Shiatsu during pregnancy - Flexibility
November 29th, 2007Another post about pregnancy from Dinah; this time talking a bit about flexibility. I wrote a little about keeping your back and hips flexible which is more applicable if you aren’t pregnant :).
During pregnancy, production of the hormone relaxin is stepped up considerably. As its name suggests, it relaxes ligaments and tendons, in preparation for the expansion of the pelvis that is required during childbirth. Unfortunately, like so many pregnancy hormones, it affects the whole body! So it loosens up tendons everywhere, and pregnant women will find that they are more flexible. However, be careful not to overstretch your joints! This is also something a shiatsu practitioner will be careful not to do while working on a pregnant client.
On the other hand, relaxin should make it easier to crouch and squat, which are good positions to practise, for two reasons. Obviously it may well be useful during childbirth, so that gravity can help (as opposed to the trapped-on-your-back-in-stirrups position)…But long before that happy day, you will find that bending at the middle — to tie your shoes or pick up something on the floor, for example — becomes uncomfortable. The solution is to get someone else to do these tasks for you! Or, bend at the knees instead, sink into a squat, and you will find this places less strain on your back as well as getting your hands closer to your goal.
If you have overstretched or pulled a tendon, a supportive shiatsu treatment can help by strengthening the meridian flow around the affected joints, making you feel more ‘held together’.
Tags:flexibility, pregnant, relaxin
