Pregnancy is a time to relax into your body and learn to truly care for yourself.  Regular massage therapy is an excellent way to tune in to your body and allow yourself to be nurtured, but it can be expensive to receive consistant bodywork.   That's why we've started a pregnancy massage clinic at Harmony Healing Arts.  For six hours a week we offer 60 minute massage sessions for pregnant women by donation.  Nobody is turned away.   This time in your life is unique and brief, and a time when there are endless shifts and changes physically and emotionally.  Massage can help relieve stress, soothe sore muscles, and fulfill our deep need to be taken care of. 

Going into labor and motherhood feeling relaxed and deeply connected with your body is ideal for a smooth transition through birth and into caring for your newborn.  This is an offering to our community of mothers, and we hope you'll take us up on the offer!

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       Women need the constant support of experienced women when they give birth.   Studies have shown that simply having a calm, present woman sitting in the room while labor is happening will reduce the need for  interventions and unplanned medical procedures.  A doula can be that calm, present woman, and she is trained to provide emotional support for a women experiencing fear, discouragement, and fatigue.  Doulas also provide physical support, in the forms of massage, breathing practices, suggestions for change of position, and many other helpful techniques to help mamas relax and release to the flow of birth energy.

      Many couples have experienced discomfort at having a doula present, as she may not be a close friend.  There is a sense that perhaps the nurses will provide the needed female support.  Nurses are indeed wonderful and helpful, but unfortunately, they  have many people to care for at once, are in charge of taking diligent notes and may have little experience with natural birth.  Some nurses feel more comfortable administering drugs than foot massage.  Your doctor will most likely communicate with the hospital staff by telephone until the birth is imminent, unless there is some complication. 

      A doula will meet with you ahead of time to get to know who you are and what you are comfortable with.  She will discuss your fears and plans with you, and she will come to your home when labor begins to help you decide when to go to the hospital.  She will remain by your side, offering words of encouragement, suggestions for your partner, loving touch, and whatever you might need.

   Some hospitals, like The Ashland Community Hospital in Ashland, OR, provide doulas for their patients upon request, free of charge.  Even though she may not be a familiar face when she arrives, the hospital doula provides excellent support and is your friend, advocate and wonderful, calm presence.

These are some statistics for birth with a doula present:

• 50% reduction in the cesarean rate
• 25% shorter labor
• 60% reduction in epidural requests
• 40% reduction in oxytocin use
• 30% reduction in analgesia use
• 40% reduction in forceps delivery

Information was obtained from Mothering the Mother: How a Doula Can HelpYou Have a Shorter Easier and Healthier Birth, Klaus, Kennell, and Klaus (1993).

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       What more could a pregnant woman ask for than to spend an hour being kneaded and stretched, cradled and rocked?  I have discovered a new passion for giving massage since finding Thai massage.  I not only move the client's joints through a dynamic range of motion, but my own body gets to stretch and balance, while moving from a core centered place.  It is a wonderful practice of mindful movement, yoga.

       I am now discovering the freedom that this style of bodywork lends to pregnancy massage.  This work is intimate, a whole body integrated experience.  I can release her hip while cradling a leg and massaging a shoulder all at the same time, in a rhythmic wave of movement.   It is impossible not to let go and relax, since the mind can't keep track of it all.   Since she is fully clothed, I can move my body and hers to access all of the areas of tension without breaking the flow to uncover individual body parts. 

       During this incredible time in a woman's life, she deserves loving touch, the experience of being held and nurtured.  I feel blessed to be able to offer this experience and to receive the many benefits of giving.

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