Mindful Pregnancy: Meditation, Yoga, Hypnobirthing, Natural Remedies, and Nutrition – Trimester by Trimester

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Ruiz RJ, Avant KC. Effects of maternal prenatal stress on infant outcomes: a synthesis of the literature. Adv Nurs Sci. 2005;28(4):345–55. Mindfulness-based interventions allow the development of abilities that are important for pregnant women and new mothers (Hall et al. 2015). These interventions encourage practice of awareness and acceptance of one’s thoughts, emotions and body sensations, building stress tolerance, reducing reactivity and avoidance of uncomfortable experiences. The seven-attitudinal factors covered in mindfulness-based interventions include non-judging, patience, beginner’s mind, trust, non-striving, acceptance and letting go (Kabat-Zinn 1990). Slow down. Every month, a student in her second or third trimester will approach me and say something like: “Whenever I’m walking fast, I get this sharp pain in my [insert body part].” I ask, “This pain, does it go away if you slow down?” She usually nods. “Hmmm…do you think there’s something to that?” I say with a smile, seeing the corners of her mouth turn upward, also. of 4 treatment group participants (75%) experienced a clinically reliable decrease in stress symptoms from baseline to post-treatment, with at least 1 participant reporting a reliable change on the majority of measures. In contrast, there was very little change in outcome scores within the control group. Post-partum outcomes indicate that as many as 67% of the treatment group participants experienced a positive change in their levels of stress and self-compassion, and half the participants reported a positive change in their depression scores as measured by the EPDS. For most of us fortunate enough to be parents, the birth of a baby is an amazing beginning of a new soul entering the world and of our becoming a parent – probably the most intense change in our life, whereby we take on one of the most important, enriching, but stressful jobs in the world – caring for and nurturing the future generation.

Eunice Kennedy Shriver. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. Science update: Stress during pregnancy may increase a child's risk of depression in adolescence. Shapiro S, Weisbaum E. History of mindfulness and psychology. In Mindfulness. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Psychology. 2020. doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780190236557.013.678 Warriner S, Crane C, Dymond M, Krusche A. An evaluation of mindfulness-based childbirth and parenting courses for pregnant women and prospective fathers/partners within the UK NHS (MBCP-4-NHS). Midwifery. 2018;64:1–10.Pan W-L, Chang C-W, Chen S-M, Gau M-L. Assessing the effectiveness of mindfulness-based programs on mental health during pregnancy and early motherhood—a randomized control trial. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2019a;19(1):346.

Andersson L, Sundström-Poromaa I, Wulff M, Aström M, Bixo M. Depression and anxiety during pregnancy and six months postpartum: a follow-up study. Acta Obstet Gynecol Scand. 2006;85(8):937–44. Multilevel modeling of distress trajectories revealed greater decreases from pre-intervention to 12-months postpartum for those in MIL compared to TAU, especially among child-bearers who were higher in anxiety and/or lower in dispositional mindfulness at baseline. Conclusions The perinatal period is a time of immense change, which can be a period of stress and vulnerability for mental health difficulties. Mindfulness-based interventions have shown promise for reducing distress, but further research is needed to identify long-term effects and moderators of mindfulness training in the perinatal period. Methodspregnant women participating in MBCP during their 3rd trimester of pregnancy (12–28weeks gestation) Pain during pregnancy– similar to sufferers with more chronic conditions, paracetamol is the only recommended safe pharmacological pain relief in pregnancy. In a study of women suffering from pelvic girdle pain (PGP) it was found that paracetamol was generally ineffective and the women’s feelings of being unable to cope and of losing control were very similar to those who suffer chronic pain. The idea of pain relief raised expectations, which led to chronic disappointment and an increased sense of helplessness when it failed to remove the pain. However, mindfulness does not aim to remove, reduce or ‘wall off’ the pain, but instead it aims to change our relationship to the pain sensations, so that the experience of the pain is less all-absorbing and therefore less likely to set off negative emotions which increases the pain. Due to the close links between physical and emotional pain, when we can disassociate the physical sensations from the thoughts about them, we can recognise potential freedom. Mindfulness practise helps us to become aware of, and to relate differently to, the negative thoughts surrounding intense physical sensations, when we stop feeling overwhelmed by the pain and become less fearful of losing control. Significant decrease in stress ( p=0.04) between groups was observed in the mindfulness group when compared to the control group. There were no significant intervention effects for any secondary outcome measures. A significant effect of time was observed for mindfulness ( p=0.04), depression ( p=0.03) and satisfaction with life ( p=0.001) suggesting that depression reduced over time, and mindfulness and satisfaction with life increased over time, irrespective of experimental condition. No changes were observed for gratitude levels. Be a supportive partner – watching the birth is one of life’s greatest, enriching moments and a supportive partner is an important, relaxing and calming resource for the mother. This is why it is better for the partners to attend all the classes and appointments etc where possible. It is an important time to bond with our partner and baby and the stronger the relationship before the birth, the more positive the support will be in labour. Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for perinatal depression. The 8-session protocol for MBCT-PD was based on the standard MBCT treatment manual and theory that proposes that individuals with histories of depression are vulnerable during dysphoric states, during which maladaptive patterns present during previous episodes are reactivated and can trigger the onset of a new episode. The standard MBCT protocol was modified for use in the context of pregnancy and in anticipation of the postpartum. Modifications included stronger emphasis on brief informal mindfulness practices, given our developmental work that suggested that barriers of time, energy and fatigue are significant among pregnant women, and perinatal-specific practices. Loving kindness meditation practice was included based on the authors’ developmental work suggesting that self-criticism is a common theme among at-risk pregnant and postpartum women and that connection with one’s child is a powerful motivator for learning and practice. Loving kindness meditation practice asks women to direct awareness and positive intention at both the self and the baby through the repetition of specific phrases (e.g. “May I/my baby be filled with loving kindness. May I treat myself/my baby with kindness in good times and in hard times. May I/my baby be well and live with ease.”). Psychoeducation about perinatal depression, anxiety and worry, which are often co-occurring with depressio

Dhillon A, Sparkes E, Duarte RV. Mindfulness-based interventions during pregnancy: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Mindfulness. 2017;8(6):1421-1437. doi:10.1007/s12671-017-0726-x Vieten C, Astin J. Effects of a mindfulness-based intervention during pregnancy on prenatal stress and mood: results of a pilot study. Arch Women’s Mental Health. 2008;11(1):67–74. Significant decrease in stress ( p=0.05). Trait anxiety decreased significantly post intervention ( p=0.03). Time-by-group effect—overall BPI scale ( p=0.04), pain interference subscale ( p=0.04). 2nd-trimester women had significantly lower BPI scores ( p=0.02) after the intervention and less pain interference after intervention ( p=0.05) compared with 3rd-trimester group. Pain intensity remained higher after the intervention for 3rd-trimester women compared with 2nd-trimester women ( p=0.01). After the intervention, the 3rd-trimester group still reported significantly more hours of pain than 2nd-trimester women ( p=0.05). Average morning salivary cortisol level increased from baseline ( p<0.01). You can also sit quietly and listen to instrumental music, nature sounds or a guided meditation. Put all of your attention on what you’re hearing as you breathe evenly. Let yourself get lost in the notes and tones. After you meditate, you’ll find it easier to sleep. Catov, J. M., Abatemarco, D. J., Markovic, N., & Roberts, J. M. (2010). Anxiety and optimism associated with gestational age at birth and fetal growth. Maternal and Child Health Journal, 14(5), 758–764.Woolhouse H, Mercuri K, Judd F, Brown SJ. Antenatal mindfulness intervention to reduce depression, anxiety and stress: a pilot randomised controlled trial of the MindBabyBody program in an Australian tertiary maternity hospital. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2014;14(1):369. Stay with the movement of your belly (either from your baby or your breath) for a short while. Then bring your attention to the weight of your hips and legs. If you make it all the way down to your feet you can imagine your body as a whole, see your breath traveling to any places where you’re holding tension. See if each exhalation can help your body sink more deeply into your bed as your muscles let go. Worst case, you’ve spent some time consciously relaxing and refreshing your body. Best case… zzzzzz…