Can Mindfulness Help You To Enjoy Your Pregnancy and Birth?
We all have the natural ability to be mindful. Even if you’ve never ‘tried’, it’s likely that you’ve definitely done it! Think about the last time something stopped you in your tracks - It could have been a child laughing uncontrollably, a dog hanging happily out of a car window, the taste of a cold drink on a hot day… In these moments, we’ve stopped to think about them, and enjoy them. They’re not necessarily out of the ordinary events, but something made them fill our mind, and blocked out everything else going on around us.
This is essentially what being mindful is. Focussing in on what we are doing or what is happening at that moment, so that we can create space for ourselves to enjoy it and savour it.
The reason mindfulness has become such a ‘thing’, is because as a culture, we are the busiest we have ever been; we are more distracted and overwhelmed with a fast paced life. So, mindfulness is there to help us to stop, think, and just be.
When you are growing a baby, A LOT happens to your body and your mind. Most of the time, our busy lifestyle continues until we finish for maternity leave right before we’re due to give birth. No extra head space is given to this life changing event that is, growing a human being. Being mindful of what’s happening on a day to day basis (and not just at midwife appointments!) can help you to manage and appreciate this phenomenon that ultimately, we were created for.
If you’re still not convinced it’s for you, here are 3 things that may turn you around:
It’s FREE! You don’t need to buy anything. You can practice anywhere, there’s no need to go out and buy a special chair or mat, all you need is to devote a little time to it each day.
You don’t need to be a meditation guru! There is a myth that you need to be able to zone out of everything completely. Really, there is no way to quieten your mind, and that’s not even the goal. There’s no bliss state or outer body experience. All you’re trying to do is pay attention to the present moment, whatever that may be.
It’s ok if your mind wanders! As you practice paying attention to what’s going on in your body and mind at any given moment, you’ll find that many thoughts arise. Your baby may give a bigger kick than usual, you might hear a sound that triggers another thought—your mind will try to be anywhere but where you are. But the wandering mind isn’t something to fear, it’s part of human nature. Mindfulness is the moment when you recognize that your mind has wandered. If you can notice that your mind has wandered, then you can consciously bring it back to the present moment. The more you do this, the more likely you are to be able to do it again and again, and without even trying. And that’s so much more enjoyable than walking around on autopilot every day (for example, getting to your destination without remembering the drive, finding yourself with your hand in the bottom of a crisp packet you only meant to snack a little from, etc.).
In pregnancy, we get A LOT of new information. Sometimes information leads to ‘What Ifs’ and ‘Buts’. Mindfulness will help you to deter anxiety, by keeping you in the present moment and help you to not worry about situations that may not even happen. Hypnobirthing tools will prepare you to keep relaxed if anything does arise, so by equipping yourself with the two, you will be one chilled and prepared Mama! In hypnobirthing, we use the sensation of the breath as an anchor to the present moment. Every time we recognize our minds have wandered and we return to the breath, we reinforce our ability to do it again. You could think of it as a bicep curl for your brain.
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