Bowenwork is gentle, holistic manual therapy designed to release tension and holding patterns that no longer serve you, with the added bonus of deep relaxation and a greater sense of well being. This therapy can be of great benefit to women who are trying to get pregnant, who already are pregnant and during the postpartum period.
Preconception, Bowenwork ensures that your tissue is healthy to support a pregnancy. And this isn’t just for the woman. Couples who are trying to get pregnant can receive Bowenwork together to enhance their fertility.
Most pregnant women experience “wobbly pelvis”, “wonky hips” and back pain. Your body is shifting and stretching to accommodate a growing baby and preparing you for the hard work of birth. These body aches are not something that you have to “just deal with” as part of your pregnancy. Every pregnant mama deserves the opportunity to experience hands on healing to help her be more comfortable.
Postpartum, a woman’s body has been through a lot. Her tissues have stretched and dilated, her muscles have contracted and she has used stores of energy to birth a baby. Bowenwork can help release tension patterns created during labor and set mom back to right after a session.
The Bowen Technique originated in the 1950’s by an Australian named Tom Bowen. He observed interconnectedness throughout the body and worked on each relationship until he was able to confidently develop moves and procedures that set the body back in balance.
In the UK, Bowenwork is often used by midwives as a standard of care to help ensure a woman is comfortable enough to sleep, her ligaments are relaxing prior to birth and baby and pelvis are lining up – just to name a few common uses.
Bowenwork has also been successfully used to turn a breech baby. An example I read by Mary Falk, a Bowen practitioner, was of a mom in her 36th week. She was seen once where a combination of moves on her back and lower pelvis were used and a week later her baby had turned head down.
So what is a session like? I worked with Meigra Simon, a Bowen worker in SE Portland. Fully clothed, I laid on her table where she would lightly touch parts of my body. The pressure was similar to cranial sacral work, the difference was that Meigra left the room for a few minutes after each move. The thought behind the practitioner leaving the client alone is to allow each move to integrate deeply into the body.
The session was about an hour long and left me completely relaxed. I drifted in and out of sleep while on the table, completely undisturbed by Meigra’s coming and going quietly.
Wondering if Bowenwork is right for you? Call Meigra Simon and ask questions, she’s happy to chat with you and answer anything. I know I’ve been talking about it to pregnant mamas.
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