Women’s Health Blog

Many computer users around the world face the problem of back pain. Having your back against the wall usually means you’re in trouble. But for certain yoga positions, having your back firmly against a wall will aid health.

In Hatha Yoga, the practitioner forms what Swami Gitananda calls body geometry–triangles, straight lines, circles and parallel lines. When you do a posture, always stretch your body to its utmost limit and then hold it there for a slow count of 10, gradually building up the time, until each posture can be maintained for 30 seconds. Holding a posture is essential to yoga because it gives the body a chance to settle into the stretch and loosen up. Then each time you stretch it will be just that little bit farther.

Many of the sideways, or lateral, stretches in Hatha Yoga require that the body face forward, with hips level and back and spine tilting neither forward nor back. Beginners tend to lean forward to increase the stretch. But leaning forward is wrong and will actually detract from benefits and possibly cause harm. To perform these stretches properly, make sure to keep your spine firmly against a wall. The wall acts as a prop. Even those who have practiced yoga may find that they cannot bend as far as they thought they could when they do the postures properly. The extra time spent in forming careful postures will pay off: Your body will gain excellent flexibility and strength.

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The moment you find out your pregnant you want to tell everyone, including your kids. The way you tell your child depends on their age, an older child will understand what it means when you tell them you are pregnant or that they are going to be a brother or sister soon. However, a toddler is a little bit harder to explain this too.

Think about your childs personality when it comes time to tell them. You know your child best. They may enjoy being sent little clues like you did with daddy, or they may just want you to tell them straight out. You could get lucky and have them walk in the room while you are announcing it. This happened to me when I was expecting child number four. I had just walked out of the bathroom waving the wand in the air to show my husband. I had no clue that my kids had walked into the room until I heard them screeching I was pregnant. Oops.

Their Reactions
Dont be shocked if at first your child acts distant, many children will respond to the news in their own way. One of your children may even start to pretend to be pregnant right along with you, mimicking everything you do. While another child may tell you they dont want you to bring home a new baby. These are all common reactions to the news, the way you handle it will determine the outcome.

If your child seems reluctant to want another child in the home you may want to find out why. The only way to find out whats bugging him/her is to ask. Maybe they are just scared that you are going to stop loving them, or that everyone will forget about him/her when the baby is born.

Showing them They are Important too
A good way to do this is to make sure they get something the moment the baby is born, some have had the doctors give the sibling their own baby doll when their sibling was born. Try reading childrens books with them to show them that itll be a good thing. Dad can always spend some one on one time with them.

Involving Your Child in the Pregnancy
This is their baby too, have your children accompany you to a few of the doctor visits. Let them hear the heartbeat of their little sister or brother. Watch their faces light up when they see the baby for the first time on the screen. There are many ways you can involve them, you can encourage them to help you decide on a name. Try letting them feel the baby kick for the first time by placing their hand on your swollen belly.

Its easy to prepare the siblings for your new arrival as long as you involve them in the pregnancy along the way. Theyll be happy to be part of it and feel more of a connection to the baby when he/she is born.

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Keeping fit during your pregnancy is great for you, not only will it help you keep your body toned but it also can help when it comes time to push that baby out. Every pregnant woman wants to be able to go back to her pre-pregnancy weight after the baby is born, but the only way to do that is to make sure you can. By excising or working out every day you are making sure you dont add fat to your body. During labor itll be much easier to push the baby if youve been strengthening your leg and stomach muscles. Who knows, it may even make labor a little bit shorter. Isnt that what we all want?

Plus when you are tired and just feeling a little blue, just by exercising you actually increase your energy.

Here are a few quick things you can do to stay fit during pregnancy, without really having to break out a sweat. Im sure by now youve heard of yoga, this is a very good thing for you to practice, especially if you havent always been in the best of shape. Not to worry, there are beginning levels here, you dont have to jump into the human pretzel right away. Try purchasing a set of small weights that you can use throughout the house, like hand weights or wrist weights that can use while walking. Instead of just laying on the couch while you rest you can be lifting small weights.

Get a chair and try doing a couple crunches, 5 to 10 in the beginning to make sure you dont pull anything. Dont worry you can always add to it as the weeks go on.

Try running, walking or jogging outside. Not only will this boost up your energy but itll also help get your spirits up, especially if youve been inside all day. Remember, if you are going for a walk to always bring a drink with you. You dont want to dehydrate out there. Always make sure that you are wearing comfortable shoes, before you leave the house. If you didnt always run, ask your doctor if you can. Sometimes a doctor may suggest you walk around the block at first and increase it from there, if you didnt always do it before you were pregnant.

If you can you may want to try going for a swim or try bicycling. However, if you find that you are accident prone you may want to stay away from the bike. A bike accident is something that can easily happen, even when youve always road a bike. Swimming can help you relax and stay cool. Take a dip in the pool near you, they may even have a swim class for pregnant women in your area. This would be a great way to meet other moms.

Whenever you are doing exercises, make sure you arent overdoing it. If you believe you could be stop immediately and take a break. You never want to do anything thatll harm the pregnancy.

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Morning sickness can be one of your first signs that you are pregnant. This doesnt always mean that youll get sick only in the morning. This can happen, morning, noon or night. It will normally occur in the first trimester or your pregnancy and end by the second, this isnt the case in all pregnancies though. Some women will continue with it until the very end of term.

Nausea can happen immediately or you may get lucky and have no morning sickness at all. No one is for certain what causes morning sickness, it is a change in the body that happens during pregnancy. Many women seem to get sick after taking the prenatal pill, try taking it later in the day. Your doctor may even advise you to take some other form of vitamin instead of the pill. Always find out first with your doctor before taking anything new or taking yourself off medication, even prenatal pills.

There are a few ways to minimize the sickness, but they dont work for everyone. Try keeping crackers on hand, I prefer saltines for some reason. Try drinking some ginger ale, it calms the stomach down. Dry cereal is another good thing to eat, your stomach may just be a little bit hungry and trying to tell you. Remember to take small portions, this way you know if it is all going to come up or not. Sleeping is another good way to avoid it, however it will wake you up. Keep yourself hydrated, not only can this make your sickness come but you can become dehydrated and need to go to the emergency room if you arent careful.

Smells is another thing that seems to cause morning sickness. Imagine walking into a restaurant and the first thing you smell is grease. Yes, this can easily set it off. Bad smells and even certain tastes, get the feel for your body during the pregnancy and figure out just what sets it off. Knowing how to avoid it, can make a world of difference.

A few reasons you should go to your doctor would be if you begin losing weight because you are constantly sick. If you become dehydrated, faint, look pale, confused or throw up more than four times in a day. Your doctor may be able to prescribe something that will stop it.

Try slowing down a bit, sometimes your body is just exhausted from all the errands you are running and it tries to give you a break. Listen to your body, take a nap, relax and watch a television showtake some time off. If you are looking for remedies for your morning sickness, you may try buying some pregnancy pops. Or if youd prefer to stay away from the sweets you can wear a bracelet designed to stop morning sickness, they are just like the motion sickness bracelets. They dont work for everyone but they could work for you.

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The minute you begin your pregnancy everything is changing, your body, your clothes sizes, even your looks. But that doesn’t mean you have to skip out on your favorite holidays, like Halloween. Being pregnant doesnt mean you cant dress up. Whether you are buying your costume or making them yourself, you can have fun. There are many costumes you can buy for couples or just for yourself. The Pregnancy couple may want to go as a baker and an oven, or an egg and bacon bit. Both outfits are really cute and creative, you can even make them at home if you chose too.

If you want to get really creative you can make your own costumes, here are a few costumes that you can make just using your belly and normal clothes are:

The eyeball- This is something my husband created, all you need is a little facial paint and black clothes. This is something even a person that can’t draw can have a little bit of fun with. Wear all black clothes on Halloween and paint your belly white, make the center of the eye whatever color you desire and don’t forget the red veins. Make it scary or cute, whatever fits your desire. Have a bit of fun and show off that tummy by keeping the shirt up or wear a shirt that shows your tummy. My husband got a kick out of this one and was so excited that he got to do the artwork.

If you want to dress up completely but not stand out, try going as a human pumpkin. Wear a tiny green cap or make one out of felt and all orange, if you can cut a slit in your shirt for your belly to stick out. Now, paint it orange and decorate your pumpkin.

A pea is another simple costume you can make and stay warm. Go find some green jeans or sweats and a green sweatshirt. Keep the shirt up or cut a hole in it to make your little pod stick out and paint it all green.

If you aren’t feeling up to having a full body costume, you could always just paint the belly and proudly show it off. After all, how often will you be pregnant? Think of anything that is round: basketball, volleyball, soccer ball, a bowling ball, etc

Don’t forget witches were mothers too, so if you’ve always dressed as a witch for Halloween you don’t have to stop the tradition. This year go as a pregnant witch or maybe a witch holding a pumpkin. Use that belly!

A Bun in the oven- Get a medium or small box, cut it out so that you can wear it over your shoulders. Make room for your head to slide through. Decorate it with paints like an oven. Cut open the front of the box so that it will open and close. On the outside of the box write, Bun in the Oven. Paint your belly a light beige for all to see the little baby bun.

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Childbirth results in changes in a woman’s body.  Many women gain a significant amount of weight.  While a doctor recommends a weight gain of about 25-35lbs throughout your pregnancy, you may gain a whole lot more than that.  Many women are distressed and wonder, “why didn’t I lose weight after childbirth?” We hear stories of women fitting into their jeans two weeks after a baby’s born and can feel distressed if that’s not happening to us.

If you’re wondering, why didn’t I lose weight after childbirth? You’re not alone.  Many women have trouble shedding their pregnancy weight.  While it would be nice if the weight just melted off after our babies are born, it usually requires a few little things to happen.  Those things are related to time, effort and diet.

Why Didn’t I Lose Weight After Childbirth? Time…

It took nine months to gain that weight, it would take at least a little bit of time to come off.  Many women don’t start to see results until at least the six-month mark when your body starts to lose its reserves.  If you are breastfeeding your system will reserve a certain amount of weight to ensure that you are able to make the milk your baby needs.  Many women see a change in their body after their baby reaches six months old.  While not everyone will see that change, the vast majority finds that a lot of excess weight just starts to disappear.

Why Didn’t I Lose Weight After Childbirth?  Effort…

It’s going to take a bit of effort to lose the weight.  A healthy weight loss is between one and two pounds of weight per week.  If you are busy at work and with your child, you may lose this on your own after childbirth.  If not, you can take up a mild to moderate exercise routine and expect to see results.  Walking, swimming bicycling, yoga, aerobics or visiting a gym can all helps you meet your weight loss goals. 

Why Didn’t I Lose Weight After Childbirth?  Diet…

When we’re pregnant we’re often under the impression that it’s a free for all with food.  Women can eat excessively when they’re pregnant.  After the baby arrives, if you’re breastfeeding your body will still require extra calories in order for you to make milk so by the time you’re ready to shed your pregnancy weight, it may be just  a matter of retraining yourself on how to eat.  You may want to look at counting calories or reducing fat in your diet.  It may just take a few changes to reduce your caloric intake enough to result in reaching your pre-pregnant weight.

If you’re a busy Mom on the go, it can be hard to eat right but eating healthy, sensible meals will result in your coming closer to your weight loss goals.

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