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Medical - Pregnancy Massage
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Description
When nestled with pillows or other specialty cushions into a side-lying
or semi-reclining position, most women are more comfortable for the 30-60
minutes of a typical massage session. A pregnant woman can expect to enjoy
many of the same techniques, draping, and professional demeanor offered all
massage therapy clients. The lower back, hips, and neck benefit from
sensitively applied deep tissue, neuromuscular, and movement therapy. Edema
in the legs and arms may be relieved with the gliding and kneading strokes
of Swedish or lymphatic drainage massage. Pregnant women should expect a
thorough Health and prenatal intake interview with their therapists. Cost,
procedures, and insurance coverage are similar to those for other massage
client populations.
Key Benefits
- Reduction of anxiety
- Reduced physical discomfort
- Increase in body awareness.
- Addressing of edema; foot, leg, or hand discomforts; and pain in the
lower back, pelvis, or hips.
Treatment Data
Please read this additional information...
Definition
Pregnancy massage is the prenatal use of massage therapy to support the
physiologic, structural, and emotional well-being of both mother and fetus.
Various forms of massage therapy, including Swedish, deep tissue,
neuromuscular, movement, and Oriental-based therapies, may be applied
throughout pregnancy as well as during labor and the postpartum period.
Origins
Cultural and anthropological studies indicate that massage and movement
during the childbearing experience were and continue to be a prominent part
of many cultures' Health care. Indian Ayurvedic medical manuals detail
therapists' instructions for rubbing specially formulated oils into pregnant
patients' stretched abdominal skin. Traditional sculptures depict Eskimo
fathers supporting and lovingly stroking their laboring wives' backs. In
certain Irish hospitals laboring women are held and touched by a doula
(labor assistant) or midwife through most of their notably short,
uncomplicated labors. For billions of women, over thousand of years,
midwives' highly developed hands-on skills have provided loving support and
eased childbearing discomforts. As massage therapy resumes its place within
Western Healthcare methods, pregnancy massage is becoming one of its fastest
growing specialized applications.
Benefits
Profound physiologic, functional, emotional, relational, and lifestyle
changes occur during gestation and labor, often creating high stress levels.
Too much stress can negatively affect maternal and infant Health, resulting
in reduced uterine blood supply and higher incidence of miscarriage,
prematurity, and other complications. Massage therapy can help a woman
approach her due date with less anxiety as well as less physical discomfort.
Even apart from easing specific aches, massage can act as an overall tonic
and increase the expectant mother's body awareness.
Massage therapy can address the various physical challenges of pregnancy:
edema; foot, leg, or hand discomforts; and pain in the lower back, pelvis,
or hips. Swedish massage may facilitate gestation by supporting cardiac
function, placental and mammary development, and increasing cellular
respiration. It can also reduce edema and high blood pressure as well as
contribute to sympathetic nervous system sedation. Deep tissue, trigger
point, and both active and passive movements alleviate stress on
weight-bearing joints, muscles, and fascial tissues to reduce neck and back
pain caused by poor posture and strain on the uterine ligaments. During
labor, women whose partners use basic massage strokes on their backs and
legs have shorter, less complicated labors. After the baby's birth, massage
therapy can gently facilitate the body's return to its pre-pregnancy state,
alleviate pain, foster a renewed sense of body and self, and help maintain
flexibility despite the physical stresses of infant care. For post-Caesarean
mothers, specific therapeutic techniques can also reduce scar tissue
formation and facilitate the healing of the incision and related soft tissue
areas.
Preparations
In addition to the preparations listed in the massage therapy entry, some
expectant women will be asked to secure a release from their maternity
Healthcare provider, especially those with complications or high risk
factors.
Precautions
In addition to those listed in the massage therapy entry, the following
other precautions are prudent:
- The abdomen should be touched only superficially with a flat, gentle
hand.
- Any pressure applied to the inner leg should also be superficial.
- Women who must be on bed rest for any complication are at higher risk
of blood clots forming in their legs; therefore, most massage of the legs
should be avoided.
- Massage is safest when a woman is either lying on the side or propped
semi-sitting at a 45-70 degree angle rather than lying on her back or
belly.
Because there are many other specific body areas and types of techniques
that must be avoided or modified according to an individual woman's Health
condition, advanced specialized training of the therapist and consultation
with her physician or midwife are highly recommended. It is better to avoid
massage if the woman has vaginal bleeding, abdominal pain, or diarrhea.
Side effects
There are no known side effects to receiving appropriate prenatal massage
therapy.
Research & general acceptance
Current research on the benefits of touch is providing a contemporary
basis for its reintroduction into maternity care. Scientists have found that
rats restricted from cutaneous self-stimulation had poorly developed
placentas and 50% less mammary gland development. Their litters were often
ill, stillborn, or died shortly after birth due to poor mothering skills.
Women who are nauseated and/or vomiting prenatally experienced a decrease in
these discomforts when they applied finger pressure to a specific
acupuncture point (acupressure) on their forearm several times each day.
Pregnant women massaged twice weekly for five weeks experienced less
anxiety, leg, and back pain. When compared with control groups who practiced
relaxation exercises only, the women who had had massage reported better
sleep and improved moods, and their labors had fewer complications,
including fewer premature births. Studies show that when women receive
nurturing touch during later pregnancy, they touch their babies more
frequently and lovingly. During labor the presence of a doula, a woman
providing physical and emotional support, including extensive touching and
massage, reduces the length of labor and number of complications,
interventions, medications, and Caesarean sections.
Training & certification
Some massage therapy schools include comprehensive courses in pregnancy
massage therapy. More often, however, therapists receive only introductory
guidance in maternity applications during their 500-1000 hours of basic
training and then pursue specialization certification in pre- and perinatal
massage therapy. Several nationwide programs offer such advanced training in
24-34 hour workshop programs.
Key Terms
- Doula - A woman who assists an expectant mother with physical and
emotional support during labor.
- Edema - An abnormal accumulation of fluid in specific parts of the
body, causing swelling of the area. Many women experience edema of the
wrists and ankles during pregnancy.
Further Reading
For Your Information
Books
- Curties, Debra. Breast Massage. Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada:
Curties-Overzet Publications Inc., 1999.
- Goldsmith, Judith. Childbirth Wisdom. New York: Congdon and Weed,
1984.
- Klaus, Marshall H., M.D., John H. Kennell, M.D., and Phyllis H. Klaus,
M.Ed. Mothering the Mother. New York: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company,
1993.
- Osborne-Sheets, Carole. Pre- and Perinatal Massage Therapy: A
Comprehensive Practitioners' Guide to Pregnancy, Labor, and Postpartum.
San Diego: Body Therapy Associates, 1998.
- Rich, Laurie. When Pregnancy Isn't Perfect. New York: Dutton, 1991.
- Samuels, Mike, and Nancy Samuels. The New Well Pregnancy Book. New
York: Fireside, 1996.
- Yates, John, PhD. A Physician's Guide to Therapeutic Massage: Its
Physiological Effects and Their Application to Treatment. Vancouver, BC:
Massage Therapists' Association of British Columbia, 1999.
Organizations
- National Association of Pregnancy Massage Therapy. (888) 451-4945.
Source: Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine. Gale
Group, 2001.
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