Upright Physiologic Vaginal Breech Birth

So grateful to Dr. David Hayes OBGYN @breechwithoutborders for their amazing continuing education workshop to thoroughly review the data and teach skills of attending vaginal physiologic breech birth globally. Some key take aways are: 📣Modern US clinicians and hospitals, and other countries that follow US, where only cesarean is taught and practiced for breech - please get back your skills and follow ongoing current impressive research and guidelines of other western countries where upright vaginal breech birth is being heavily studied and practiced as the norm, as it has been among community out-of -hospital midwives around the world through history.

More & more mamas don’t want c-section and all the risks associated with major abdominal surgery for them, their babies, and future fertility as the only option, and are seeking safe alternatives. Breech presentation occurs at term ~ 4% of the time ,vast majority are called frank with hips flexed, legs extended upward. Sometimes they can be turned head down to vertex presentation, sometimes they can’t and are breech for a reason. It’s very rare for a term baby to stand in the uterus, presenting one or two feet first - which is usually NOT footling (a common misdiagnosis) but complete or incomplete breech - hips flexed, buttocks in pelvis like a frank breech but one or two legs flexed, with one or two feet dropped down. These presentations in healthy pregnancy are fine candidates for term vaginal breech birth. It’s crucial for providers to know when to keep hands off, support mamas own movement and pushing efforts, upright positioning, how to resolve uncommon stuck arms, shoulders and head behind the pelvic bones, monitor baby’s condition, expedite birth and effectively resuscitate baby if needed.

Significantly less invasive maneuvers are required in physiological breech birth in upright positions with improved outcomes for mamas and babies. For mamas, breech birth is often claimed to be easier than birthing babies in head down position, with less injury to pelvic floor muscles and reduced tearing. Those I’ve attended all went well. The trouble and poor reputation associated with vaginal breech birth are mostly caused by unskilled providers, keeping mama on her back, impatience & pulling - which skewed the data of the older term breech trial they still quote. If you have a persistent breech baby know you have options. Get true informed consent!

If you’ve been told that your baby is breech at your mid pregnancy anatomy scan, know that baby is still swimming and it is likely they will be head down by term. If baby is breech later in the third trimester, don’t freak out. There are many ways to gently and lovingly ease your baby into vertex. Since there is slightly greater risk to breech babies born vaginally and by cesarean, and many people do not have providers near them who are skilled to attend them for a vaginal breech birth, it is ideal to try to encourage baby to turn head down.

Towards the end of pregnancy, the baby settles into its favorite position. Ideally, this position is vertex, meaning that its head is down towards your pelvis and its bottom is high up in your abdomen.

Less commonly, the baby is breech (with its head up and its bottom down towards your pelvis).

It’s not always known why a baby is breech at term. Sometimes it has to do with:

• Relationship between the shape of the baby and the shape of mom’s uterus or pelvic bones

• Location of the placenta

• Issues with the umbilical cord

• Excessive amniotic fluid

• Lax abdominal or uterine muscle tone

Labor and birth does carry more risk of complications when the baby’s head is not down towards the pelvis, even though breech is a variation of normal. So, when a baby is breech by the 30th week of pregnancy they should be encouraged to convert to the ideal vertex position. That said, the majority do turn by themselves at the beginning of the ninth month.

What to do When Baby is Breech

If your baby is breech at 30 weeks, consider doing a couple of the following exercises 10-15 minutes 2-3 times each day until your baby turns.

1. Belly massage. Massage your abdomen GENTLY in the natural direction the baby will turn. But stop if you meet any resistance, and never attempt to forcefully turn the baby yourself.

2. Visualization. Close your eyes and imagine your baby with his or her head moving down in your pelvis.

3. Coaxing. Play classical or relaxing instrumental music by your pelvis, so that the baby will turn towards the soothing sound. Or shine a flashlight by your pelvis, so that the baby may move towards the light.

4. Go for a swim. Swim laps and do some handstands in the pool.

5. Pelvic rocking. Shift your pelvis up and down and side to side while on your hands and knees.

6. Act like an elephant. Walk around the house on your hands and feet.

7. Bridges and inversions. If you have an established yoga practice, go upside down with any of the inversions, using props for supportive modifications. Headstands and downward-facing dogs work wonders.

Beginners should start with bridges. To do this, simply lie on your back with your feet flat on the floor approximately 1 ½ - 2 feet apart and your knees bent. Elevate your hips 9-12 inches higher than your shoulders. You can support yourself in bridge with a yoga block under your sacrum.

Alternatively, lie on your front in the same “upside down” position, keeping your weight on your forearms and knees wide, with your bottom in the air. Lying on three pillows or a beanbag chair can help further elevate your hips.

Or, lie bent over the edge of a sofa or top of a staircase with your legs on the floor and your body lying down the sofa or stairs. Support your body with your hands or forearms so that your torso is inclined upside down.

Gently roll your hips side to side while in any of these positions.

Taking homeopathic Pulsatilla 30C will help the above exercises be more successful. Allow 4-5 pellets to dissolve under your tongue 3 times daily for 3-5 days. As with any homeopathic remedy, avoid eating or drinking for 15-20 minutes before and after.

Natural Remedies for Breech Babies

In addition to exercises that help your baby move into the best birth position, there are a few techniques that can be administered by care providers. If you’ve tried the above suggestions without success, look for a practitioner that practices one of the following.

MOXIBUSTION

Find an Acupuncturist or Doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine who has had success turning  breech babies to vertex with moxibustion. The technique involves burning certain herbs close to the skin at specific acupuncture points.

WEBSTER TECHNIQUE

A chiropractor trained in the Webster Technique can use this sacral adjustment to help facilitate the pelvic alignment needed for your baby to get into birth position.

MANUAL TURNING (External Cephalic Version)

If all else fails, you can opt for having your baby turned manually if the right conditions are met (such as no cord around the baby’s neck or short cord, adequate amniotic fluid, and healthy baby as detected on ultrasound with a normal fetal heart beat). Sometimes this is can be easily done in your birth practitioner’s office at 34 -36 weeks, especially in a woman who has delivered vaginally before, while carefully assessing the baby’s heartbeat. It has a high rate of success in skilled hands and supportive conditions.

Experienced midwives can turn breech babies. Most obstetricians prefer to do it in the hospital, often with medication to relax your uterus, ultrasound guidance, and continuous fetal heart monitoring. But it can safely be done out in of hospital settings while monitoring baby.

Ask for a wedge pillow to support you in a tilted pelvic lift position, or a bed that can be placed at an angle, with your legs higher than your head to help baby out of pelvis. Also, having it down while in deep meditation being supported in a pool of water has been effective and a wonderful experience.

Once the baby is turned to the head down position, stop inverting yourself, wear an abdominal binder at all times to prevent the baby from turning back to breech.

If your baby insists on being breech as you approach your due date, discuss your options with your provider. If they are not supportive of your choices for a vaginal breech birth, find a different practitioner, optimally one who has the essential skills and philosophy of birthing breech babies vaginally when appropriate and safe to do so. You can ask for recommendations at Breech Without Borders.

A baby lying in the transverse position, however, can only be delivered safely by cesarean section.

For more information on having the birth of your dreams, check out my Guide to Pregnancy, Birth and Postpartum

If you desire personal guidance, schedule an online or in person coaching call with me.

Gestational Diabetes Screen & Alternatives

Gestational diabetes is rare in the healthy population. Occurring in about 6% of pregnancies, it’s incidence is increasing largely due to the growing obesity, insulin resistance and adult onset diabetes, poor diet and lifestyle habits in the United States. There is much controversy around gestational diabetes, how it is screened for and diagnosed, and whether universal screening improves outcomes as opposed to testing when there are risk factors. If you do have it, however, treatment that includes appropriate actions like maintaining ideal weight, enhancing nutrition and exercise habits does make a significant difference in reducing the serious health consequences for both you and your baby.

In the US, it is standard of care that all women are screened for gestational diabetes at 24-28 weeks of pregnancy, although in some other European countries, only women with risk factors are screened. Screening that is most common involves giving pregnant women a “Glucola” drink that has 50 grams of sugar in the form of dextrose, and then testing blood sugar an hour later. Many holistic providers and the families they serve are concerned about this potentially toxic drink laden with chemicals that may make them feel sick, harm them and their babies, and can be associated with false positives that label them unnecessarily as high risk. This increases stress and angst, leads to more testing, monitoring and potentially other risky interventions. They want alternatives.

While it is within your right to refuse the test, you may want to consider screening for gestational diabetes in another way and discuss your concerns and options with your provider. If your provider is unwilling to work with you on this, consider switching providers to one who will. Although we do not have enough evidence that alternative screens are as accurate as using the more extensively studied Glucola drink to screen for diabetes of pregnancy, alternatives are not to be easily discounted, and may be a viable option in the low-risk healthy population. 

It is recommended according to evidence based care, but you have the right to make an informed decision to decline. The evidence does support screening for diabetes of pregnancy (GDM), as the benefits of accurate diagnosis and treatment outweigh any potential risks of the screening blood test.  Treatment does impove health and birth outcomes, whereas untreated abnormally high blood sugar levels in pregnancy carries substantial risks to mamas and babies. In the early 2000s, the US  only screened those with risk factors, but since the rates of GDM are increasing, and rarely found in those without risk factors, it has become standard to screen everyone. In the UK, only those with risk factors are advised to get the one 3 hour glucose tolerance diagnostic test. There is disagreement on the best screen to use, and what numbers are diagnostic. In the US, standard of care is to use a two step process in which the pregnant mama drinks 50 grams of a Glucola drink made of dextrose and blood is drawn 1 hour later.  Some practitioners and labs use 140 as the cutoff blood sugar level indicating a positive screen others use 135, and some use 130. The lower the cutoff number, the increased number of false positives along with a slight increased ability to diagnose true GDM, whereas the higher the cutoff number the opposite effect can result.  So it depends on the cutoff number your provider and lab uses, each showing different degrees of sensitivity and specificity. Levels of 135-140 are considered normal according to the Mayo Clinic, ADA, ACOG and other highly medical sources.

There is an option for screening for gestational diabetes by home testing. This involves checking your fasting blood sugar at home when you wake up in the morning, and then again 1 hour after eating your usual breakfast, lunch and dinner. While approved for monitoring blood sugar once diagnosed with diabetes, this method of screening is less studied and without clear standards. It is also more cumbersome and costly, as you need to get the supplies to do it, then take the time to get it right and keep records to discuss with your provider at your next prenatal visit. 

I discuss natural alternatives to the chemically laden Glucola drink in my Natural Birth Secrets book 2nd edition….but here are some basic tips if you want a more natural approach.

Alternative Gestational Diabetes Screening Options to Glucola

Starting three days before your appointment, increase complex carbohydrates such as whole grains, sweet potatoes and winter squash.

The meal before the test should only contain protein, vegetables, and unsweetened dairy. A veggie cheese omelet is a great choice! Avoid sweetened foods, fruit, and carbs. If this last meal before the test is lunch or dinner, you can eat a normal breakfast, but avoid carbs or sweets for the rest of the day.

Fresh Test is a new organic alternative that is also said to taste good, with only three ingredients. It has exactly 50-grams of glucose yet is void of unnecessary artificial additives, and is laboratory tested to be virtually equivalent to the Glucola without the unhealthy ingredients. To make your own drink that is most equivalent to Glucola without the chemical additives, dissolve 50 grams of organic dextrose in 8 ounces of water. You will need to do some math. If there are 20 grams of dextrose in 2 Tbsp for example, then you need 5 Tbsp of the powder. You ideally want dextrose, as it is the sugar made from corn that makes up the Glucola drink, and it is most bioidentical to the sugar in your blood called glucose. Therefore, it is the best alternative to screen for gestational diabetes as the standard Glucola drink does, according to the laboratory parameters designed and tested for this purpose.

Another alternative is to drink an equivalent amount of pure corn syrup dissolved in your tea, since the sugar in corn syrup is dextrose. You can find organic non GMO varieties in the health food store, but you still need to do some math, to get 50 grams of sugar total. 

Reputable research indicates that you can instead, eat 28 all natural organic jelly beans or enough that equals 50 grams of sugar, which is studied to be a reliable alternative to the 50 gram glucose beverage. It is not standardized as is the Glucola drink, amounts and types of sugars vary with each product, so you need to do the math and make sure you are eating 50 grams of sugar. The study was relatively small but results can certainly be considered.

Other less ideal options are iced tea, organic Gatorade or a cola drink that has 50 grams of sugar added in the form of added table sugar or dehydrated cane juice (sucrose) - similar to the kind of sugar in jelly beans. They are not a first choice because they are not as extensively researched, the form of sugar is different than dextrose, and thus may have a different effect on your blood sugar levels and test results, designed to screen for diabetes based on your response to dextrose. 

The blood test to screen for gestational diabetes was studied and formulated to test your reaction to ingesting 50 grams of dextrose. Sucrose is made up of 50 % glucose and 50 % fructose. You will need to read ingredients and nutrition labels to use an alternative, an important skill to develop anyway. And you still need to do some math, as the nutrition label might say something like 23 grams of sugar per 8 ounce serving. 

When going for sugars that are not dextrose extracted from corn, you can choose any sugar sweetened drink without added fruit juice. Fruit contains a different type of sugar called fructose that makes the test less accurate as it has a different effect on your blood glucose levels than does dextrose and sucrose. If you can not find or have no time to figure it out and have low risk of gestational diabetes, Snapple 16 oz raspberry peach drink is second choice. Although it is mainly sweetened with sugar (sucrose), it does have a little fruit juice, which again is mostly fructose.

Coconut water is another, but less than ideal option, as it contains sugar in the form of mostly sucrose and glucose, and it does have some fructose as in fruit. ZICO coconut water 16.9 ounces has 20 grams of sugar, so you would need to drink 2 ½ bottles. Honey is another alternative, but it is also not made up of an equivalent sugar - it is sucrose and fructose. Again, you need to read the label. Different honeys have different amounts of sugar per serving size. 

Hopefully there will be more studies on these alternatives, but for now, are listed here to consider with your provider, if for some reason you can not take the dextrose or corn syrup equivalent and you are healthy, with healthy weight and lifestyle, with low risk for diabetes. 

45 minutes before your appointment, eat the jelly beans or drink an amount that equals 50 grams total of sugar, then nothing until the blood test, which will be drawn 1 hour after you consumed the drink or candy.

If you have time, do some form of exercise like taking a brisk walk for 20-30 minutes after drinking, but before the test.

Bring a high protein, whole carbohydrate and healthy fat snack to eat after the test if needed, to keep blood sugar stable. This will help you avoid unpleasant symptoms once your blood sugar drops, like shakiness, lightheadedness, fatigue, anxiety and irritability.

Rest assured, most healthy pregnant women (about 94%) do not have gestational diabetes. A positive screen simply means you need more testing to confirm it or rule it out. And if you do have it, you can learn how to keep your blood sugar normal throughout the rest of your pregnancy and life. 

If you need more guidance,  schedule a coaching call with me.

Be informed, empowered & educated with my online course Guide to Pregnancy, Birth & Postpartum - sold separately or in a bundle.

Tearing at birth

Worried about tearing at birth? If so, you are not alone. Although no guarantees (for example baby can come out with their hand by their head - compound presentation, that can result in lacerations), there are things you can do to help prevent tearing during pregnancy and at birth, even if you tore or had episiotomy previous birth. I have helped many mamas not tear or not tear enough to need stitching repair, despite the most serious of tears last time.

First off, say NO to routine episiotomy, in which the provider cuts your perineum and vagina at birth. It is is not only one of the most harmful, painful and unnecessary routine obstetric procedures, but also can lead to more serious tearing extending to the anus (third degree) and even the rectum (fourth degree). Make sure you maintain excellent nutrition, take in low glycemic foods and drink (especially if previous tear was related to baby’s large size - white four, fruit juices and sugar foods tend to grow bigger babies), avoid toxins like smoking, encourage baby anterior as you get close to term to prevent posterior positioning - I go into all this in more depth in my Natural Birth Secrets book 2nd edition. Research is conflicting about benefit of simple perineal massage to prevent tearing. What is more clear according to the research are devices specifically made to stretch vaginal and perinal muscles. In the last three to four weeks of pregnancy, you can prepare the muscles of your birth canal with one of the researched effective, pelvic floor medical training devices like Epi-no, or Aniball (easier to get in the US) as athletes and dancers stretch before working out or performing to prevent injury. They are like a balloon of sorts, that you insert into your vagina and gradually inflate 15-20 minutes daily, over a period of time to the size of baby’s head. They not only significantly reduce the risk of tearing or episiotomy, they also help you feel more prepared physically and mentally (and get a sense of what it feels like to have your birth canal stretch to the size of baby’s head so you relax into it), they ease childbirth, prevent stress urinary incontinence and been demonstrated to have other important benefits from reduced length of second stage of labor to improved Apgar scores - less fetal distress during the pushing phase. Incorporate the practice into your love making and have fun with it. Many mamas in my practice and midwives around the world swear by them, and urge first timers as well as mamas who have had more severe tearing or episiotomy previously to use them because of their successful results.

At the time of birth, to try to prevent tearing, you can honor the resting phase of labor, between end of transition and before feeling the urge to push. Wait for that powerful instinctual urge to bear down, when the baby descends low enough in your birth canal to elicit your natural fetal ejection reflex, and then use soft blowing breaths, to gently allow the emergence of your baby without forced coached pushing or pushing before you feel the urge, especially just because you are told your’e fully dilated. Gentle grunts to work with your body’s natural urges are not the problem. Avoid birthing positions like lithotomy (lying on your back with legs in stirrups, a flat surface or held wide open) or deep squatting. Use more upward, forward leaning, hand and knees or side lying, standing or dangling high squat positions, and if you are concerned, ask for perineal support by your attendants or have a water birth. I discuss this more comprehensively in my Online Guide to Childbirth.

You make plans for the best outcome, then surrender to the journey. Lean into the wondrous intensity of it all.

High Blood Pressure in Pregnancy: How to Prevent and Treat Naturally

High Blood Pressure in Pregnancy: How to Prevent and Treat Naturally

About 6-10% of pregnant women develop consistently high blood pressure. Typically if mild, by itself it’s usually harmless. But, if not monitored or controlled, it can be dangerous, and it may lead to a more serious condition known as pre-eclampsia, which poses a threat to the health of you and your baby.

Always remember that blood pressure varies widely in healthy individuals and is normally sensitive to moment-to-moment changes in activity, posture, nutritional status and emotional factors. It can even be a response to a fear of high blood pressure or being diagnosed with a complication! It is the steady and consistent increase that is concerning.

To Prevent High Blood Pressure In Pregnancy

Regular aerobic exercise involving moderate exertion throughout pregnancy is one of the best ways to maintain health and prevent high blood pressure. Some good options are brisk walking, dancing and swimming. If you are a beginner, build up gradually to the ideal goal of at least 30 minutes 5 times per week. Gentle forms of meditative movement like Tai Chi, Qi Gong, and yoga (especially Yin, gentle, prenatal and restorative) also help maintain normal blood pressure. Below are more tips for preventing high blood pressure during pregnancy.

CONSIDER YOUR DIET

Avoid stimulants such as spicy or peppery foods (including foods with large amounts of nutmeg, mustard or ginger), caffeinated products, nicotine products, cocaine, diet pills, and other stimulant herbs and medications. 

Avoid excessive weight gain. Eat a highly nutritious, high fiber and protein diet to prevent hypertensive disease and to avoid excess weight gain. Avoid foods that are highly processed and refined or laden with sugars, white flour and unhealthy refined vegetable oils and partially hydrogenated fat. Replace with lots of fresh organic fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and at least 80 grams of protein. Healthy protein options include:

• Fish tested free of pollutants or from non-polluted waters, like wild Alaskan salmon

• Tempeh, tofu, beans and seed products

• Lots of nuts, nut milk and nut butters 

• Limited animal protein in turkey, chicken, beef, lamb, and wild game, fresh organic raw dairy, ideally goat or sheep, and whole organic eggs 

• Protein powders

Take your prenatal supplements so you get the nourishment you need for your pregnancy, that is not supplied by diet alone. Especially important are an excellent whole food prenatal vitamin and omega three essential fatty acids.. Be sure to include foods high in Calcium, like raw or cooked greens except spinach, sesame seeds/tahini, salmon and sardines, and dairy. You may need additional Calcium so you get 1200 -1500 mg of Calcium daily. 

Substitute vegetable oils with healthy fats like organic cold expeller pressed extra virgin olive in your cooking. You can salt your food according to taste (a dash of Himalayian sea salt or tamari is best), but avoid excess and processed foods high in sodium. 

Drink at least 64 ounces of fluids each day between meals, at least 20-30 minutes before or 2 hours after eating. Opt for filtered, spring or well water, herbal tea, soup broth, or whole juiced veggies.

Add 1-2 Tbsp of powdered Spirulina to your daily smoothie or take as directed in capsule form. 

Drink strong Nettle, Red Raspberry and Dandelion teas regularly, as well as decaffeinated green tea. When feeling stressed, drink some strong calming Chamomile, Lemon Balm, Lavender , Passionflower, or Skullcap tea. Add honey, fresh mint, juice of fresh lemon or lime to taste.

REDUCE STRESS

Cut down on the stress in your life. This is easier said than done, but this is an important time to be clear about your priorities. If you feel very stressed and pressured and your blood pressure is on the rise, your body is sending you early warning signals to rearrange your schedule and increase your rest periods in order to protect the health of you and your growing baby. Don’t be afraid to ask family and friends to help with chores or child care. Even better, treat yourself to hired help. And be sure to rest on your side three times a day for 30-60 minutes.

Especially learn to master your reaction to outside stress and relax yourself from the inside, which relaxes your blood vessels and lowers blood pressure. Reduce inner tension and increase feelings of centeredness and calm by focusing all your attention on your breath, simply watching all sensations as you inhale and exhale. Also try regular conscious slow deep breathing and a regular breathwork practice, meditation, and/or progressive muscle relaxation techniques (yoga nidra) for a few minutes several times per day, and certainly before coming to your prenatal appointment to have your blood pressure checked. There are many phone apps like Calm and Breathe to help you establish a regular practice.

Before rising in the morning and going to bed at night, while waiting, in transit, and whenever you feel triggered or stressed, practice the any of the following calming breathing exercises: 

3-Part Breathing 

1. Exhale slowly through your mouth with an audible sigh while consciously releasing any and all muscle tension.

2. Imaging a pump expanding your abdomen and lower back as you breathe down deep into your belly.

3. Allow ribs to expand with air, then inhale air into your upper chest towards your collarbone and shoulders 

4. Inhale in this way for a count of 4.

5. Hold for a count of 4 while staying relaxed.

6. Exhale slowly through your mouth for a count of 4, releasing in the same order as the inhale, collapsing/returning to baseline, your abdomen, ribs, then upper chest. This is the ideal form of breathing, as opposed to rapid shallow breathing. With each exhale, let go and relax more. 

7. Repeat this cycle a total of 8 times or for at least a few minutes. 

Once you get the hang of it, play with various types of breathing. Try several minutes of inhaling and exhaling, each to a count of 3, 4, 5 or 6 without the hold, keeping it smooth and even. Then double the length of exhalation. For example, so if you inhale to a count of 3, then exhale to a count of 6.

Box Breathing

To try box breathing, inhale to a count of 3, hold for a count of 6, exhale for a count of 6, hold for a count of 3. Repeat for several minutes. You can also play with ratios, for example:

1. Exhale slowly through your mouth with an audible sigh, while relaxing all muscle tension.

2. Inhale slowly through your nose for a count of 4.

3. Hold for a count of 7 .

4. Exhale slowly through your mouth for a count of 8, releasing and letting go more each time.

5. Repeat this for a total of 8 cycles.

Forced Exhalation

Another great breathwork technique that disengages your conscious attention from thought and relaxes the nervous system is forced exhalation. To do this, after a normal breath try squeezing as much air out as possible using your intercostal muscles in your chest. Then, allow your breath to come in naturally and deeply, but automatically. Repeat the cycle for at least several minutes or as long as you would like. 

These breathwork techniques are simple to do, health enhancing, totally safe, and without side effects. They are all natural tranquilizers, especially if you do it often. If you need more personal guidance, schedule a session with me. 

Life is stressful and always has been, and eliminating all outside stress is not an option. But, you can learn to activate your own relaxation response and quiet your nervous system. Not only with breath awareness, breathwork and relaxation techniques, but also by making a conscious effort to be aware of anxiety-provoking, tension-causing thought patterns that are not serving you. Try to stop them or shift your attention to something more positive and ultimately change your mental state. You have the capability to change your attitude and reaction to your life experiences to more health enhancing responses. For example, you can surrender to and totally accept unpleasant events over which you have no power. You can view them as a wake-up call, an opportunity for personal growth and redirection. Try to focus as much of your attention as possible on the present moment, literally without letting your thoughts wander into the past or imagined future. 

For more information about this and other great ways to improve your physical and mental health and well being, read Natural Health, Natural Medicine by Dr. Andrew Weil,  Practicing the Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle, and Prescriptions for Living by Bernie Siegel.

Avoid things and people that agitate your mind and raise your internal tension. Surround yourself as much as possible with calm centered people, things, sounds and places that inspire, relax and restore you to inner peace and safety. For many, this means being around nature or beautiful art and soothing music.

Make a conscious effort to work on increasing your own feelings of forgiveness, appreciation, love, joy, optimism, and healing, while letting go of anger, resentment, envy, fear, sadness, and negativity. Do not be afraid to seek counseling if you need help with this. 

Do more of what you love, and figure out how to make chores more fun (like doing them while dancing to music or with a friend).

Natural Remedies for High Blood Pressure in Pregnancy

Once you have been diagnosed as having pregnancy induced hypertension (PIH), you will get lots of extra attention in the interest of monitoring how mild or serious your condition is and to protect the health of you and your baby. You will be asked to go to your provider’s office more frequently to check your blood pressure and the baby’s heartbeat, as well as to check for excess swelling, protein in the urine and labs that signal developing complications like preeclampsia.

Periodically take your blood pressure in your own home when you feel relaxed and secure. You can buy an easy to use digital blood pressure monitor. Sometimes, there is an artificial elevation in blood pressure in the office due to anxiety about being examined and having your blood pressure reading be too high.

Continue to use the preventative suggestions, but increase the amount of time you are resting on your side to as much as possible. Depending on your individual situation, you may need to maintain strict bed rest on your side all day – this means no housework or errands – but often this is not necessary. 

Increase the frequency and duration of your breathing and relaxation exercises. Visualize your blood vessels dilating for 5 minutes several times daily, while thinking that your blood pressure is now normal.

Watch comedy. Laughter is extremely healing, reducing internal stress reflected in lower blood pressure.

Be in tune with your baby’s movements. Make sure you count at least 10 moves in 1 hour during the times your baby is most active, which is usually after you eat and when resting.

Take biofeedback training to lower your blood pressure.

Take several warm baths daily with Epsom salts and a few sprinkled drops of the essential oil of Lavender.

TIME TO CONSIDER SUPPLEMENTATION

Reputable brands of the supplements and herbs I recommend include Innate Response, Wish Garden, Gaia, Herb Pharm, Wise Woman Herbals, Pure Encapsulations and Eclectic Institute, or any of those in my online holistic apothecary.

Again, if you aren’t already taking a natural prenatal vitamin and mineral supplement, now is the time to start. Also consider additional calcium and magnesium. Take 500 mg of each in the morning, afternoon and at bedtime. If you experience loose stools, you can experiment with skipping the magnesium dose in the morning. 

Eat more potassium-rich foods found in most fresh fruits and vegetables, for example starchy roots, potatoes, dark leafy greens, bananas, oranges and cream of tartar. And daily take 1000-2000 mg vitamin C up until 36 weeks gestation, then reduce to 500 mg. Also take 400 IU vitamin E and 2-3 mg methyl folate to boost your antioxidants.

Make sure to take at least 300-400 mg DHA/EPA Omega 3 essential fatty acids found in fish oil twice daily. You can take a vegetarian source, but they aren’t as ideal. However, some benefit can be derived from eating 2 Tbsp ground flax seed every day. You can add it to your cereal, salad, baked goods or yogurt. Alternatives are 1000 mg of flaxseed oil taken in capsule form or using 1 Tbsp of uncooked flax oil in your salad or other cold foods twice daily, 500 mg black currant or evening primrose oil each day. 

Eat a bulb of fresh garlic daily. You can make it delicious by roasting or sautéing the whole cloves in olive oil, salt, pepper and a dash of parsley. If you prefer raw garlic, eat 2-4 cloves twice daily crushed into your salad or cut and swallow as a pill with a spoon of honey and a glass of water or citrus juice, which minimizes garlic breath and stomach upset. Another option is to take New Chapter’s Garlicforce 2-8 capsules daily. Infuse your olive oil with garlic, by soaking all cloves from a bulb in 1 cup of olive oil for a few days for delicious and health enhancing meals, used on salads, veggies, beans, sprouted whole grain breads and pastas.

Eat more onions, parsley, fresh beet juice, cucumber and its juice, watermelon and turmeric. Renowned herbalist Susan Weed advises drinking a mixture of the juice of ½ lemon or lime with 2 tsps cream of tartar and ½ cup water once daily for three days. 

Prepare your own herbal infusion:

• Steep up to 1 large handful of dried nettle leaf and/or red raspberry leaf, and dandelion root  in a quart of boiling water for at least 4 hours. 

• Strain in a glass mason jar, and drink several times throughout the day. 

• You can add a splash of lemon or lime juice, fresh mint, or a dash of honey to taste. 

• Drink 2 cups daily.

Take 1-2 dropperfuls of tinctures of passionflower, skullcap, and lavender 1-3 times per day, especially if your increased blood pressure is due to stress and anxiety. Alternately, passionflower capsules can be taken as directed, 2 twice daily. 

Drink Hops tea before bed during the last few months of pregnancy.

If you are interested in more healing herbs specific to your situation, you can take Dandelion (a natural diuretic) and Hawthorn berry (a natural vasodilator). The herbs should ideally be supercritical or encapsulated freeze dried extracts. Take 1-2 capsules of each 2-4 times per day or 1 dropperful of each liquid tincture of Dandelion and Hawthorn Berry 2-3 times per day.  

Herbalist, midwife and physician Dr. Aviva Romm in The Natural Pregnancy Book recommends adding equal parts Cramp Bark, Black Cohosh, and Motherwort after the first trimester, as they relax the nerves and muscles, and dilate the peripheral blood vessels, thereby reducing high blood pressure. Take a dropperful of each tincture up to a few times daily as needed, depending on your blood pressure. But stop if you feel a pattern of preterm contractions (4 per hour or every ten minutes before 37 weeks). She also advises mixing together the following herbal tonic tinctures to support the liver and kidneys, especially to prevent worsening preeclampsia, and taking 1 tsp of the mixture 1-2 times daily: 

• 3 tsp each nettle leaf, schisandra, American ginseng, dandelion root, burdock root

• 1 ½ tsp each passionflower and linden 

For those with any sort of chronic high blood pressure in which serious causes have been ruled out and none of the natural and allopathic remedies help, consider reading the book The Mindbody Prescription By Dr John Sarno, MD. He is an amazing pioneering physician whose brilliant approach has helped hundreds of thousands of people without drugs, physical measure or surgery, and using breathwork, to release stress and past trauma energy while transforming health in a deeper way. Also check out Brandon Bays’ book The Journey, and her website for intensive workshops that are extremely effective mindbody cutting edge methods that have also lead to transformational healing for thousands of people around the world.

If you need more personal guidance, schedule a consultation with me.

Call your provider immediately if you have any of the following symptoms: sudden severe swelling of your feet, legs, hands or face, a severe headache or pain in your upper abdomen or uterus, spots in front of your eyes or blurry vision, dizziness or light-headedness, vaginal bleeding, a sense that your baby is moving less than usual, regular contractions, or your water breaks. 

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Pain During Pregnancy: Pelvic Area, Groin, Legs and Back

Pain During Pregnancy: Pelvic Area, Groin, Legs and Back

Experiencing pain is humbling, and it can be a chance for personal growth. It can be an opportunity to practice techniques that will help with labor, birth and life beyond. Techniques like breathing, mindfulness, befriending and relaxing into intense sensations. Prevalent societal attitudes that include fear, numbing, medicating or escaping symptoms of discomfort as opposed to being with them, surrendering, welcoming, honoring them, listening to and finding meaning and beneficial purpose in their messages. Pain provides a chance to learn patience, acceptance of normal bodily changes associated with pregnancy, and how to prioritize, delegate, let go of activities of overwork or those that create increased stress, and allow others to help.

For pregnancy related aches and pains in the groin, back, or legs, it is recommended that you consult a reputable chiropractor or osteopath who can successfully relieve strained muscles and correct a spine or pelvis that is out of alignment. Other helpful professionals include a massage therapist (especially deep tissue, shiatsu, rolfing and Thai) who can do wonders to release tightened painful or aching muscles in spasm , a homeopath who can suggest a safe natural remedy to effectively treat your specific symptoms, or an acupuncturist skilled at directing needles on the trigger points. Therapeutic yoga can be helpful to reduce tension, increase strength and flexibility of responsible muscles,

Pain in the Groin

Sharp but short lived pain in the groin area that can sometimes travel down into the legs is either related to the stretching of the round ligaments that hold and support your growing uterus within your abdomen, or to the pressure of the uterus or baby on local nerves. This sort of pain usually occurs while walking or movement, and can be enough to stop you in your tracks.

For relief from round ligament pain, stop to rest, bend your knees onto your abdomen while lying down, or get on your hands and knees and rock your pelvis inward and outward. Take a very warm bath with Epsom Salts and a few drops of Lavender or Olbas herbal combination, followed by applying Tiger Balm then a hot or cold pack, or heating pad.

To minimize strain on these ligaments: 

• Take frequent breaks

• Use full body or pregnancy pillows under your uterus and between your legs when lying down on your side

• Roll on your side, transition through your hands and knees to use your arm, leg and core muscles when getting up from a supine position

• Apply gentle pressure to the area when laughing, coughing, or sneezing

• Consider wearing a maternity support garment -like Bellefit’s prenatal support wear.

• Practice your kegel (those you use to stop the flow of urine) or even more comprehensive and effective, yoga mula bandha or root lock exercises, daily to strengthen your pelvic floor muscles that help support your uterus. Get out your yoga mat and do a modified bridge pose, supporting your sacrum on a yoga block. In this position it is easy to practice your mula bandha, by placing another yoga block between your thighs. While inhaling, tilt your pelvis up toward your face as you slowly squeeze the block and draw your entire pelvic floor upward and inward, starting from its center. Hold as long as is comfortable, then release and return to resting your sacrum on the block as you exhale. Let the breathing be smooth, relaxed and deep as you do this. It takes practice but you will get it. Start with 25 twice per day, and work up to 50 twice per day. Once you get the hang of it, you can do it in many positions, anywhere, anytime. You will also notice other benefits like easier birthing, reduced tearing, less urinary incontinence, better sex, improved exercise performance and yoga practice, and if done on a deeper level, enhanced overall well-being. 

Back Pain

High backache in pregnancy is related to breast enlargement and heaviness, which may produce strain in compensating back muscles, especially if your breasts are not well supported. Wear a well-fitting, comfortable and supportive wire free maternity bra that lifts your breasts upward and inward. Do shoulder rolls and arm exercises that tighten and release your upper back muscles, and get a regular back massage.

Aches and pains in the lower back are related to several factors: 

• Pressure of your growing uterus or baby on the nerves

• Stretching of the ligaments that connect the sides of the enlarging uterus to the lower back

• Hormonal relaxation and increased mobility of your joints, especially in the pelvis

• The shift in the center of gravity from your expanding belly, which leads your pelvis to tilt forward and your back to arch, straining the back muscles

The problem is made worse by excessive weight gain, prolonged walking or standing, frequent bending or lifting with poor posture and improper body mechanics, ill fitting or high heeled shoes, and weak or separated abdominal muscles or weak back muscles. Wear Bellefit’s prenatal support wear, or try Baby Hugger for more extensive support. They provide wonderful relief of lower abdominal pressure and aching back from weak or stretched abdominal muscles after several pregnancies. It is also helpful for Diastasis Recti.

Diastasis Recti (belly muscle separation) can sometimes cause back pain. More significantly, it can impact pregnancies as lax abdominal muscles do a poor job of supporting the uterus. Sometimes this causes the baby to take on a suboptimal position. This is a normal physiologic separation that takes place during pregnancy for most women. The effort made to correct it postpartum is mostly cosmetic as there are rarely any major medical issues associated with mild separation, especially when the separation is less than 3 finger widths. You can certainly do yoga and can learn corrective exercises to strengthen these muscles as well as bring them together. 

Sciatica pain is caused by pressure of the enlarging uterus or baby on nerves that pass through the lower spine into the legs. This pain can travel from the back or thigh all the way down to the feet or toes. It can be severe and associated with other strange sensations like tingling or numbness.

REMEDIES

Watch your weight gain. Remember, under normal circumstances, you only need to gain 3-6 pounds during the first trimester and ½-1 pound per week thereafter, for a grand total of 25-35 pounds. The following strategies should be sufficient to maintain ideal weight throughout your pregnancy:

• Regular moderate exercise (like brisk walking, cycling, swimming or dancing) for at least 30 minutes 5 days per week.

• Practicing yoga postures modified for pregnancy, aimed specifically to help with your specific location of pain. Good examples are spinal twists, hamstring stretches and hip openers for sciatica; or down dog, forward bends, cat/cow, puppy, bridge, plank, triangle, sphinx, cobra, thread the needle and spinal twists to stretch and strengthen lower back. 

• A healthy diet high in fresh organic fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, beans, seeds, tempeh, whole organic eggs, beef, chicken or turkey, wild Alaskan salmon, and whole fresh raw goat or sheep dairy.

• Reduced intake of sugar, white flour, refined vegetable oils and partially hydrogenated fat, refined processed and deep fried foods.

• Consumption of at least 64 ounces of filtered, spring or well water daily, between meals (at least 20-30 minutes before or 2 hours after eating).

Make sure you are eating enough calcium (found in whole dairy foods—ideally goat or sheep, sardines, wild caught salmon, ground sesame seeds/tahini, and dark green leafy vegetables excluding spinach) and magnesium (abundant in fresh green vegetables, apples, wheat germ, seeds, and nuts). You also need sufficient vitamin C, D, E , and B complex easily absorbed from a well-balanced whole food diet as well as natural prenatal supplements to provide needed nourishment not obtained by food alone. If you have inflammation, especially if your pain is more chronic, you may benefit from anti inflammatory diet and supplements adapted for pregnancy. Load up on the tumeric in your cooking!

BETTER BODY MECHANICS FOR PAIN REDUCTION

Know your pregnant body’s limits and pay attention to what your symptoms are telling you. Take frequent breaks or rest periods if you need to be on your feet for prolonged periods of time. Cut down on nonessential burdens in your life and be clear about your priorities. It is OK to say “no” or to leave the housework, pile of papers and long ‘to-do’ list for tomorrow, or better let most of it go, and/or delegate to someone else. Don’t be afraid to ask family or friends to help with chores or child care, or treat yourself to hired help and healthy take-out meals.

Avoid fatigue by making sure you are getting extra needed sleep by going to bed earlier, sleeping later, or taking naps. Rest on a firm supportive mattress or use a bed board, and sleep with pillows positioned to straighten your back and alleviate strain or pulling. Some women find the floor or a futon helpful. Use full body or pregnancy pillows for additional support.

Pay deliberate attention to your posture, especially when standing or walking, by lifting your abdomen up and in (bringing pelvic bone towards breast bone and using your muscles to corset your ribs inward), tucking your pelvis slightly up and in to minimize the arch in your lower back, and relaxing your shoulders down. Even when sitting, take care not to slump by using your abdominal muscles to lift up and keep your back straight. Sit on harder, more supportive chairs. Even better, ditch chairs and squat with your pelvis supported on a yoga block or your heels supported by a wedged yoga blanket. Use an ergonomic work station or standing desk, resting alternate feet on a foot stool while standing for extra relief on your back muscles. The foot stool will also come in handy during labor and life as a mom. 

Walk barefoot while home, and wear supportive, well-fitting comfortable flat or rocker bottom shoes when out. Save the high heels until after the baby.

Avoid heavy lifting. Spread out grocery store purchases into several bags and take more trips carrying a lighter load instead of a heavier one all at once. Better yet, ask for help.

Watch your body mechanics by using your stronger stomach, arm, and leg muscles not your weaker back to lift, pull, or push something. Instead of bending at the waist or lifting abruptly, bend at the knees with a broad base and lift carefully. Instead of reaching for an object, come closer to it. Turn and twist more slowly and with caution. If a particular action feels even a bit uncomfortable, STOP!

Take extra precautions during activities requiring balance and walking on wet, icy or slippery surfaces. Remember your sense of balance is changed, your gait is more awkward and you have an increased tendency to fall. Use a non-skid floor mat in the bath and shower.

If you can not tolerate your usual exercise routine, do regular but more gentle exercise. Take a prenatal dance class, gentle yoga, or a pregnancy exercise class. A good instructor can help you maintain proper posture, and learn how to strengthen your abdominal, back and extremity muscles. Swimming is another option, as it allows you to get great exercise without any weight on your back.

Put on a maternity support garment like Bellefit before you start each day, especially if you were out of shape before the pregnancy or have poor abdominal muscle tone after several children, if you are overweight, carrying a big baby or twins, or on your feet a lot. Many specialty stores stock lightweight maternity girdles with soft elastic fronts and an adjustable belt if you are looking for alternatives.

STRESS REDUCTION FOR PAIN REDUCTION

Emotions greatly influence nerve and muscle interaction. Try to put yourself in a more positive, joyful and calm state by reading uplifting books, watching movies and listening to podcasts that inspire or make you laugh, and spending time with those who bring out your finest moods.

Stress leads to increased muscle tension and pain. Although easier said than done, limit your stress and inner tension, and increase feelings of calm by taking a “healing interval” a few minutes several times each day. Sit quietly with your eyes closed and think and do absolutely nothing, meditate, practice breathwork or pray. Do regular yoga (especially Yin, prenatal, gentle and restorative), practice progressive muscle relaxation techniques (yoga nidra), QiGong, Tai Chi, or take a walk outside in nature. Read these recent blog posts on natural remedies for stress and ways to manage your emotions.

The following breathwork exercises are simple to do and can be done any time and place. For example, while traveling, waiting in line, resting, before rising in the morning and going to bed at night, in the bath, on the toilet, or whenever you feel stressed or triggered. 

When all is otherwise healthy and well, throughout all the exercises, practice embracing, relaxing into and even magnifying intense sensations without the mental story about them. Can you make friends with discomfort and pain, instead of trying to escape, numb or fight it? Is there something that they can teach you? Get curious about all of their details, including the borders or edges, and parts of you that feels good, or does not have unpleasant sensations. Yes there are remedies to help alleviate pain. But you will be amazed how effective this practice is, and how much it will help you to better cope with childbirth, as well as with the pain that is an inevitable part of being human. It is the suffering from the pain that is optional, so you can choose not to suffer.

Sit up straight but comfortably, with your eyes closed, internally keeping your gaze between your eyes, or open and focused on a nonmoving distant object or place. You can do this reclining, as long as you are not likely to fall asleep - the point is to be conscious throughout. While breathing be mindful, and just observe and release any muscle tension working your way slowly from head to toe. Practice Ujjai breathing. Breathe at the pace and depth that feels right for you, but by inhaling through your mouth or nose, directing the breath into the back of your throat which makes a sound like ocean waves (it is a calm, slow, and smooth circular version of gasping on inhale and fogging a mirror on exhale). This is meditation, combined with the benefits of breathwork.

Breath Awareness

Start with being more conscious about your breath, and simply focusing all of your attention on your breathing. Get curious about all the details of your sensations as you inhale and exhale, without trying to change anything. Notice what you are currently seeing, hearing, smelling, feeling, tasting. Just watch without judgment. This brings you to the present and is deliciously relaxing. 

Deep Abdominal Breathing

1. Exhale slowly with an audible sigh, releasing all muscle tension, especially in your jaw and breathing diaphragm muscle. 

2. Inhale slowly through your nose for a count of 4. Imagine a pump expanding your abdomen, and lower back, down to your pelvic floor, causing you to inhale. Allow ribs to expand with air, then inhale air into your upper chest towards your collarbone and shoulders.

3. Exhale slowly through your mouth for a count of 4. Release effortlessly, in the same order you inhaled, returning to baseline, your abdomen, ribs, then upper chest. With each exhalation, try to let go and relax even more.

4. Repeat this cycle a total of 8 times or at least a few minutes. You may need to play with counts, using a count of 3 or maybe even 5 or 6. But keep the counts of inhale the same as the counts of exhale.  

5. Then extend, or double the exhale. For example, if you are inhaling to a count or 3, exhale to a count of 6, or if you are inhaling to a count of 4, exhale to a count of 6. And repeat this cycle for several minutes.

Triangle Breathing

Inhale for a count of 3 or 4, exhale to the same count of 3 or 4, then pause for the same count of 3 or 4, while consciously and deeply relaxing your diaphragm muscle of respiration, as well as all other muscles.  Repeat for several cycles or a few minutes.

Box Breathing

Another great breathing technique that disengages your conscious attention from thought and relaxes the nervous system, and can be done any time, is box breathing. With this exercise, you add a timed pause between each inhalation and exhalation. 

1. Set a timer for 5-10 minutes.  

2. Inhale deeply into your belly as above for a count of 3.

3. Hold without tension for a count of 6.

4. Exhale to a count of 6 while consciously relaxing more and more.

5. Hold again without tension for a count of 3. 

6. Repeat until your timer chimes. You may love this so much you will want to do it longer.

Breathing In Varied Ratios

Play with the ratios and counts of inhalation, exhalation and the pauses in between them. For example, exhale slowly through your mouth with an audible sigh. Inhale slowly through your nose for a count of 4, hold for a count of 7, then exhale through your mouth for a count of 8. Repeat for a total of 8 cycles. 

Forced Exhalation Breathing

One more breathing exercise to try is forced exhalation: 

1. After a normal breath, try squeezing as much air out as possible using your intercostal muscles.

2. Next, allow the breath to come in naturally and deeply, but automatically. 

3. Repeat the cycle for several minutes or as long as you like.

See what feels best for you in each situation. Make these sorts of deep breathing and breath awareness practices, meditation and authentic yoga a regular part of your daily routine, even for 20-30 minutes. 

Practice abdominal breathing as much as possible so it becomes habitual. This is the ideal form of breathing, as opposed to rapid shallow breathing. Do this by imagining a pump expanding your abdomen and lower back, which causes you to inhale. The pump then releases effortlessly, which causes you to exhale. Then there is a natural pause until you need to inhale again. 

If you need video instruction, take my breathwork online course.

Don’t hesitate to schedule a session with me if you need more guidance with mastering breathwork and experiencing its transformative power.

Conscious Relaxation

Notice habits of increased muscle tension, especially around your upper back, shoulders, neck, forehead and jaw, and make an effort to release these tightened muscles while doing slow deep abdominal breathing. Ask someone to massage these areas or treat yourself to regular massage therapy.

It would be very beneficial to you if you could learn how to relax the muscles that are tensing up. It is an essential skill for labor and can be used in any stressful situation. Set aside a 10-15 minute time slot, like during one or two of your “healing intervals,” to focus on releasing all of your muscles:

1. Get into a comfortable position.

2. Breathe slowly and deeply while thinking about relaxing each muscle from your head down to your toes.

3. Visualize feeling heavy and limp like a rag doll, or like your napping dog or cat.

Life is stressful and always has been, and eliminating all outside stress is not an option. But you can learn to activate your own relaxation response and quiet your nervous system with breath work and awareness, meditation, imagery and visualization, progressive muscle relaxation, yoga, and self mastery over your thoughts and reactions to difficulties.

Minimize time online, especially addictive stressful apps, social media and computer games.Try to stay away from things, sounds and people that agitate your mind and raise your internal tension, and instead surround yourself as much as possible with calm centered people, things and sounds that inspire, relax and restore you to inner peace and serenity. Make a conscious effort to work on increasing your own feelings of forgiveness, appreciation, love, joy, optimism and healing, while letting go of anger, resentment, envy, fear, sadness and negativity.

Become conscious of anxiety provoking, tension causing thought patterns that are not serving you, and literally stop them. Shift your attention to something more positive like slow deep breathing, and ultimately change your inner mental state. You have the ability to alter your attitude and reaction to stressful life experiences with more health enhancing responses. For example, you can surrender to and totally accept unpleasant events over which you have no power, or you can view them as a wake-up call, an opportunity for personal growth and redirection. And you can always try to focus as much attention as possible on the present moment, literally without letting your thoughts wander into magnified past or imagined future.

For more information about this and other great ways to improve your physical and emotional well-being, read Natural Health, Natural Medicine by Dr. Andrew Weil, Practicing the Power Of  Now by Eckhart Tolle, Loving What Is by Byron Katie, and Prescriptions for Living by Dr. Bernie Siegel.

While it is not only helpful to express your troubling feelings to a sympathetic trained ear, it is  more effective to move these emotions through your body with Femme, Ecstatic Dance or Journey Dance and release them through conscious connected breathing type of breathwork. It is also critical to develop skills of self-mastery and empowerment.

HOME REMEDIES

Reputable brands of the supplements and remedies I recommend include Innate Response, Wish Garden, Gaia, Herb Pharm, Wise Woman Herbals, Pure Encapsulations and Eclectic Institute, or any of those in my online holistic apothecary.

When your back hurts, allow time to rest and get into a position that eases the pain. Some women find stretching or pelvic rocking helpful. Take slow deep breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth, and focus on releasing your tense muscles head to toe. Most often pain from muscle spasms heals with rest, excellent self care and time.

One of the most pleasant ways to relieve backache is a massage to the painful area, with arnica oil, mixed with a dropperful each of St John’s wort topical oil, cramp bark and lobelia tinctures. Massage the mixture lovingly into your deep muscle, ligament and joint aches and strains. Try any of the following and regularly use what works best for you: Essential oils of Ginger, Juniper, Cinnamon, Lavender, Marjoram, Chamomile, Lemon Balm/Melissa, Wintergreen, Spearmint or Rosemary can be diluted within it, alone or in combination. You can also apply Comfrey ointment, rubs of Tiger Balm, or Olbas herbal combination. Chinese herbal Zheng Gu Shui can also help, or any product that contains these soothing herbs. 

After the massage, apply locally a  hot or cold pack, heating pad, hot water bottle, herbal infused hot or cold pack, or try moist heat using a hot damp towel or packs from a hydrocollator (what the professional chiropractors, massage and physical therapists use). Take a hot shower or soak in a very warm Epsom Salts bath for ½ hour with a few drops of any of the above essential oils or add a wonderful Swiss Olbas herbal combination.

Some find that ice packs or cool compresses helps to relieve the pain, especially during the first 24 hours after an injury. For acute spasm and inflammation of your back muscles, apply an ice pack off and on for the first 12-24 hours. Once the pain begins to subside, apply moist heat. Complete rest in positions that feel best are essential for the first 1-2 days. Sometimes the only tolerable position is lying flat on your back on the floor with your buttocks up against a bed or chair and your legs raised at a right angle with your calves resting on the mattress or seat, or lying flat on your yoga mat in Legs Up The Wall, Viparita Karini. Props like yoga blankets, bolsters or blocks make postures more accessible, passive, comfortable and restorative. In this case, use them to support your lower back and head, and elevate your hips. Legs Up The Wall is done lying down flat on your back with your buttocks all the way to the wall, or elevated on a folded yoga blanket, bolster or block. Let your legs rest straight up the wall for 10-20 minutes. It is also a great opportunity for practicing quiet meditation, focusing on slow deep breathing and inner gazing between your eyebrows. A lavender infused eye pillow adds to the yummy relaxation effect.

Use a TENS unit, which relieves back pain of pregnancy, and can also help in labor.

Take a dropperful of Cramp Bark tincture every hour x 4, then 2-4 times per day for no more than a 1-2 weeks, and 1-2 dropperfuls each of St. John’s Wort and Skullcap tinctures 1-3 times daily for several weeks. You can also take Ginger to reduce inflammation and pain 500-1000 mg once or twice per day until you feel better. Place 4-5 pellets of homeopathic Arnica 30c under your tongue every hour while awake, every few hours the next day, then 3-4 times per day for a week. Discontinue topical BenGay or Tiger Balm, if it lessens the effect of your homeopathic remedy. 

Chamomile, Lavender or Lemon Balm tea are good options for relaxation and helping to soothe tension related pain.

It is currently considered medically OK to take an occasional dose of acetaminophen (Tylenol), or an occasional ibuprofen (Advil) in the first or second trimester only. But it really is less toxic to avoid these medications which are not as benign as we have been led to believe. Do avoid other drugs before consulting with your practitioner, since many are not safe for use during pregnancy (including aspirin, certain muscle relaxants, and anti-inflammatory medications). Instead, try a turmeric latte for its inflammatory benefits, and Curcumin (turmeric) is researched as being as effective as many common over the counter analgesics.

Avoid hot tubs and whirlpools because getting your body to such high temperatures without allowing you to sweat to cool your body down may not be safe for the baby. 

For SPD (Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction):

This can happen when the ligaments and joints connecting the bones of the pelvis become so lax that the pelvic bones go easily out of alignment. It can create very intense pain, especially in the pubic area, and a sense that the pelvic bones are breaking apart even though this is extremely rare and they are really not.  

Typical general advice usually given to women includes avoiding activities like strenuous exercise, prolonged standing, vacuum cleaning, stretching exercises and squatting. Women are also frequently advised to: 

• Have regular chiropractic or osteopathic care.

• Brace the pelvic floor muscles before performing any activity that might cause pain using your mula bandha (yoga root lock), and stabilize your pelvic bones with a support belt or belly band. You can also use a belly support garment called Baby Hugger, which uses straps and Velcro over the shoulders and under the belly to use the shoulders to assist in carrying the weight of the baby. This prevents the baby from resting entirely on the pelvis. I joke that the Baby Hugger is Industrial Grade Lingerie, especially when paired with thigh high compression stockings, but I can attest it is helpful for SP pain.

• Rest the pelvis.

• Sit down for tasks where possible.

• Avoid lifting and carrying. 

• Avoid stepping over things. 

• Bend the knees and keep the legs 'glued together' when turning in bed and getting in and out of bed. 

• Place a pillow between the legs when in bed or resting. 

• Avoid twisting movements of the body. 

• Avoid straddle movements especially when weight bearing. 

• When rolling over in bed, go belly DOWN, not UP. 

The sign I look for that means there is a true separation and not just inflammation and pain (tenderness to touch) is walking backwards is easier than walking forwards. 

If the pain is very severe, you may benefit from physical therapy. Using elbow crutches will help take the weight off the pelvis and assist with mobility. Alternatively, for more extreme cases a wheelchair may be considered advisable. 

It is usually recommended that women with SPD give birth in an upright position, with knees slightly apart, and it is often suggested that a woman tie a ribbon to both legs to ensure that the gap never exceeds her maximum comfort zone. 

Practices such as placing the feet on the provider’s hips during delivery, stirrups, and interventions such as forceps should be avoided in the delivery room if at all possible, as they can strain ligaments further and cause long term problems. If stirrups must be used, for example during suturing, great care must be taken to move the legs in symmetry, maneuvering them gently into position.

It doesn't always get worse with birth, so I have learned not to be fearful about it and to use hands/knees, side-lying with knees together or upright. Avoid squatting, lunging and pushing on one’s back.

For those with any sort of chronic musculoskeletal pain in which serious causes have been ruled out and none of the natural or allopathic remedies help, get to the root cause and avoid getting dependent on pharmaceuticals and surgery unless absolutely necessary. Consider reading the book The Mindbody Prescription By Dr John Sarno, MD. He is an amazing pioneering physician whose brilliant approach has helped hundreds of thousands of people without drugs, physical measure or surgery. 

To release stress and trauma energy often responsible for chronic issues, do conscious connected Clarity breathwork and experience miraculous healing and transformation. Also check out Brandon Bays’ book The Journey, and her website. These are all extremely effective mind-body cutting edge methods that have also lead to transformational healing for thousands of people around the world.

As always, if you need more guidance, schedule a consultation with me.

Remember that not all aches and pains can be blamed on pregnancy. Consult your practitioner if:

• The above suggestions do not help.

• The pain is different than usual, or is severe, persistent, or continuous.

• Pain is associated with other unusual symptoms like fever, chills, changes in bowel or bladder habits, vaginal bleeding or leaking of water-like fluid.

• You experience regular pelvic pressure, uterine hardening or cramping.

• You have a local area of increased pain, redness, swelling, and redness on your leg.

• Normal movement becomes difficult.

• You have a history of serious back problems, injury, or surgery.

Prenatal & Mindful Hatha Flow Yoga Class Series Online Course

$147.00

This course has 16 yoga classes plus bonus material:

• Seven ~ 60-80 minute Prenatal Yoga classes

• Seven ~ 60-80 minute Mindful Hatha Flow Yoga classes

• A soothing Gentle Slow Flow Yoga class

• A Restorative Yoga class for deep relaxation

• Bonus videos of an hour Live more advanced Vinyasa Class, shorter breaks of yoga anywhere anytime, use of props - like the wall, a chair, yoga blocks, yoga belts, yoga blankets and bolsters to enhance your practice, and practicing with your baby or pet.

The prenatal yoga 7 class series will invite you to grow, strengthen, focus, train and enhance your mind, body, heart and spirit. Discover for yourself the calming, healing and transformative power of yoga - intentional meditative movement with breath. Classes begin with meditation made simple using breathwork, gradual warm up, increasing difficulty as well as yoga play, gentle cool down, and end with restorative practices in deep relaxation. They are slow flowing, with space to explore specific poses but are meant to challenge you. Classes are different each session, with classical fundamental alignment based asana fused with modern postures and their many modifications and varied creative transitions. The classes are taught with modifications for pregnancy, incorporate positions for positively influencing baby’s position and active birthing as well as those to relieve common discomforts in pregnancy. They also are fused with meditative, breathwork and visualization techniques and tools for coping with and easing sensations of labor and birth, which will transform your childbirth experience with regular practice.

The seven classes are there for you to practice a different class each day of the week or according to your own frequency, then start over again from the beginning of the series. Each class ranges from on average 60 minutes to 80 minutes, and they build on each other; following the sequence from class 1 onward is advised if it is your first time taking the series or are a beginning practitioner. Classes are mindful, at a slow safe pace, gentle but challenging, so that you build strength, flexibility & agility. They start with the basics but are for all levels, and beginners too are welcome! If you are not pregnant, you can use the prenatal classes as beginner classes, just modify as needed and use any mention of pregnancy and labor as it pertains to any labor of your own life. The need to relax into intensity and the multiple benefits of yoga practice pertain to everyone. Or simply take the general Mindful Hatha Flow Yoga Class Series online course.

Once you hone your skills, you can take the Mindful Hatha Flow 7 Class Series that follows, doing your own modifications as needed - for pregnancy or wherever you are on your yoga journey, or simply start them after you are recovered postpartum. They also build on one another and can be practiced successively until you are ready to mix and match and create your own classes and practice schedule.

Additional videos are included to enhance your practice with use of the various props, as well as a soothing gentle slow flow class and a restorative yoga class for deep relaxation (great for evening!), shorter breaks of doing it anywhere and anytime, and a live bonus video of a more advanced class.

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Introduction to Clarity Breathwork Online Course

$47.00

Clarity Breathwork is the most empowering, transformative experience I’ve ever been through in my entire life.

Clarity Breathwork uses breath as a powerful medicine, which releases trapped trauma energy, psychic pain and stress that is stored in your body - without having to talk or think much about it.

It is a direct path to more energy and vitality, lasting inner calm and joy, better health and enhanced relationships.

What's Included:

• Welcome and Overview

• Breathing Exercises Companion Guide

• About Clarity Breathwork

• 15 x Breathing Exercises with step-by-step videos demonstrating each technique

• BONUS VIDEOS:

  • Introduction to Breathwork Positions

  • Breathwork Positions with Yoga Props.

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