Pregnancy is both a nerve-racking and a magical time. Intermingled with tiredness and cravings, there are moments of pure joy as you follow the development of the infant until they make their arrival. You can take the stress out of the pregnancy with a little meditation. It’s good for you and it could be good for your baby too. Here are five benefits you’ll enjoy from meditation during your pregnancy.
A stronger connection between mother and child
What better way to enter motherhood than by enhancing the connection with your unborn while they’re still in the womb? Meditation enables the mother’s mind to become calmer, which, in turn, allows them to focus on the womb and concentrate on bonding with the baby. Some women have even noted the baby move gently as if responding to the good intentions of the mother.
Reduce anxiety
It’s important to stay relaxed as possible during a pregnancy to prevent any negative impact on your child. Anxiety can harm the immune system and this can lead to premature arrival of the infant, a higher risk of birth defects in the child, a greater risk of miscarriage and harsher pain during labor. Through meditation you can increase your pain threshold and also keep the immune system running smoothly, since you’ll have kept the stress hormone on a leash
Higher endorphin levels
Endorphins relieve pain and increase pleasure. The body will release these during labor to mediate the pain. Naturally, meditation makes you feel good. The more you can meditate during your pregnancy, the higher your endorphin will levels will be as you start to deliver the baby, making for a more comfortable birthing process.
Lower blood pressure
Of course, the calmness and sense of well-being that meditation generates will lower the blood pressure and also decrease heart rate. This diminishes the risk of pre-clampsia, a condition which is suffered during pregnancy and is often characterized by high blood pressure and protein in the urine.
Better sleep
With junior kicking around in your tummy and growing by the day, sleeping is particularly uncomfortable for pregnant women as the stomach grows bigger. Experts have shown that meditation during the second trimester of the pregnancy is particularly beneficial, improving sleep immensely. Sleeping well can lead to greater happiness, and a happier mom will make for a happier child too.
If you’re about to become a mom for the first time, you can help yourself to prepare for your pregnancy with a maternity calendar. This will help you to understand the changes that are taking place within your body, the development of the little one and the measures you can take to make your pregnancy much easier.
Images by Jamesy Peña, lauraflorcar and Tobias Lindman, used under Creative Commons license
