How a Prenatal Massage Can Prepare You for Labor
If you are pregnant, you are going through a lot of change when it comes to your body. Labor and delivery will bring a whole new set of changes, and then your baby will be here: a new life to provide for and love! With this great experience, you are probably trying to prepare yourself for things to come and taking care of your body and your baby. A prenatal massage can help you during your pregnancy—not only with the aches and pains that naturally accompany this special time, but also in preparation for the big day when your baby will arrive.
Labor and delivery can be difficult both emotionally and physically; it is a huge change for your body. A prenatal massage can help prepare you by increasing your overall physical and mental health. By helping to balance your hormones (reducing cortisol & increasing serotonin), the massage will aid in stress reduction. It can also reduce tension in your muscles, leading to higher quality of sleep, as well as serving as headache prevention. Prenatal massage also increases blood circulation and oxygenation, which reduces swelling, eliminates toxins, and delivers more nutrients to you and your baby. Some studies have even shown that prenatal massage may decrease chances of birth complications.
The American Pregnancy Association advises Swedish massage as the technique of choice during pregnancy. The reason? Swedish massage “aims to relax muscle tension and improve lymphatic and blood circulation through mild pressure applied to the muscle groups of the body. It addresses many common discomforts associated with the skeletal and circulatory changes brought on by hormone shifts during pregnancy.”
One last thought on prenatal massage: make sure when you book your massage that your provider is trained and qualified to work with pregnant women. There are a few areas that should not be massaged when pregnant, so you want to make sure your masseuse knows what she is doing. At Pure Reflection MedSpa, rest assured that our massage therapists know what they are doing and feel at peace knowing that everything is overseen by an OB/GYN (Dr. Vickie Lovin).
