I started doing pregnancy yoga with Tessa when I was 14 weeks pregnant & she’d just opened her lovely studio. I had done yoga a couple of times before at my local gym but had never really enjoyed it but starting with Tessa completely changed my mind set. That hour on a Monday became time for me to focus physically and mentally on me and my growing baby. Being a hairdresser & on my feet all day I had the usual aches & pains but I believe that the yoga helped me relieve any tensions or stresses my body was holding on to.
I did pregnancy yoga until I was 39.5 weeks pregnant & the day before my due date my waters broke whilst rocking on my yoga ball (my hind waters so there was hardly anything and I carried on blissfully unaware 🙈).
The evening of my due date I started getting cramps that I soon realised was the onset of labour. Early the next morning I rang the hospital & the midwife advised me to go in to have a test to see if my waters had gone..... they had and I knew what was coming next. Because it’d been over 24 hours since they’d broken I was advised to be induced to prevent any infection to myself & baby. This meant I couldn’t have the birth I’d planned for but I was surprisingly calm & by 3pm I was hooked up to the drip, monitor & bed bound. In every pregnancy yoga class we’d practised the ‘golden thread’ breathing technique & although I couldn’t practice any of the yoga positions I’d practiced for all those weeks I could still control my breathing. We had a few issues during labour but none of it phased me as I just kept focusing on my breath & actually felt really calm & in control of my body.
Reuben was born at 2.08am the next morning & he arrived so calmly without any intervention. He didn’t cry & started feeding almost instantly which the midwife said was a sign of him being content. She then asked if I’d done hypnobirthing as I was so in control of my breath & body - I explained it was down to pregnancy yoga. I couldn’t believe I’d created this little miracle! I felt so empowered and like superwoman!
I couldn’t wait until Reuben was 6 weeks old and we could start attending mummy and baby yoga, which we did every week until Tessa finished to have her baby, Frances. It was great to see all the mums I’d done pregnancy yoga with and to meet their babies and to chat and catch up. I will definitely be attending pregnancy yoga again if I’m lucky enough to have another baby and would recommend it to anyone!
“Tessa Clemson Yoga - your yoga studio in Great Harwood, serving Hyndburn, Blackburn with Darwen, Ribble Valley & Burnley”
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