Abdominal & Womb Massage
Systems and Symptoms Treated + Benefits
Uterine / Pelvic / Reproductive Health
Normally the uterus leans slightly over the bladder in the center of the pelvis. It is held in this position by muscles and ligaments. The ligaments and muscles can weaken and loosen, causing the uterus to fall downward, forward, backward or to either side.
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When reproductive organs shift, they can constrict normal flow of blood and lymph, and disrupt nerve connections, causing painful menstruation and fertility issues. By shifting the uterus back into place the natural balance of the body is restored in the pelvic area and the surrounding organs. Toxins are flushed and nutrients that help to tone tissue and balance hormones are restored to normal order. This is essential for a healthy reproductive system, pregnancy, labor, and delivery.
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Adhesions from invasive treatments to the pelvic and abdominal area are diminished when addressed by Holistic Abdominal and Womb Massage.
Digestive Benefits / Scar Tissue / Abdominal Surgery
Individuals with digestive disorders such as constipation, indigestion, heartburn, gastritis, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, and more can benefit greatly by using Holistic Abdominal and Womb Massage. Scar tissue and adhesions can often cause sluggish digestion and circulation after abdominal surgery. Holistic Abdominal and Womb Massage helps to break down the scar tissue and adhesions from past or present surgeries that result in swelling, burning and deep aching pains in the pelvis.
Urinary System
If the uterus is leaning on the bladder, or if the prostate gland is swollen and impacting the bladder, a person may experience a wide range of urinary issues. A tipped uterus can result in incontinence, leaking, bladder infections, and frequency. A swollen prostate gland can diminish the urine stream, make it difficult to initiate the flow of urine and cause frequency.
Painful Menstruation and PMS
Holistic Abdominal and Womb Massage can help reduce or eliminate menstrual cramping and symptoms of PMS, such as bloating, irritability, depression, headaches and migraines. Many women report feeling more centered and calm with a noticeable decrease in symptoms after a series of Abdominal Therapy treatments.
Emotional Release
The abdomen is an area where people often store repressed emotions that can be the cause of muscular armoring and a consequent decrease in vitality and fluid circulation. Holistic Abdominal and Womb Massage can energize, strengthen, and detoxify your system to enable, identify and release stuck or repressed emotions.
Pelvic Floor Stagnation and Congestion
The pelvic floor muscles are a group of muscles that are arranged within the pelvis like a sling or hammock, connecting the front, back, and sides of the pelvis and sacrum. They provide support to the organs of the pelvis, including the bladder, uterus or prostate, and rectum. When there is stagnation in the pelvic floor, abnormal muscle tension develops as a protective response to pain. This abnormal guarding of these muscles becomes a secondary source of pain and can also lead to many other symptoms. For this reason, people with pelvic pain are often provided significant relief of these symptoms by releasing the tension and bring the blood and lymphatic flow back into the muscles of the pelvic floor.
What Could Cause a Displaced Uterus?
• Chronic muscle spasm around the low back and sacrum
• Emotional armoring from abuse at anytime in life
• High impact exercise, running on cement, etc.
• Injury to the sacrum or tailbone from a fall, car accidents, childbirth, etc.
• Lifting and carrying heavy objects too soon after childbirth
• Past surgeries
• Pelvic ligaments that have weakened during pregnancy and birth.
• Time and gravity
• Weak pelvic floor muscles
Contraindications
Holistic Abdominal and Womb Massage is not performed:
• Within the first 6 weeks following a normal vaginal delivery or the first 3 months after having a cesarean birth.
• If cancer is present or suspected anywhere in the pelvis, or the client is undergoing chemotherapy for this condition.
• Immediately after abdominal surgery.
*Holistic Abdominal and Womb Massage is offered as a supportive modality to enhance health and wellness, it is not meant as an entire approach to health care. If you have any serious medical conditions, please consult your health care provider first.*
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Depending on the severity of the problem, it may take as little as one session and as long as many months for the uterine position to be corrected and for the ligaments to gain enough strength and elasticity for it to stay in place. It can take about 3 to 4 sessions before noticeable changes occur.
Preparing for Your Holistic Abdominal & Womb Massage Session
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• Please fill out the comprehensive health history form for your session at least 2 days before your appointment.
• Make sure you are clear of any contraindications (listed above) before you schedule your first appointment.
• Adults need to allow approximately 2 hours for their first appointment.
• Children need approximately 90 minutes for their first appointment
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What to Expect
What to Expect During Your Initial Visit
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• During your session, we will thoroughly review your health history and your current needs and desires for the work we will be doing.
• Your session will include a warm castor oil pack over your abdomen/pelvis.
• I will show you how to easily make and apply a castor oil pack at home.
• While the castor oil is doing its magic, I will offer massage to any areas needing love and attention. After I remove your castor oil pack, I will follow up with more thorough work on your abdomen, followed by work on your sacrum, hips and back. You are welcome to request other areas of focus along with your Holistic Womb Massage.
• I will instruct you in self care techniques so you can continue to work on yourself at home between visits.
Home care will greatly enhance your results.
• We can review self care at subsequent visits to make sure you are feeling confident in your technique.
What to Expect During Follow-Up Visits:
• Follow-up sessions are usually about 60 - 90 minutes.
• We will begin your session with a brief check in about your previous visit and current needs.
Some Symptoms you Might Experience After Your Session
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• You may experience discomfort or cramping a day or two after your session. There is nothing to worry about. We just worked on an area that is often neglected. If your uterus is retroverted or retroflexed, it can cause some pain while it moves into place.
• Menstruation can be a little more uncomfortable with an increase in flow as the uterus shifts into the correct position and sheds old material.
• You may experience unpleasant and foul-smelling discharge. This is happens as a result of the cleansing taking place after Abdominal Therapy. As Rosita Arvigo likes to say, “better an empty apartment than a bad tenant.”
• You may experience a shift in your cycle. Sometimes menstruation and/or ovulation is a little earlier than expected and sometimes it can be delayed.
• Nausea, vomiting or constipation rarely occurs, but has been known to happen.
• You might experience a cleansing effect on your digestive system. This can be gentle or it might be a bit intense.
• You may experience an increase or decrease in urinary output, sometimes accompanied by the release of old tissue with urination. This will subside in a day or two.
• It is not uncommon to release stored emotions after a session. They can be pleasant (joy, laughter, blissful feelings), unpleasant (anger, sadness, frustration) or you might feel incredibly grounded and centered. Be kind to yourself and allow the emotions to release no matter what they are.
Fertility Enhancement, Pregnancy & Postpartum Wellbeing
Fertility Enhancement
Abdominal therapy/massage is well recognized for fertility enhancement. Abdominal Therapy helps by shifting the uterus into the proper position, increasing circulation and balancing blood, Qi, lymphatic, nerve, and hormonal flow. It addresses stress-related fertility issues, unexplained infertility, tubal blockages, ovarian cysts, irregular menstrual cycles, hormonal imbalances and abdominal adhesions from surgeries. Holistic Abdominal and Womb Massage can be applied as a stand alone treatment or in combination with other therapies, such as acupuncture, chiropractic care and assisted reproductive technologies.
For IVF support, it is optimal to receive four weeks of Holistic Abdominal and Womb Massage prior to stimulating the ovaries and if possible between the retrieval and transfer.
Preconception Health
Even if you are not having fertility issues, Holistic Abdominal and Womb Massage supports women as they prepare their bodies for conception, leaving a healthier internal environment for baby.
For men, Holistic Abdominal and Womb Massage can increase sperm count as well as enhance the overall health of the male reproductive tract.
Holistic Abdominal and Womb Massage During Pregnancy
Holistic Abdominal and Womb Massage is known to alleviate much of the discomfort from a dropped or tilted uterus. As the baby and uterus grow, strain and pressure is put on the uterine and pelvic ligaments and pelvic floor muscles. This abnormal pressure during pregnancy can lead to
• low back pain
• sciatica
• leg swelling / edema
• varicose veins
• hip pain / discomfort
• constipation
• headaches
• difficult labor and delivery
With regular sessions, the uterus receives good blood supply, and can help normalize pelvic alignment, providing optimal birth position for baby thereby easing labor, birth and postpartum recovery.
PREGNANCY BENEFITS
• Strengthens uterine ligaments
• Decreases ligament pain and discomfort
• Ease Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction (SPD)
• Release sacral tension
• Strengthen pelvic floor muscles
• Supports optimal fetal alignment
• Decreases chronic muscle tension, restores balance to muscles and ligaments.
• Improves lymphatic circulation and decreases incidence of edema
• Releases tension in ribcage and diaphragm, making it easier to breathe more deeply
• Helps ease tension and anxiety
• Can help reduce nausea and heartburn
• Reduce pain from varicosities
Improved Labor Outcomes with Holistic Abdominal and Womb Massage (also known as Maya Abdominal Therapy)
Practitioners around the world have repeatedly found that their clients experience significantly shorter and easier labors. Midwifery-based practices that have integrated Maya Abdominal Therapy into their prenatal care have reported positive differences in birth outcomes as evidenced by more efficient contractions and shorter labors.
Average Labor for First Time Moms-
• With regular Abdominal Therapy: 7 hrs 10 min
• Without Abdominal Therapy: 16 hours
• Difference: 7 hours 50 minutes less with Maya Abdominal Therapy
Pushing Stage-
• With regular Abdominal Therapy: 46 minutes
• Without Abdominal Therapy: 1 hour 59 min
• Difference: 59 minutes less with Maya Abdominal Therapy
Women Who Have Given Birth at Least One Time Before-
• 18 of 30 women labored less than 4 hours with Maya Abdominal Therapy
• 19 of 30 pushed less than 10 minutes
• 11 of 30 pushed once
Postpartum Recovery and Healing
Postpartum is a time of physical and emotional adjustments. A new mother's body undergoes physiological and structural changes as part of healing from labor and birth and to return to her pre-pregnant state.
Holistic Abdominal and Womb Massage during the weeks following your delivery helps to restore muscle tone in the abdomen and encourage proper position of internal organs. Abdominal Therapy supports the uterus and ligaments to return to an optimal position and helps bring the pelvis and sacrum into balance.
Abdominal Therapy may be resumed at 6 weeks postpartum following a normal vaginal delivery or 3 months after a cesarean birth to address the following:
• Helps heal Diastasis Recti.
• Addresses pain from low back, sacral or coccygeal injuries that can occur during birth.
• Facilitates emotional healing from surgical birth and birth trauma.
• Helps reduce and resolve scar tissue that may have resulted from a cesarean birth.
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What Does a Holisitic Abdominal & Womb Prenatal Massage Entail?
You will begin your massage laying face up with pillows comfortably supporting you. When you turn over, you will have the luxury of laying face down on a specially designed pregnancy cushion that supports your belly . There are also cushioned breast recesses for much needed comfort. Side lying is also an option if that feels more supportive for your body.