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PREGNANCY & POSTNATAL

Pregnancy massage, in Croydon.

Carrying a baby changes how your body carries itself. Pregnancy massage is about making that more comfortable — easing the lower back, hips and shoulders that take the strain, and giving you an hour where nothing is asked of you.

WHAT IT'S FOR

The aches that come with the territory.

During pregnancy, as your centre of gravity shifts forward, the curve in your lower back increases and your hips widen to compensate. That puts real strain on the lower back, the sacroiliac joints and the muscles around them — which is why back pain is so common, and why it tends to arrive in the second half of pregnancy and stay.

Massage won't change the cause. What it can do is ease the muscular tension that builds around it, help with the heaviness in your legs, and give you some genuine rest.

Commonly helps with:

  • Lower back and hip discomfort
  • Sciatic-type pain through the buttock and leg
  • Neck and shoulder tension
  • Swelling and heaviness in the legs and feet
  • Difficulty sleeping, and general fatigue
  • Simply having an hour to yourself

HOW IT WORKS

You'll be on your side, fully supported.

Positioning

You will not be face-down, and you will not be flat on your back. From around 22 weeks you'll be side-lying, propped with pillows and bolsters under your head, bump and knees — comfortable enough that most people could fall asleep, and a lot do.

Earlier in pregnancy there's more flexibility, and we'll work out what's comfortable for you on the day.

Pressure

Lighter and slower than a sports massage. During pregnancy, your body produces a hormone called relaxin, which loosens your ligaments, so joints move more than they normally would and deep work is neither necessary nor sensible.

You're in control of the pressure throughout, as always. Tell me to ease off and I will.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

When it's right, and when it isn't.

The first 13 weeks

In the first trimester I'll need approval from your GP or midwife before treating you. Because of the rapid changes in the body and the increased risk of miscarriage, massage generally isn't recommended in the first 13 weeks. If your GP or midwife recommends a massage during this time, please speak to me first.

If your pregnancy has been classified as high risk

If you've been told your pregnancy is high risk, I'll need approval from your GP or midwife before treating you. You'll know if you have — it's a term your midwife or consultant will have used with you directly.

It covers a range of things: being under consultant-led rather than midwife-led care, expecting more than one baby, certain existing medical conditions, placental complications, or problems in a previous pregnancy.

If you're not sure whether it applies to you, ask at your next appointment — and please mention it when you book rather than on the day, so you don't have a wasted journey.

Please don't book, and speak to your midwife today, if you have

  • Any unusual bleeding or discharge
  • Severe headaches, visual disturbances, or sudden swelling of the hands and face
  • Reduced or absent movement from your baby
  • Abdominal pain or cramping you can't explain
  • Raised or unstable blood pressure

These are things your midwife needs to know about, and a massage is not the right response to any of them.

Also worth knowing

If you've had an amniocentesis, a CVS (chorionic villus sampling) or any similar procedure, please leave at least a week before booking. And if you're unwell — fever, sickness, anything contagious — we'll rebook.

AFTER THE BIRTH

Postnatal massage.

The weeks after birth are their own kind of physical. Feeding posture, carrying, broken sleep and a body that has just done something remarkable — it shows up in the neck, shoulders and lower back.

After a straightforward birth, please wait until after your six-week check and until your midwife or GP has given you the all-clear. It is important to note that it takes time for your body to return to 'normal'. The abdominal muscles are still healing, and relaxin can remain in your body for many months after birth, so deep tissue work should still be avoided in certain areas in the early postpartum months.

After a caesarean, longer — I'd suggest three to six months, and I'll need approval from your GP or midwife before treating you. A caesarean, whilst viewed as routine, is major abdominal surgery, and the layers underneath take considerably longer to heal than the scar on the surface suggests. The same applies if you had other complications.

After that, it's much the same as any other treatment, adapted to what your body has been through.

Babies are welcome if there's no one to leave them with. It's a home practice, not a clinic, and I would rather you came with a baby than didn't come at all.

SESSIONS & PRICING

Same sessions, same prices.

Pregnancy and postnatal treatments are priced by length, exactly as the sports massage sessions are.

A first pregnancy appointment includes time to talk through where you are, how you're feeling and what would help — so the 60-minute session is usually the better starting point.

Ready to book?

Pregnancy and postnatal massage in Croydon CR0. Daytime, evening and Sunday appointments available.

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