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Pregnant and practicing massage

After a very difficult first trimester I'm finally feeling better and wanting to return to massage. If you've been pregnant or are pregnant, how long did you practice? Did you limit yourself in any ways? I'm only going back for, "lite" work because I've had quite the medical roller coaster this past year, but massage is my passion and I'm really wanting to at least see one client if not two each day.....thoughts?

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Permalink Reply by Marissa on November 11, 2009 at 9:01am

Melissa, each and every therapist is different. Each and every pregnancy is different. I actually had appointments scheduled the day I gave birth. Of course, I had to cancel, but I think I had a good excuse. I would only see 3 hours of appointments while pregnant and breast-feeding. Actually, this was a group idea I had not too long ago. I'm going to start it today. Please join and we can really talk about the issues we face while pregnant and practicing. It may be too much for some to handle. :)

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Permalink Reply by Susan G. Salvo on November 11, 2009 at 11:45am

So much depends on your health and whether or not your pregnancy is high risk.

I’ve had 4 pregnancies while practicing. For the first two pregnancies, I worked right up until the time day before I went into labor.

This is the time I fell in love with my massage stool. I sat down when I felt a little fatigued during the session. My stool is still my favorite piece of massage equipment.

However, my last two were high risk (one because of advancing age and one because of multiples). I had to stop working almost 6 wks before childbirth.

Listen to your body. If you are tired, sleep. If you are hungry, eat. If your feet are swollen, elevate them.

Also, keep up with your prenatal visits.

Good luck and take care of yourself and your baby.