Postpartum swaddling of a woman. Postpartum swaddling: what they are and why - Doula Magazine

Postnatal swaddling (swaddling) with the closure of childbirth - this is what I know how to do and love it very much. With each twist, you yourself become stronger and wiser. And now about what it is and for those who have never heard of it.

The topic for the present time is interesting and relevant, since very few women know about these procedures and even fewer use them. Many people ask: “Which is correct: weaving or swaddling? "I will answer:" There are several ways. The terms are not so important. I will describe those that I know, their features and differences.

Postpartum swaddling is a set of measures to restore a woman after childbirth.
I know that three types of postpartum recovery for women are now actively practiced in Russia:
- Slavic rite of post-natal pogivaniya (I own it),
- postpartum swaddling
- Mexican rebozo technique.
In general, all small nations have postpartum recovery techniques, they have survived to this day and have their own characteristics depending on nationality and place of residence.

modern swaddling

Postpartum swaddling was invented by midwife Alena Lebedeva. This is a more medical procedure, incorporating some techniques of osteopathy and visceral massage, as well as parts of the Mexican tradition of postpartum recovery.

mexican technique

In Mexico, the traditions of postpartum recovery of women are very well preserved, and now many doulas and midwives go to this warm country to the famous midwives Andheline Martinez Miranda and Naoli Vinaver.

Angelina is a fourth-generation Mexican midwife who has delivered deliveries for over 40 years, combining the wisdom of folk tradition and modern knowledge of clinical obstetrics.
Rebozo (long self-woven stole) in Mexico is used at all stages of pregnancy and after childbirth. They swaddle either in a bath or in a temazcal. Temascal is a traditional Mexican stone bath. Literally translated, this is the "house of hot stones."
In this video, Mexican midwives perform the closing of labor. A powerful technique that, with regards to sensations, emotions and experiences, goes through everyone in extremely different ways.

postnatal intercourse

The Slavic method of postnatal birthing, which I practice as a student of the famous midwife Yulia Shelepina, is a bit similar to the Mexican tradition, but differs from the previous ones in the content of the spiritual component and in some moments of implementation. The origins of this method of postpartum recovery of women have a Russian northern tradition.
Yulia Shelepina - ethnographer, psychologist, midwife, natural childbirth instructor (over 17 years of experience).

Weaving is a well-thought-out physiological effect on a woman in labor that has come down to us from our ancestors in order to restore her as soon as possible. It is designed to return the spent energy to a woman and help the body regain its tone, and the body become elastic and slender.

Everything is interesting in povinka: ritual songs, sacred numbers, and connection with all the elements of nature, and especially Mother Earth.

Postnatal care, in its essence, collects a woman after childbirth - the body, psyche, emotions, frees the mind. This is also another way to rule a woman's life related to motherhood. For some, this is a new birth of oneself as a mother and a readiness to become a mother again, since the end of the previous birth has been put.

Traditions of postpartum recovery of a woman

At the word midwife, many immediately understand that this is some kind of elderly woman, more often a grandmother, who takes birth in the village. Indeed so, however, the main purpose of the work of the midwife was not only to take delivery, but also in the subsequent care of the woman in labor and the newborn child. After the birth, the midwife "ruled and got along" with the woman in labor and the newborn. And she did it all in the bath. Let us now omit all the activities that the midwife carried out with the baby and will only touch on the care of the woman in labor.
In the bath, the midwife ruled the woman in labor, namely:
- put in place the stomach,
- straightened the navel,
- corrected the spool (womb), which is displaced during childbirth,
- soared,
- closed childbirth.
The activity of a midwife has always had not only a physiological, but also a spiritual aspect.

midwife:
is a believer, with high moral and ethical principles of life,
- a delicate person who can be trusted with the most intimate, knowing that he will keep all family secrets.
- a person who accurately and steadily fulfills his duties, aware of the responsibility and consequences of his deed.

In many cultures, it is believed that after childbirth, a woman is very open and you need to carefully monitor what kind of people and what energies can be allowed to her. Therefore, the first 40 days are advised to communicate less with strangers and show the child. By tradition, it was during this period that all the main restorative procedures after childbirth took place, and by the 40th day after childbirth, they were closed.

Postpartum swaddling (swaddling) with the closure of childbirth immediately after childbirth (day 9, 40) helps a woman remove her worries and move from a pregnant state to a new state of motherhood. Indeed, after the birth of a child, a woman's task changes - during pregnancy she bore a child, and her attention was directed inward, and she took care of herself, and through herself - about the child. And after giving birth, the child became separate from her, with her own needs, and she needs to rebuild, redirect her attention outward - to the child, rebuild the lifestyle of her family. When closing the birth, the technique of "7 locks" is used.

The traditional way to restore a woman in labor: the woman was first helped to relax, warm up from the inside and out, herbal massage, the crying of the woman in labor, oil massage, twisting, then closing the birth (the body was pulled in certain places to release tension that could accumulate there during pregnancy and childbirth). Tension is various grievances, experiences associated with pregnancy and childbirth, something unsaid or unspoken. It takes a lot of effort to experience these situations again and again.

The weaving procedure takes place mainly in the bath (possible option at home) and takes 4-6 hours. During this time, the baby can be next to his mother, but under the supervision of another woman (grandmother, girlfriend). Two midwives or a midwife and an assistant give birth to a woman in labor. At the end of the process, a ritual of washing hands is performed between the midwife and the woman.

Postnatal care later (1 - 40 years after childbirth) gives a woman the opportunity to LIVE and LET DELIVERY, and move into a new state - HARMONIOUS and holistic, at all levels: physical body, subtle body, psyche, emotions, mind.

Experience shows that there are women who, having closed one of their many births, immediately want to come and close the next ones. They seem to miss these sensations, and strive to quickly become whole and harmonious. But, nevertheless, it is worth waiting a little, and allowing the new to become constant and unchanged in your life.

The idea of ​​postpartum swaddling is not new; on the contrary, mention of it is found in the description of traditional rites that accompanied childbirth. In Rus', after giving birth, midwives not only washed and corrected (twisted) the baby, but also took care of the woman who had given birth. She was hovered, her bones and joints were corrected, the spool (that is, the uterus) was put in place.

Here is how in Thoren's book "Russian Traditional Medicine and Psychotherapy" they write about the important role of the bath in the postpartum period:

“The very first and most urgent thing after the end of childbirth is considered to be to reduce and evaporate the puerperal woman in the bath ... Three baths, or even more, are almost always required. popular belief is that it has the ability to restore normal physiological processes in the body of the puerperal ... Another important significance of the bath is that here for attendants, not embarrassed by the presence of strangers, it is possible to "rule" the stomach of the puerperal much more freely ... It is also very important to put the "spool" of the puerperal woman (womb) in place. It is most convenient to do this in the bathhouse, when the "bones are thawed and softened."

The rebirth of postpartum swaddling in Russia

Swaddling found its second birth in Russia in 2003 when Alena Lebedeva met the Mexican midwife Naoli Vinaver at the world conference on natural childbirth. Naoli talked about the ritual of swaddling women in Mexico, which allows the woman in labor to recover as quickly as possible. Since then, swaddling has developed into a special system, overgrown with various details. In 2009 E.Yu. Lebedeva received a patent for swaddling as a "method of postpartum rehabilitation." Over the past time, the practice of swaddling has spread throughout the country, changing depending on the views of the women conducting it.

The essence of swaddling remains the same. There is a maximum relaxation of a woman, for which soft heat, massage, essential oils, silence are used ...

First, a woman in labor is warmed up in a bath or a warm bath with the addition of herbal decoctions. Warming drinks with spices, herbs, berries are taken inside.

A warm woman is given a massage to relax the muscles, improve blood flow, and put the internal organs in place.

After that, swaddling itself takes place, when the body is pulled together with a long cloth in 8 zones in turn (head, shoulders, ribs, iliac bones, hips, shins, feet, hip joints). A woman is recommended to lie down or even sleep for 4 hours after swaddling. The whole procedure takes from 4 to 8 hours, during which the baby is next to the mother, and can attach to the breast at any time.

Best time for postpartum swaddling

The best time for swaddling is 5 to 14 days postpartum(after caesarean section - on the 3rd week after childbirth), although in practice women did it a few months later and noticed positive changes.

Positive effects of postpartum swaddling

What are the positive effects achieved through the procedure of postpartum swaddling?

• The dynamic stereotype of movement changes when the body continues to move after childbirth, as if the woman is still pregnant (with the stomach displaced by the center of gravity).
• Reduced postpartum elasticity of ligaments and joints.
• Tissue swelling is removed, recovery of the figure improves.
• Stimulates hematopoiesis.
• The body is detoxified.
• The mental and functional state is normalized.
• The position of the pelvic joints is corrected.
• Reduces the likelihood of postpartum depression.
• Postpartum problems are solved: back pain, too large belly, poorly contracting uterus, hemorrhoids, constipation, urination disorders, insomnia, depression, loss of appetite.

From the reviews: “I noticed that I began to sleep more calmly - my back does not hurt! When getting up, the feeling of dizziness disappeared, and the tummy noticeably decreased. However, the whole body was “blown away” a little, even the legs began to feel free in slippers. My husband generally said that I noticeably built up. ”

Types of postpartum swaddling

Currently, there are two practically different types of swaddling: medical, which is a rather complicated procedure for restoring the body after childbirth, and restorative aimed more at harmonizing the state of the body and soul.

The first option combines various types of massage: lymphatic drainage, visceral, connective tissue; osteopathic techniques, phyto- and aromatherapy, etc. This is the same postpartum rehabilitation that Alena Lebedeva and her students do, more aimed at the body.

In the second option, massage, bath and tightening by zones are also performed, but the emphasis is on the psychological component. A woman who has given birth is faced with the task of not only restoring her body, but also rethinking the experience gained, entering the role of a mother, and finding a new state of mind. In the swaddling procedure, it is possible, through working out painful areas in the body and pronunciation, to remove negative experiences associated with childbirth or the period of pregnancy. And with the help of massage, aromas and relaxation, find peace and a resource for motherhood. In some cases, at the request of the woman in labor, postpartum swaddling is supplemented with rituals (washing hands, honoring a woman in a new status).

From the reviews: " At the time when they dragged me in some places, I was silent and almost fell asleep, and in others, unexpectedly for myself, I began to chat without stopping. Moreover, she remembered and splashed out on the girls not only the “surfaced” details of childbirth, but also the seemingly forgotten moments of pregnancy ... The next day I woke up with a feeling of pleasant lightness in my head. All worries and problems, obsessive thoughts disappeared somewhere. But I wanted to smile at everyone at home, hum and take off.

Most likely, there is no single, only correct type of swaddling. It is much more important that a woman understands for what purposes she needs swaddling, and makes an appropriate choice. Anyway important is the identity of the one who carries out swaddling. Remember - the requirements for midwives were quite strict. They included not only the ability to provide proper assistance in childbirth, but also a number of requirements for her moral and spiritual character. The use of osteopathic techniques should not be done by everyone, and it depends on the psychological state of the “swaddlers” whether the woman in labor will eventually find spiritual harmony or it will remain just a spa procedure.

Photo of the procedure from the site "Obstetrics Today"

Article from the magazine "Malyshok" (09.11)

The growing popularity among young mothers is becoming such a procedure for postpartum recovery as swaddling. Many years of practice have proven that this difficult procedure can not only help the work of internal organs, narrow the pelvis and waist, but also set up a woman in labor for high-quality motherhood. To find out if this is true, we talked with postpartum recovery specialist Victoria Ripp.

DIs swaddling really necessary? If so, to whom in the first place?

No, swaddling is not necessary. It is done only for those who experience any difficulties during the postpartum recovery period. Since swaddling is a holistic procedure that affects many aspects of a woman's life after childbirth, it can accordingly help in various situations. For example, when feeling unwell in general- both bodily and emotional: when a woman who has given birth feels out of place, feels anxiety, powerlessness, despondency, upon arrival from the maternity hospital she cannot get into a rut for a long time, gets very tired, cannot cope with the load.

But euphoria is a bad symptom. Women who are in euphoria, just after returning from the hospital, call friends and relatives, serve guests, clean, cook, walk with the child ... But after two or three weeks they fall down from fatigue and then recover very long and hard. This is a very common behavior provoked by hormonal levels and social stereotypes. It seems to a young mother that she can and should (everyone!) Do the same as before, plus take care of the baby, not sleep at night, but she does not feel her real state at all - it is impossible to calculate her strength ...

A striking example from practice is Katya. She swaddled in the third week after giving birth, and all this time, starting from the second day after returning home, she received guests, later she went to visit herself - far away, in public transport. During the day she was very active, but at night she did not sleep, sobbing, experiencing a lot of fears and suffering from a frightening feeling of emptiness in her stomach and from the fact that she did not understand at all, did not feel the child and did not know what to do with him. But none of her relatives knew this, because during the day she was always in a good mood. Katya wanted to return on the first day after giving birth to start all over again.

This happens to many women. It may not look so bright, but certain manifestations of depression and “escape from oneself” are very common. Young mothers sometimes do not realize their condition or are afraid to admit it to themselves and others. As a result, it can become chronic.

Swaddling also helps those women who have had difficult childbirth or caesarean section. Difficult childbirth is a huge stress, and a woman needs to recuperate. The body remembers a caesarean section as a suppression of the most important program: for nine months, the body changes, develops in a certain direction and waits for a climax, but it does not occur. And swaddling at least a little, but compensates, completes this process.

Practice shows that swaddling, solving the main problem of speedy recovery, also helps with specific problems: a very large stomach, prolapse of organs, displacement of the pelvis, poorly contracting uterus, constipation, hemorrhoids, difficulty urinating, enlarged foot. As well as pain in the perineum, muscles, joints of the pelvis, lower back, between the shoulder blades. Indications for swaddling are symptoms such as insomnia, weakness, lethargy, apathy, swelling, too strong appetite or its absence.

Once I swaddled Anya. Four months have passed since the birth. And all this time she suffered from a strong noise in her ear - such that in order to fall asleep, she had to settle down for a long time, pressing her hand or pillow to her ear. When we got to the tug of the pelvis, the noise immediately decreased significantly, and after a day it completely subsided.

It is also very pleasant when you manage to correct the pelvis, because during pregnancy the load on the joints increases, the muscles work differently, the center of gravity changes, as a result of which the pelvis often shifts. Recently, I swaddled my friend, who had very strong pains in her whole body for two weeks, she stopped feeling one hand, she could not sleep at all. After swaddling, she measured the volume of the hips, and it turned out that he had decreased by eleven centimeters: the pelvis changed shape, “closed”. By the way, swaddling in no case implies a cosmetic reduction in the volume of the hips or waist, and even more so - weight loss! This can only be a pleasant "side effect", but not the goal.

What can a woman expect after the swaddling procedure?

Of course, the disappearance of those complaints that are at the time of swaddling. For example, the issue of stagnation of secretions is perfectly solved (if the uterus contracts poorly).

As a result of the procedure, the center of gravity returns to the “pre-pregnancy” state. The back is straightened, the abdominal muscles are tightened and the diastasis (divergence) of the rectus abdominis muscles decreases.

It is important that swaddling serves as a prevention of problems that may appear in the future due to the possible omission and displacement of organs. By the way, it is very important to understand that the abdomen should have a taut shape due to properly positioned and well-functioning organs, when their natural rhythm and blood supply are not disturbed, and not due to pumped up abdominal muscles, since active exercises can just cause displacement of organs.

Swaddling - is it a new technology or a tradition?

Both. The tugging part of swaddling is a Mexican folk procedure. The rest is years of experience.

The fact is that pulling and soft warming up is an undifferentiated technique, that is, a technique that can be applied in any situation and to any person. From experience, we can say that it relieves muscle and joint pain, relieves physical and emotional stress, gives the woman in labor a feeling of relaxation and care.

How is the swaddling procedure?

Sitting on either side of the woman, we tighten her body alternately in eight places. It seems to many that something like an immobile mummy, but in fact, this is not so. It's just that a woman lies under a warm blanket, and we pull her head with a sling scarf, then her shoulders, ribs, pelvis ... The woman herself regulates the force of contraction, based on her feelings. This is usually a very pleasant procedure, as there is a "closing" of the body after childbirth.

Pulling is the final stage, after which the woman lies, eats and rests.

If the babies require a lot of attention, then swaddling can take up to eight hours, because we are not in a hurry and do everything at a pace that is convenient for the family. But the necessary stages of the procedure still usually take at least six hours. It is worth considering that after the procedure, you should not get up for at least four hours.

How to do without swaddling if it is not available?

Some women can easily do without the swaddling procedure - everything will return to normal by itself. The main thing is to eat well, try to rest, do not lift weights and do not pump the press. Others will have a harder time: they can not do without gymnastics. The first three months will be enough simple exercises at home. After that, it is best to give preference to Pilates, body flex, belly dancing, swimming (avoid strength exercises on simulators!). It is desirable that the instructor understands the features of the postpartum period. Massage (courses) is also useful, and ideally, a consultation with a competent osteopath.

Perfectly helps to recover after childbirth visiting the bath.

It is important to remember that in the postpartum period, the body is more vulnerable than ever. Problems that appeared during this period may remain for a long time. Therefore, you need to try to relax more, take care of yourself and ask loved ones for support and help.

Most expectant mothers are focused solely on pregnancy and preparation for childbirth. Few people think about what will happen. And therefore, often a woman who has just given birth is left alone with her problems of a physical and emotional nature. Meanwhile, in many cultures of the world, including the Slavic, there were traditions of restoring a woman after childbirth - the so-called postpartum swaddling or wrapping, closing childbirth. We will talk about three techniques for postpartum swaddling.

Mexican swaddling technique - rebozo

The Mexican technique of postpartum recovery rebozo has received the greatest fame all over the world. This technique is based on swaddling a woman with the traditional Mexican self-woven rebozo stole, which has been used by Mexicans since ancient times as an element of clothing, as well as for carrying babies. Rebozo is made 7-10 days after birth.

Swaddling procedure:
1) warming up and relaxing the body of a woman in a bath with herbs or a traditional Mexican temazcal bath;
2) light massage;
3) pulling the body of a woman with a rebozo scarf.

It is believed that during the Mexican technique of closing labor, not only physical, but also deep energy interaction with the mother's body occurs.

Traditional Slavic way of swaddling

However, as the Mexican rebozo technique spread to other countries, it turned out that similar practices also exist in the traditions of other peoples. In Rus', approximately the same procedure for the postpartum recovery of a woman was called "closing the seven keys."

The woman was swaddled or swaddled several times during the first 40 days after childbirth. The whole process took from 4 to 6 hours and most often took place in a bathhouse. The newborn was with the mother, but under the supervision of another person so that the woman could rest.

Swaddling procedure:
1) deep heating of the body from the inside (with the help of herbal teas and infusions) and from the outside (bath procedures). At the same time, each visit to the steam room was accompanied by different types of massage and ended with dousing with ice water;
2) the last entry was given a special role - while bathing in a font with herbal infusion, a woman talked about difficult moments of pregnancy and childbirth, cried them out;
3) if necessary, the midwife in the bath "ruled" the woman - put the stomach in place, straightened the navel, straightened the uterus, displaced during childbirth;
4) after the bath - rest under the sheet,
5) twisting seven areas of the mother's body (head in the forehead, shoulders, under the chest, iliac bones, mid-thigh, legs in the calf area, feet). Each zone was wrapped with a long scarf, the body in this zone was tightly tightened on both sides and kept in a tightened state for some time. The procedure was designed to release the tension accumulated in the body of a woman during pregnancy and childbirth, to survive birth fears and pain, to move from the state of a pregnant woman to the state of motherhood.

Interestingly, for the Slavic technique of closing childbirth, there is practically no statute of limitations. It is recommended to all women who still have experiences, fears associated with pregnancy and childbirth, even if they were several decades ago.

Modern postpartum swaddling

The modern method of postpartum swaddling based on the Mexican rebozo technique with elements of osteopathy and visceral massage was popularized by midwife Alena Lebedeva. She got acquainted with the rebozo method in 2003 and for more than 10 years has adapted its approach to mothers in Russia.

The procedure is designed to solve such specific postpartum problems as congestion of lochia, endometritis in the initial stage, divergence of the pubic symphysis, lactostasis, hemorrhoids caused by childbirth, constipation, difficulty urinating, back pain and many others.

Swaddling procedure:
1) deep heating of the woman's body with the help of a bath and herbal teas,
2) pulling 8 zones of the mother's body: head, shoulders, ribs in the area of ​​the solar plexus, ilium, middle of the femur, middle of the calf, middle of the foot, area of ​​the hip joints. Each zone is swaddled for 8 minutes, the degree of tension is regulated by the woman herself. For best results, this procedure is recommended to be performed 5-7 days after vaginal delivery and 10-14 days after caesarean section.

You are warm, cozy, comfortable - almost like a baby. And the body at this time is pulled together with a special towel in certain places. This fashionable procedure helps a young mother recover both mentally and physically.

Postpartum swaddling has a long history. Specialists use three types: Mexican, Slavic and modern. In general, swaddling, regardless of the technique, improves both the physical condition of the woman and the emotional one.

Specialists in postpartum swaddling advise doing it 5-7 days after natural childbirth and 10-14 days after caesarean section. But even if several months have passed since the birth, swaddling will help you come to your senses after stressful days and nights.

What gives swaddling to a young mother?

Physically:

• Reduces the volume of the hips after pregnancy and childbirth;
• Tightens the stomach;
• Helps get rid of cellulite;
• Improves the appearance of the skin.

Emotionally:

•  Helps to overcome postpartum depression;
•  Helps to realize oneself in a new status with new duties and responsibilities.

Swaddling pattern

We note right away that this procedure is not for five minutes. Swaddling takes an average of 5-6 hours. And it’s better that after that, mom has the opportunity to lie down calmly for 4 hours, relax.

In general, postpartum swaddling can be divided into three main stages, which may vary slightly depending on the technique (Mexican, Slavic, modern):

• warming up the body (both from the inside and outside);
• massage;
• directly swaddling (tugging) of the body.

For warming up, various herbal infusions and teas are used, as well as a hot (herbal again) bath or bath.

Massage is most often carried out lightly. Its task is not so much to stretch the muscles as to prepare the young mother for swaddling.

Swaddling itself consists in tightening certain areas of the body: the head, shoulders, ribs in the area of ​​​​the solar plexus, iliac bones, the middle of the femur, the middle of the calf, the middle of the foot, the area of ​​​​the hip joints. The woman can (and should) regulate the force of contraction herself.

The role of the diaper

This is not just a massage therapist or a spa specialist. This woman with whom you want and can talk about what worries you now, about how you survived childbirth, about your future. After all, these moments for the daily care of a child remain unvoiced, but it is necessary to speak them.

When not to do postpartum swaddling?

Despite all the usefulness, the procedure has a number of contraindications:

•  Acute conditions of diseases: ARVI, influenza;
•  Bleeding from the genital tract (until its cause is clarified and eliminated):
•  Laktostasis;
•  High temperature;
•  Tuberculosis;
•  Malignant neoplasms;
•  Some skin diseases;

In some diseases and conditions, swaddling is not contraindicated, but has its own characteristics. Therefore, be sure to inform the person who will do it about it. For example, with varicose veins, the legs are tightened less in time, with myoma, the pelvis is treated more carefully, etc.