As you prepare for childbirth you are probably thinking about how to best care for your baby in the womb and your best options for giving birth so your baby arrives in a safe and pleasurable way. Sometimes we are so focused on these 2 big pieces of the puzzle that we forget to just stop and enjoy pregnancy and the special time and relationship you have now with your baby prenatally. Let’s think of some ways to get creative with baby prenatally and how to bond – you may surprise yourself by bringing some of these ideas to your birth for you and baby!
You are full of creative energy – when pregnant you are creating life within you so lets explore how we can get creative with baby.
#1. Singing to baby- baby will hear your voice and respond to your voice or your partner’s during birth and postpartum. You can also rest headphones on your belly and gently play some music. Baby’s hearing is developed by 34 weeks. Many cultures sing to babies as they are born or in the first minutes of life. What song would you like your baby to be born too?
#2. Massage your baby with dance! Try some hip and pelvic movements – I always recommend people writing their name in the air with their pelvis to loosen them up. If you are ready for some belly dance, try to gentle isolated hip movements side, press back, side, press forward and see how baby responds to the massage!
#3. Henna belly or a belly cast -recently I was at my cousin Lauren’s birth and she enjoyed having Henna on her Belly as a way of celebrating the end of pregnancy and preparing for childbirth. Many women are finding ways to bring the traditions of henna art to their bellies and birth. Another way women are preserving their beautiful pregnant bellies is with a belly cast. Using a quick drying plaster gauze, you literally wrap your belly preparing with some oil so it will not stick once dry you slide it off and you have a beautiful cast of your pregnant body. Now the fun, allow all your creativity to explode with colors to paint or draw what being full of life feels like to you. Painted Belly casts are treasures to keep forever. In years to come holding the belly cast up to your body will allow you to come back to the special memories of pregnancy. Pictures of your belly painted with henna will become treasures memories for you and your children. Find ways to use art to preserve your pregnant memories…..
#4. Talking and telling stories to baby. Start with something very simple and watch it grow! Starting with very simple themes, observations, and gratitudes about the day makes for a nice habit to develop for when your baby is born. She will continue to enjoy the sound of your sweet voice as when falls asleep.
#5. Relax! Get comfortable in your favorite space and in your favorite position. Close your eyes and gently take 3 deep breaths in thru your nose: envision peace, calm and love flowing into your body and your baby (many people find the color orange healing and inspirational). Let your muscles massage your baby as you exhale thru your mouth, releasing stress. Replace thoughts about things you need-to-do with an invitation for your mind to open like a blossom, connecting with your baby. Be present in the moment and go deeper into exploring and creating your birth desires. Your baby will feel your body relax and will hear your breath and sounds*.
#6. Play with lights, gently shine a flashlight on your belly painting with light and see how baby responds- can you feel the baby move, can you see baby moving thru your skin chasing the light? Close your eyes and let the light shine to see how baby might see the light.
Bonding with baby and tapping into your creative power with art, dance, singing, movement, will allow you to express the many feeling that come with being full of life, both the joy and the challenges. Growth physically and emotionally takes us to new places. Art gives us the creative expression to go deeper than words can often take us. I love teaching about the ways pregnant women and their partners can use pregnancy to develop or expand their creative expression and how you can bring these aspects and tool to labor and birth too to bring more pleasure, comfort and create lasting memories of giving birth with power!
Whether you new to using creative expression or you are experienced finding ways to allow your creative energy to flow- in our Pain to Power Childbirth Online Class, I would be happy to guide you and meet you where you are.
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