Pre-Natal Massage: Preparing for the Rigors of Labor

Most women who have gone through the rigors of pregnancy and childbirth are familiar with the aches and pains that become a normal part of life afterward. For many women, for example, lower back pain starts during or after the birth of their first child. Neck and hip pain is also common during and after pregnancy.

This is why it is so important for women to have a pre-natal massage before they have given birth. Not only can it help reduce the aches and pains associated with the pregnancy, but it can also help to condition the mom-to-be for the rigorous activity that is childbirth. As the child is brought into the world, many muscles that have never been used are activated for the first time ever.

Uterine muscles, whose sole purpose is to birth a child, will suddenly become extremely active, as the new baby is pushed out of the womb. The activity is strenuous, as the muscles must contract forcefully enough to be successful in pushing the new baby into the world. This leads very often to fatigue in these very muscles, which most women have never noticed or knew they had. So there will now be new pains in places that were not ever an issue before.

Pre-natal massage can help to reduce some of this future pain, with gentle and careful abdominal massage, as well as other techniques. Some pre-natal massage therapists can assist with helping the mom-to-be relax the muscles in the pelvic floor region, thereby allowing the muscles of the uterus to be assisted and not have to push so hard. When the pelvic floor is relaxed, there will be less force needed to push the baby out. This is undoubtedly an overlooked benefit of pre-natal massage for new moms.

Other benefits include overall relaxation, reduction in some lower back pain and shoulder pain, as well as postural guidance by a pre-natal certified massage therapist.

If you would like more information on pre-natal massage therapy, please visit our website by clicking here.