Prenatal Yoga

Yoga has increased in popularity in recent years. All yoga has the same purpose – to balance the mind and the body. It can be through slow stretching, heated rooms, or traditional poses. There are many different types of yoga cater for different group of people. Pre natal yoga is one of them that is gaining its popularity and I would certainly like to pursue further in this area.
Pregnant woman can gain additional benefits from practicing yoga: relief from back pain and nausea, and increased stamina. Yoga is a low-impact exercise that can help expectant moms to stay in shape. And the breathing meditations practiced in a yoga class may come in handy during labor.
Great changes take place in the human body during pregnancy. Practicing yoga is a great way to slow down and appreciate these changes. Through gentle stretches and simple strength-building postures, it can improve the physical health. Through meditation, it can reduce anxiety and self-critical thinking, thereby improving the mental health.
There are postures that aid in reducing back pain, swelling in the lower extremities, and misalignments due to weight changes. Many postures (for example, squats) are useful preparations for natural childbirth. During pregnancy, hormones cause joints in the body to become loose (that’s why women often increase in shoe size). Yoga postures can help to stabilize and strengthen these joints and promote flexibility in the muscles and fascia.
In addition, the food that the mother eats, the oxygen that the mother breathes, and her state of mind are all transmitted to the baby. The stress the mother feel can be the stress the baby feels. Yoga has developed to obtain optimal physical health and a relaxed and peaceful state of mind.
The words of Yogi Bhajan: “What a child learns in the womb cannot be learned on earth.”
Furthermore, I believe these classes can bring women together when they are undergoing the same emotional and physical changes, often far away from the support of their family and friends. This can greatly improve their confidence and increase their social support networks.