Pregnancy Tables

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Roger D. Werstler on September 16, 2009 at 6:24am

I know there is a huge following for the use of specially designed Prgnancy tables, but I am not suscribing yet to the plan for the expecting mom to lie face down into these tables. It has a cutaway that will support her abdomen, but I fear it still is not a safe pressure on the outer walls of her abdominal walls. I choose to use a traditional massage table with a number of pillows under her head, arms, legs, knees, hips as the particular position dictates. Upright in the second trimester with a pillow under the right hip and several behind her neck and back to bring her into a 45 degree angle work wonderful. The sidelying position is best for back work. I was trained by several RNs and they feel it is better to be safe than sorry.

Permalink Reply by Elaine Stillerman, LMT on September 18, 2009 at 12:26pm

I agree- the tables actually exaggerate the lordotic curve, compress the breasts, and don't provide any lymph advantage. However, if you use the body support systems correctly - and they can be used throughout all three trimesters provided the client is comfortable - your client's body is in preferred postural alignment in the prone position and feels extremely comfortable. Again, the key is to place the cushions appropriately (I demonstrate its use in my DVD that accompanies my prenatal textbook).

In this prone position, bodyworkers can employ a wide variety of techniques that are limited in side-lying. (By the way, side-lying on the cushions is heavenly!). In addition, practitioners' body mechanics are more natural. For the client, the lumbar spine and musculature is decompressed, lymphatic drainage is encourage, backaches are reduced, sciatica (when caused by fetal position) can be eliminated, and abdominal pressure, varicosities, and hemorrhoids are relieved. I wouldn't use the prone positioning for any client with nasal or sinus congestion, or gastric discomforts, such as esophageal reflux, since this position lends itself to increasing such discomforts. Side-lying or recumbent on the cushions can be substituted for prone positioning in these cases.

Elaine Stillerman, LMT
www.MotherMassage.Net
Since 1980

Permalink Reply by Exie Buehler on April 4, 2010 at 9:52pm

I am a certified prenatal massage therapist and actually have used a prenatal table for the past 6 years of my practice along with pillows and bolsters to support my clients. When my clients are prone, I place a pillow underneath them at the edge of the belly-space to provide support for their lower backs and there are breast recesses for them to be comfortable (which is also a plus when they are nursing PP and if clients are not pregnant but have sensitive or large breasts). The belly is NEVER just hanging. The lower portion is supported by the pillow and the belly is supported by the tension in the sheet on the table, but my clients say that they never feel like they are "laying on the baby". I only use the prone position for about 20min and then have the client change to the 2 side-lying positions and end in a semi-seated position with a large wedge cushion behind them for support. All of my clients appreciate these positions and I have had many women come to me stating that the prenatal table option is what caused them to seek me out.
As a certified doula, I have an extensive network with nurses, midwives, and OB's in my area and all of them are supportive of the use of my table with pillows for their patients, one of my clients is a doctor who came to me specifically for the prenatal table option and I worked with her from her 1st trimester to just before her EDD. I do not feel that the way I use my table puts my clients at risk and I always give them the option of deleting the prone position entirely if there is any concern on their part.
I do believe that massage therapists who receive just the basic training in school should seek continuing education in order to properly understand both the changed anatomy and physiology of the prenatal client if they are interested in working with the prenatal population.