Ask the Expert....
Massage in Pregnancy
Massage Therapist, Francesca Walsh, answers some of the common questions about massage in pregnancy.
Pregnancy can be a time of lots of physical aches and pains as well as anxious thoughts and worries. At any other time, we might consider massage as a way to help with pain or as a form of relaxation, but many ladies are unsure about having a massage whilst pregnant. Francesca answers the common questions around massage in pregnancy.
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2. I heard you can induce labour by pressing on certain pressure points around the body. Is that true, and therefore is it safe to have a massage before your due date?
In short, yes, it is perfectly safe as long as your massage therapist is trained and experienced in pregnancy massage. There are indeed a few acupressure points on which you should not apply deep, pointed and sustained pressure but these are not areas of the body which you are likely to stimulate in the course of a nurturing treatment. All fully-trained pregnancy massage therapists will know all of these points and will know to avoid them.
1. I am in my first trimester of pregnancy and another massage therapist will not massage me until my second trimester. Why?
I particularly relish the opportunity to address this question as there is so much misinformation going round, and I have come across blatantly incorrect advice. Many qualifying massage courses in the UK teach that massage during the first three months is contraindicated and some insurance providers will not provide cover to massage in the first trimester. This has contributed to a belief that massage is inherently problematic or even dangerous in the first stage of pregnancy. This is simply not true. 85 percent of miscarriages occur in the first trimester but they are not caused by anything the woman did or did not do. The main reason a woman in her first 12 weeks of pregnancy might be refused a massage is for liability reasons and to avoid any risk of blame rather than for anything the massage might do.
Unless otherwise advised by your GP, massage during the first trimester is safe as long as your massage therapist is trained and experienced in pregnancy massage and observes appropriate precautions.