During pregnancy, women can use certain aspects of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) in order to make their pregnancy much smoother and easier for both herself as well as the baby. This is a growing interest in many women around the world today, which is why the use of yoga during pregnancy in order to help with the labor process is used more often now than ever before. According to Babbar, Parks-Savage, and Chauhan, “yoga is perceived as a way to develop and maintain a healthy mind and body and has become a popular means of exercise among adults, and presumably during pregnancy” (Babbar, Parks-Savage & Chauhan, 2012). The purpose of this paper is to provide information using evidenced based research to identify the effects of yoga …show more content…
Not only is a mother’s body changing, but her life will also change once the baby arrives and that can be a very stressful thing to think about while pregnant. The causes of stress can be very different for every woman, but some causes according to the article Stress and Pregnancy are dealing with the discomforts of pregnancy, hormones changing, worrying about labor and how to take care of the baby, work, and life in general which can be negative and catastrophic at some points (March of Dimes, 2017). High stress situations as well as mood disturbances can cause a variety of negative outcomes to both the fetus as well as the mother. According to Vieten and Austin, negative outcomes can include low birth weight, reduced duration of gestation and preterm birth, bacterial vaginosis during pregnancy, increased risk for chromosomally normal spontaneous abortion, lower Apgar scores, smaller head circumference, and neuroendocrine dysregulation (Vieten & Astin, 2008). With yoga, it helps lift weights off of many people’s shoulders and this can be due to the practices put in place in yoga. According to Nardendran, “yoga uses a holistic approach to stress reduction and has been used to promote positive health for centuries” (Narendran et al.) In yoga, one of the main components that reduces stress is chanting. Chanting is an essential part of yoga …show more content…
Many women opt for analgesic medication such as an epidural in order to ease the pain of child birth. The practice of yoga is a non-pharmacological method that can be used in order to assist with pain reduction during labor and can help women become accustomed to the natural, instinctive yoga-like positions that are often preferred during labor and delivery. Yoga provides an opportunity to explore one’s response to pain and to develop relaxation and coping strategies. (Chuntharapat et al., 2008). Labor effects both a women’s physical and physiological body as well as her fetus. There are many yoga practices that can help with labor pain and the overall outcome of the delivery. The main one is with certain breathing techniques. By doing yoga during pregnancy and practicing these breathing techniques, it will allow women to administer these techniques while in labor. Energy yoga is a type of yoga practice that can be used during pregnancy and delivery. According to Tournaire and Theau-Yonneau, energy yoga is a special practice of breathing and it allows changes in the level of consciousness, relaxation, as well as allows peace to be felt all around. Professionals who use this technique during labor have said that it shortens the amount of time that a woman is in labor, decreases pain and reduces the need for analgesic medication (Tournaire & Theau-Yonneau, 2007). According to Chuntharapat, Petpichetchian, Hatthakit,
When pregnant, many expecting mothers are faced with a very tough decision, the decision to have an epidural during labor or to have a natural birth. Both methods have negative and positive aspects. This topic has such conflicting views that about 50% of women decide to get an epidural when going into labor and the other 50% of women choose the alternative: natural childbirth. It is important for an expecting mother to look into both options thoroughly to ensure they make the best choice for both themselves and for their child. With all of the speculations circulating about both options, it is hard for mothers to see the truth about both epidurals and natural childbirth.
This helps the mother control weight gain as she tends to gain less weight in the first trimester. though, they had some differences in their vitamin intake as one mother took medication for prevention of malaria due to her surroundings, they both took the recommended vitamins and nutrition for healthy child development, such as vitamin B complex (folic acid), multivitamins, fruits, vegetables, and an increase intake of water to help with dehydration and constipation. They both exercised during their pregnancy, though their intensity was different. For instance, the first mother didn’t engage in any form of exercise until her second trimester due to her history of miscarriages. The sex exercise was the most shocking part for me as I believe it could potentially harm the baby if care is not taken, but she claimed it helps to prepare the birth canal for childbirth resulting in a less painful and strenuous delivery (Santrock,
This particular class was conducted on a Saturday and covered the labor process, options for labor support, comfort measures, and breastfeeding. The class began with the discussion of the anatomy and physiology of an expecting mother. Then progressed to the stages of labor. Furthermore, the complications of delivery and pregnancy were discussed, this took approximately four hours. Lunch was at noon and piloted for thirty minutes. After lunch, comfort measures were reviewed, for about two hour. A forty-five minutes natural childbirth video was played that incorporated the Lamaze techniques. Then the instructor had the mother sit on the floor on yoga mats to practice the recommended breathing techniques for approximately thirty minutes. The final hour was dedicated to breastfeeding and questions the students
The use of epidurals is so common today that many perinatal professionals are calling the 1990s the age of the epidural epidemic. Believed by many in the medical profession to be safe and effective, the epidural seems now to be regarded as a veritable panacea for dealing with the pain of childbirth. It is true that most women experience pain during the course of labor. This pain can be intense and very real, even for those who have prepared for it. But pain is only one of many possible sensations and experiences that characterize the experience of giving birth. Barbara Katz Rothman, a sociologist who studies birth in America, writes that in the medical management of childbirth, the experience of the mother is viewed by physicians as pain: pain experienced and pain to be avoided.1 Having experienced childbirth ourselves, we have great compassion for women in painful labors. However, we also feel a responsibility to mothers and their babies to explore issues concerning the use of epidural anesthesia in labor issues that are seldom discussed prenatally.
Although there are many factors that affect the development of the fetus, research on the specific effects of prenatal maternal stress and the resulting negative outcomes for the development of the fetus will be reviewed. While there is knowledge of these harmful effects in scientific and medical communities, researchers are still in the midst of discovering the results of these negative effects on human development. An overall review of the literature suggests that this topic is still relatively new in research as most of the articles make note that despite the amount of current research studies, there are still many unanswered questions.
As defined by Lowdermilk, Perry and Cashion, preterm labor is “cervical changes and uterine contractions occurring between 20 and 37 weeks of pregnancy”. Preterm birth is a dramatic event causing distress for both the child and parents. There is a significant amount of information available on the risk factors related to preterm labor. Seeing the ineffectiveness of interventions directed towards known risk factors emphasizes the lack of maternal understanding of possible underlying pathways.
A nurse that wishes to determine if he/she is stressed, must first be cognizant of the signs and symptoms. Often, stress manifests not just in physical ways but in emotional ways as all. The physical signs of stress include headaches, weight gain, fatigue, and an elevated glucose level, while the emotional signs include anger, lashing out, hostility, sadness, and abstinence and isolation from activities (Roszler & Brail 2017). Stress management is the process of integrating positive and healthy techniques into one’s lifestyle in an attempt to reduce stress. Physical activity such as yoga has been proven to reduce stress. Researchers have found that because yoga encourages one to relax, it shifts the flight-or-fight response to the relaxation response, which has been shown to decrease stress by lowering breathing and heart rates, decrease blood pressure, lower cortisol levels, and increase blood flow to vital organs (Woodyard
Everyday society assumes yoga is just a physical health practice that will make people substantially fit. Social media is making people believe that Yoga is mostly good for exercising in a social, trendy fashion environment. What society does not know is Yoga plays a huge role in emotional hygiene, more so than physical health, Yoga develops a healthy emotional stability for its participants that lead to a healthy lifestyle. Emotionally, Yoga can develop a healthy emotional lifestyle for its participants while leaving a person with more positivity, determination and strength in the human mind.
Perry, S. E., Hockenberry, M. J., Lowdermilk, D. L., & Wilson, D. (2013). Labor and Birth Processes. In Maternal Child Nursing Care (5th ed., p. 351). Elsevier-Health Sciences Division.
Over the years birthing methods have changed a great deal. When technology wasn’t so advanced there was only one method of giving birth, vaginally non-medicated. However, in today’s society there are now more than one method of giving birth. In fact, there are three methods: Non-medicated vaginal delivery, medicated vaginal delivery and cesarean delivery, also known as c-section. In the cesarean delivery there is not much to prepare for before the operation, except maybe the procedure of the operation. A few things that will be discussed are: the process of cesarean delivery, reasons for this birthing method and a few reasons for why this birthing method is used. Also a question that many women have is whether or not they can vaginally deliver after a cesarean delivery, as well as the risks and benefits if it. Delivering a child by a c-section also has a few advantages and disadvantages for both the mother and child; this will also be discussed in more depth a bit later.
How can it affect the baby and its mother? Well everything the mother do, it has an effect on the child and vice versa. It's almost as the mother and child is 1 person but its 2 people. One activity can cause a severe harm to either one but mainly the baby growing inside the womb. This is a severe cost to the woman and the baby life's. There are ways to prevent this from happening, sometimes stress is caused from depression which is normal state everyone goes into. To prevent stress you have to relax more and maybe try bed rest with some doctors recommend when you. Your body change can cause your mood to change. Mood swings can make it harder to handle stress. (March of Dimes 1)
Therefore a person must develop stress management skills to maintain their own stability and yoga can be a part of the solution. In the book, Yoga Body, Buddha Mind, by Cyndi Lee, the author talks about fight-or-flight, a condition where the body relates to emergencies then responds by activating the adrenal glands allow the heart to pump quicker, raise blood pressure, increase muscle tension, and produce sweat. However, if you are constantly in a fight-or-flight mode then it leads to stress. Health problems can arise from not learning how to balance good stress which can have survival value and bad stress that can lead to insomnia, headaches, and even more serious conditions such as heart attacks (Lee
Stueck, M., & Gloeckner, N. (2005). Yoga for children in the mirror of science: Working spectrum and practice field of the training of relaxation with elements of yoga for children. Early Child Development and Care, 175(4), 371-377. doi:10.1080/0300443042000230537
Yoga could be described as the practice of holding different poses, and using diferrent breathing techniques that strengthens the mind and body, by bringing the practitioner into a new state of awareness. The practice of yoga increases blood flow to internal organs, brings more oxygen to the cells in your body, while strengthening and calming the nervous system. There are many different types of yoga. In the United States the most widely practiced form is known as Hatha, which is a combination of poses taken from all types of yoga b...
Child Birth can be a beautiful, yet unimaginable experience any mother and family member can encounter. It is a process of emotional and social involvements that make-up a natural human being. The familiarity of childbirth can play an important role in life for every individual, especially the mothers who are in labor or in delivery. Each moment during labor will become memories for the mothers to share with their grown up child in the future. Childbirth is a breath taking experience that can change someone’s life forever. The process of childbirth does not occur in a blink of an eye; in fact, it is more of a procedure that may take a few steps. Some mothers during labor, experience a severe amount of pain that medication can control and some