Prenatal Yoga Training

Currently Craving: A long massage followed by a long hot bath followed by a long nap

Over the last weekend of July i attended a prenatal yoga teacher training hosted by one of the studios i work at here in town. it was an interesting experience to have right now since i am pregnant and all of the information actually pertained to me.

the training covered asana (yoga poses) and things you should do while you're pregnant along with things you shouldn't do while you're pregnant. but what was really nice was that it went further than just saying 'make modifications and adjustments and the woman will be fine' instead it covered taking care of the woman emotionally and spiritually during the pregnancy process.

One part of the training that stands out for me is that our teacher talked about helping women get into 'the zone.' meaning helping women go from left-brain (thinking, rationalizing, worrying, mental chatter) to right-brain (feeling, sensing, intuition, quiet mind open heart). That first we practice this quite often in the yoga classes, but it is truly helpful and important in the labor and delivery process. the more the woman can let go of fear and of her thinking mind and open up into trusting her body and her feeling/sensing mind the easier the labor can tend to go. that labor can seriously be stalled by a woman thinking too much and not allowing herself to let go and surrender to the experience. in the book Birthing from Within the author talks about the 'zone' as "Laborland" where the mother enters a whole different state for the work of labor to take place.

so i'll be striving to help women go 'into the zone' in the classes i teach. and i'll be striving to get myself into the zone with the classes i take and the yoga practice i do from here on out.

The other really great piece of this training was the truly goddess-like quality that the teacher brought to the practice. she offered many types of movements that felt very feminine. and she encouraged us to encourage our ladies to embrace being women and being feminine. she embraced a more lunar (female) quality for the yoga. and she encouraged us to empower a goddess quality and a sensual quality in the women in the class... because they are making life inside of them... that is a goddess thing to do. and what is more ultimately feminine than being pregnant? having that round belly and carrying life is a beautiful womanly thing to do.

and finally she encouraged us to bring the magic to the class. to make it an experience that is different from the outside world. she reminded us that people come to yoga to escape the every day life. to feel something special and to connect to a deeper meaning in their lives. and they come to relieve stress and let their guards down for just a little while. she reminded us that as teachers we forget because we are practicing all the time but people really want the magic. they want the sounds of chimes and chants and to be transported to a deeper place. so it is our job as teacher to DO that for them, not to just leave it out because we are so used to it by now.

so it was a fabulous experience, even if had to miss the first few days of my family beach trip. i am looking forward to helping women use yoga to enhance their pregnancies and to empower themselves as they prepare for birth and parenthood.