A Simple 3 Step Breathing Technique to Reduce Stress

Step 1: Through the nose, breathe into your abdomen and allow the air to enter into the depths of the abdomen. The belly should expand outward.

Step 2: Then breathe into the chest, allowing the air to widen the sides of your chest. You may feel an expansion in your back which is excellent as well.

Step 3: Finally let the air fill the upper chest to the collar bone. With relaxation as the fundamental principle, exhale the breath to a natural pause and begin again.

The beauty of this exercise is the downward movement of air into the sole of the abdomen and the lateral push of air against the sides of the lower chest. Such a technique honors the deep in deep breathing. There are hundreds of benefits to deep breathing, not just to reduce stress:

Massage of the Organs • Oxygenation • Circulation • Relaxation • Expansion of Lung Capacity • Clears Mucus and Bronchial Obstructions • Assists Posture • Clearer Thinking • Sleep Aid • Enhances Digestion • Releases Tension in the Spine • Grounding • Increased Blood Flow • Reduces Toxic Buildup • Helps Clear Infection • Increased Energy

How to Describe Birth to a First-Time Pregnant Woman

I’ll come straight to the point: There is a severe lack of women on this planet who enjoy their birthing experience, let alone walking away from it with a profound depth of empowerment. What is going so wrong? When I tried to talk to mothers in my life about birth during my first pregnancy, little was shared. Time and time again I was met with an awkward smile, and these forced words: “You’ll be fine.” Unfortunately, to me those words only seemed to have the opposite of their intended effect.

Though the words were an attempt at comfort and support, which I appreciated, the energy behind that statement came across more like sympathy, as these women couldn’t help but relive their own experiences, which to them would translate to my experience.

The word “risk” places a dark shadow over the word “birth.” Why has this come to be? How differently would we feel about birth if we were exposed to the truth on a daily basis? The ratings just aren’t there for the tabloid headlines which read: “Mother gives birth to healthy baby—again.” Or “Mother went into labor spontaneously, listened to her body and her baby, and gave birth in a position that felt right to her in her home.” Or “Mother calmly breathed through her contractions and birthed her baby with joy.” What if we received a notification on social media every time a birth just unfolded on its own—mother and baby healthy, ecstatically happy, and now bonding and getting to know each other? Yes, complications happen, but if we truly knew of the multitude of births that just flow, our view of birth would change overnight.

When we discover we are pregnant, we have access to two doors—but because so many choose the first door, or perhaps because we feel it is our only option, the second door is forgotten, even hidden.

The first door is choosing technocratic support. The second door is unlocked when we choose to trust our abilities, our bodies, our babies, and the process, and then find the care provider who has the same belief—a care provider who believes you should be in control, and who respects that your birth will happen on its own timeline. Unless the need arises for medical attention, you have no reason to believe that your pregnancy and birth can’t unfold smoothly and without medical management. That’s difficult, however, when we are thwarted at every turn and told to believe the complete opposite.

What if, one by one, we felt that pregnancy and birth was ours, and not something to hand over? What if we thought of pregnancy and birth as the ultimate expression of our power— something to protect, not give up? What if we all started to openly acknowledge our intuition, which is especially heightened during pregnancy, and what it means for guiding ourselves and our babies safely through our pregnancy journeys?

As more of us go into pregnancy and birth with open hearts, an acceptance of the process, and true appreciation of our bodies and how beautifully they facilitate labor and birth, the more of us will emerge from the experience forever changed for the better. And so will our babies!

Provided and published by ICPA. By Alison Howley, PW #53
For more information, visit discoverkidshealth.com