Pre-Natal Massage and Pregnancy
The benefits of massage can improve overall prenatal health for many pregnant women. Massage therapy can be incorporated into your routine prenatal care as an emotional and physical health supplement proven to improve pregnancy outcome, and maternal health.
What are the benefits of pregnancy massage?
As the body changes during pregnancy, massage can help alleviate muscle aches and pains, increase circulation, reduce fluid retention and calm the entire nervous system. Massage therapy is a fantastic, complimentary choice for prenatal care and a healthy way to decrease stress and support general well-being. Our professional massage therapist works to relieve the normal discomforts experienced during pregnancy, such as backaches, stiff neck, joint pain, headaches, leg cramps, and even edema.
Below are examples of how massage can help you throughout your entire pregnancy:
| First Trimester | Second Semester | Third Trimester |
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Is prenatal massage beneficial for the baby?
Absolutely! Studies have shown that, when you receive a relaxing prenatal massage, the body naturally secretes endorphins. These “feel good” hormones pass through the placenta and ultimately soothe and relax your baby.
How often should I receive massage when I am pregnant?
Each woman and each pregnancy is different, no two women are alike, and so there is no standard answer for this question. If you are planning to use massage therapy as an integral part of your prenatal care we suggest once a month in the first trimester, twice a month in the second and third. If you are having a difficult pregnancy with back pain and or sleeplessness we recommend increasing your session to 1 1 /2 hours or coming once a week in your last trimester.
How Will I Be Positioned During the Massage?
As mentioned above, during the first trimester you can still be face up or face down during your massage session. However, accommodations can be made if you are experiencing any early pregnancy symptoms that might make you uncomfortable (such as nausea or breast tenderness). In that case, we may work on you from a side-lying position, or place a pillow under your stomach to take pressure off of the chest. Once you are into your second trimester, the safest way to be positioned is on your side, supported with pillows to make you fee more comfortable. This will be the position mostly used throughout the rest of your pregnancy as well; we feel it is the safest way to get to your back and legs. We may also put you face up in a semi-reclined position. We will use pillows to keep you propped up, since you will probably not be able to lay flat on your back anymore. You may have heard that some therapists use a special pad for the table with a hole cut out for the belly. We do “NOT” recommend this as we find it places more strain on the uterine ligaments and the lower back. Besides, bellies are not one size fits all, so it is hard to imagine a hole that would accommodate every single woman!