TUNING INTO THE LANGUAGE OF YOUR BODY

Do you ever notice the tendency to lower the lights when you have a headache? What about the way your hands just naturally find their way to to your hips or lower back if you’re feeling discomfort there? Maybe you’ve noticed yourself swaying side to side a little when you’ve been on your feet for a long time. Do you notice how much better you feel when you’re hydrated and nourished? 

Nothing encourages you to listen to your body quite like pregnancy. Some folks notice things pop up right from the start while others don’t notice it until their body has made significant change (although isn’t it all significant?). 

We may not always know what they’re  trying to tell us right away, but our bodies generally do a pretty good job of telling us what they need. We just need to tune in and listen. 

One of the biggest pieces of advice I give my clients is just that.  Tune in and listen. If you can learn the language of your body it will carry you a long way during your labor and birth.  This is most evident in the way you respond as it surges with energy and tightens with tension. 

What you do with that energy can help shift the direction of your labor and directly affect how you cope with these changes within.  How can you move? How can you breathe? Do you need to be in a more enclosed space? Maybe we should lower the lights. Maybe we need to ask some folks to leave the room. Perhaps shifting your position with that next surge of energy will change the way you’re coping. 

Each body and each baby is different. There is no secret formula-no one right way. Just take a moment and shift your focus to what the sensations in your body are telling you. If this isn’t something you’re used to doing, take a few moments out of your day to just be with your body. You may be surprised at what you learn. 

If this is a regular practice for you, please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below. You never know who may need to read it today.