number of  homework submissions must apply to be enrolled in a future dated course, according to the discretion of our Educational Director and the Instructor for this course, Maureen N. Maher.  

Extensions are not granted to students who have forfeited a majority of the course or have not submitted homework assignments.  Extensions to submit homework assignments are granted only for brief delays and will exceed no more than one month past the final due date for all homework assignments.  

The awarding of Certificates of Completion depends upon the successful submission of homework assignments according to due dates, and must clearly demonstrate the understanding and ability to apply knowledge gained in this course and is according to the discretion of the Instructor.  

Professional ethical conduct is required of all students who enroll in ICEO courses and who wish to complete them successfully.  

ICEO reserves the transfer the enrollment of a Practitioner who is not a fully trained Osteopath or Manual Osteopathic Practitioner to the version of this course intended for non Osteopaths. 

The Centre for Continuing Education of Osteopathy was founded by Maureen Hannah Maher, Internationally Accredited Osteopath, in order to address the shortage of Osteopathy Continuing Education courses. Maureen Hannah Maher has over fifteen years of clinical experience in the fields of Women's Health, Obstetrics, and Pediatrics.

Educational Director & Instructor

Maureen Hannah Maher

Since Maureen began teaching, she found that not only does she have a natural gift for it (her parents were both teachers, so let hear it for genetics!), she found that she also holds a great desire to give back to the community and a profession that has been so fulfilling to her, and share over twenty years of acquired experience and knowledge.   Maureen brings extensive knowledge in Osteopathy  to her educational seminars.  Throughout her career which began in Montreal in 2003, Maureen has been an accredited member in good standing in several provinces across Canada, including the CPMDQ (Quebec), OsteopathyBC (British Columbia), OFOP (Ontario) and SCMMAC (Quebec). Like many classically trained Manual Osteopaths in Canada, Maureen wrote a thesis as part of her Osteopathy training. Hers was within the field of Cranial Osteopathy, on the Prevalence of Muscle and Myofascial Chain Link Dysfunctions and the Temporal Bone. Maureen was also an Associate Overseas member of the Australian Osteopathic Association (AOA) from 2008 to 2011.  After undergoing accreditation evaluation for foreign trained Osteopaths in Perth, Western Australia, Maureen was offered a position in one of Singapore's leading Osteopathic Clinics, giving her the distinction of having been the first Canadian trained Osteopath to be approved to practice  in South East Asia.   Right before the worldwide economic collapse in 2010, Maureen was offered a position in Shanghai China, which required accreditation with the GOSC, UK, which she began, but as prevailing economic conditions worsened, the position was put on hold, and Maureen decided instead to settled in Toronto, Canada, where after reluctantly accepting a poorly paid teaching contract, her students began asking her to design courses in more specialized subjects within Osteopathy, including Women's Health and Pediatrics.  It was not long after that Maureen founded the Center for Continuing Education of Osteopathy & Manual Therapy where she continued to innovate every day! Today, Maureen still teaches continuing education courses in specialized fields of Osteopathic Manual Therapy. Her students say that Maureen's teaching style is animated, engaging, but most importantly, informative.  Her gift lies in communicating complex theories in simple terms and analogies.  Her students come away with a clear grasp of Osteopathic concepts for treatment, and practical knowledge of how to apply them.  In more recent years, Maureen has created online versions of some of her most popular courses, and it is thanks to this new era of online learning that Osteopaths throughout Canada and throughout the world have been able to use Maureen's teachings and treatment protocols to help women, infants, and the general public find relief from the bodily dysfunctions that are so amenable to osteopathic manual treatments. Practitioners who enroll in any of our continuing education courses can contact Maureen at any time by email or pre-arranged phone call with clinical questions.  As a result, many Osteopaths worldwide still consult with her today regarding challenging Osteopathy cases.