Nothing can describe the feeling that a woman experiences, knowing there’s a life growing inside. Soon, she will be referred to as ‘Mom’. Yes! Pregnancy can possibly be the best life changing event a woman goes through. Although, it brings happiness, gifts and excitement, pregnancy also invites host of other troubles like hormonal changes, mood swings, anxiety, depression, and extreme physical changes that tend to put you under lot of stress.
While pregnancy is all about preparation for the greatest change, your mind will be filled with questions, doubts and worry. When these become daunting, the best way to bring calmness and positivity during this period is by practicing meditation. Read the 5 reasons why meditation helps during pregnancy and what benefits the 3 types of meditation techniques can provide you and little one?
One of the tried and tested ways to relieve stress and increase good energy flow within yourself is meditation. Meditation not only provides you strength and endurance, both physical and mental, but also gives you the courage that helps you prepare better for labour.
1. Breathing Exercises
Breathing is the best form of meditation. We do it all the time unconsciously. Breathing exercises or Pranayama, as it is referred in Yoga science, help you to draw positive energy from within, and thuslyunwind your tense muscles, reduce stress, and curb down anxiety issues. You can follow The breathing exercise anytime of the day, in any position.
2. Object Focus Intense Meditation
This meditation technique, which helps you to stay focused on the positives and keep your negatives at bay, relaxes your mind by training it to concentrate on things that make you happy and calm your anxiety and morning sickness issues. The technique also brings peace and makes your head clutter free from all the chaos, advices, physical and hormonal changes pregnancy brings along.
The Object Meditation technique can be found. Read the instructions carefully and experience the wonderful effects of this technique.
3. Muscle Relaxation Technique
Follow the Muscle relation technique if you find difficulty in sleeping during pregnancy. Remember, like any other practice, conquering the art of meditation will also take a couple of days to learn and master. But as the baby grows within you, you will consciously enjoy the benefits that you reap from your meditation sessions.
This meditation technique is also known as Progressive Relaxation Technique which makes you aware of two states of your body – the mind and the muscle tension.
Follow the voice and observe each and every word said. By the end of the session, you will know the PRT’s goodness.
Meditation can be an effective treatment for binge eating and addiction problems. Addiction can be hard to resist during pregnancy. Whether it is junk food, alcohol, caffeine or cigarettes, you will find it easier to quit by ritually meditating.
One in five women is affected by pre and post-natal depression. If not treated at the right time, depression can turn into a chronic mental condition. And a time when anti-depressants cannot be consumed as they are harmful for the child, studies show that meditation reduces the symptoms effectively by inducing positive beliefs and boosting good hormones.
For most women utero communication (talking to the unborn child through the belly) comes naturally. However, many find this silly and embarrassing. One of the most powerful ways to bond with your unborn child is through meditation. Envisioning your child while meditating, and telling her the happiness she’s going to bring will definitely flourish your association with the baby.
Do you believe this? Apparently, a 2014 study from the Hong Kong Buddhist Institute of Enlightenment claimed that babies born to women who meditate regularly are much calmer and had better temperaments as they grew up.
It was also revealed that mantras and chants during meditation resonate sounds that build calmness and happiness in babies.
Of course, a 17 hour long labour cannot be shortened through the art of meditation and the pain and stress will not be any less; however, meditation can ease the pain by changing your perception and response to pain.
Meditation limits the fear and makes your endurance stronger, which is often worse than the pain itself.
She is available at henna.sammuel@gmail.com LinkedIn profile: Henna.sammuel, Twitter Profile: HennaSammuel.
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