Womb to Bloom - Maternity & Beyond

With the sudden influx of new worries and concerns, you may find yourself overwhelmed by stress during your pregnancy. It's natural to be both excited and insecure at the same time when you are going through so many changes and preparing for an even bigger transition, but being under an extreme level of stress during your pregnancy can affect your baby as well. Please don't let that idea contribute to even more unnecessary stress! There are numerous methods that you can use to ease your mind and alleviate all of the pressure and tension you may be feeling.

Your stress-relief technique can be just as unique as you are; there are various methods that you can try to find what works for you. Simply, choose something that you will enjoy. If walking takes your mind off things and gives you some time to just Be, that may be the perfect stress management technique for you. If you can lose yourself singing or reading a book, it may be a great way to decrease your worries.

There are of course other stress-relief techniques that require a bit more effort for you to have any success. Meditation and Yoga are a couple of methods that can work wonderfully if you work them, but if you have trouble controlling your own mind, it can be much more difficult to use techniques like these. When performed regularly and effectively however, you can really get to the bottom of your stress and create a very healthy and positive outlook and a feeling of well-being.

I was always intrigued and curious about meditation as a child, from the time I saw Splinter, a talking rat on my older brother's "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" cartoon, sitting in a state of quiet meditation and being interrupted by his four students, turtles dressed in ninja costumes. He portrayed such a calm, enlightened attitude even in dire situations and was always able to guide the turtles down the right path. I tried in vain, sitting silent and cross-legged with my eyes closed, wondering all the time why I wasn't getting any results.

Years later, I'm still not able to attain the spiritual enlightenment I have sought, but I've learned that the key is not to think. You can't dive into meditation and expect to see instant results, but by practicing you can decrease your stress level and atleast attain some mental and emotional balance. It's important to start with simple breathing techniques. Be aware of your breathing, concentrate on it and drive any other thoughts out of your mind. You may not be able to completely keep yourself from having thoughts, but you can correct yourself when your mind starts to wander, and bring your attention back to your breathing.

Start by counting how long you inhale, hold your breath for a moment, and then exhale for the same count that you inhaled. Some people suggest to try and breathe slowly, inhaling to the count of 5, holding for 2, and then exhaling as you count to 5 again, but we're not all the same. The most important thing is that you are breathing naturally and comfortably, if you're comfortable only inhaling and exhaling for 3 seconds that is the rate that is right for you.

Over time, as you relax and get accustomed to your breathing technique, you can start breathing more slowly. You can also begin to formulate a visualization exercise that will make you feel more at ease, for instance while you are breathing you can also envision yourself at the top of a staircase, stepping down gradually as you become more relaxed. Or you can imagine yourself in a boat, drifting across a body of water to an island that you will reach as you go deeper into your meditation.

In short, your stress-relief exercises should suit your needs. You can read about different techniques, but don't try to adhere to a strict method that worked for someone else. You are a unique individual and your relaxation program should be just as special as you are!