Mummascribbles – Yoga & Mindfulness for Pregnancy and Birth with Nadia Raafat – a review – Mummascribbles

One of the things that I loved doing in my first pregnancy was yoga. I found a weekly class that allowed me to spend an hour and a half in bliss, discussing our pregnancies, stretching, relaxing, breathing, being me. Focussing on the baby that was growing in my tummy and spending the last 15 minutes basically asleep before she tinged those little bells! It was my bit of peace and quiet every week that was great for both mind and body. When it’s only pregnancy number one, it is much easier to slot these things into a working week. There are no requirements to rearrange childcare, there is no-one relying on you to be there for them. You can simply do as you please!

A second pregnancy is very different, especially if you are working full time! You still have to complete your working hours and generally after work, you are doing the nursery run, feeding children, bathing children, getting children into bed and amongst that there isn’t much time to be doing anything else. It was always difficult when I was doing all of the running around picking Zach up as by the time I got us home or the other half got home, I didn’t have the time (or really the energy) to be going out to any classes. And so, my pregnancy second time around was not featuring any of the yoga I had so previously enjoyed. 

Then I was contacted to see if I would like to review a special pregnancy yoga dvd and suddenly there was the ability of bringing yoga to my house!

Yoga & Mindfulness for Pregnancy and Birth with Nadia Raafat is a dvd that is specially formulated to make you feel healthy and empowered throughout your pregnancy and during the birth of your baby. It is suitable from 14 weeks right through to birth and for all levels of ability. There are two discs that feature five practices, each of which end with a mindfulness session. 

1. Yoga: Flowing with the breath (47 minutes) Establishing the practice of moving the body in harmony with the natural rhythm of the breath.

Mindfulness – Breath awareness

2. Yoga: Gentle strength, soft power (46 minutes) Exploring the strengthening poses of the pregnancy yoga pantheon with a sense of ease and softness.

Mindfulness – Present moment awareness

3. Yoga: Open your body, open your mind (53 minutes) Gently encouraging flexibility in the shoulders and hips and expansionin the pelvis in preparation for birth.

Mindfulness -Acceptance

4. Yoga: Support and yield (40 minutes) Using the chair to explore positions and movements that can be used antenatally and during labour to facilitate progress and encourage descent.

Mindfulness – Letting go

5. Yoga: The birth dance (41 minutes) Encouraging you to move freely and trust your body, this class culminates in a liberating and energising birth dance.

Mindfulness – Connection and wholeness

Throughout the dvd, Nadia moves softly through all the areas and never makes you feel that you are lacking in skill when wobbling around! Each one is relaxing and invigorating – I especially love the birth dance! Nadia herself has four children (3 of which were home birthed after an emegency c-section) and she filmed this dvd whilst 8 months pregnant with her fourth child. It’s nice to actually be able to relate to the person that is talking to you through the television and with her being pregnant, it is easier to spot the exact ways we should be doing the moves. I also love that a lot of it is helping to prepare the body for labour and teaches you positions and breathing techniques that can be used. I am now focussing on those parts of the dvd since birth should only be a couple of weeks away now. 

Whilst practising with the dvd, I would recommend closing the curtains, waiting for any other children to be asleep and telling your other half to not be disturbing you upon starting one of these sessions! It can be a little bit harder to get into the zone at home compared to at an actual class but it really is perfect if you are struggling to find time to do so. 

Nadia is not only a yoga and mindfulness teacher but also a practising birth doula and birth educator. Again, to have someone with this background is fantastic and really makes me believe in everything this dvd shows me. Her website is a huge resource of knowledge and features all of the classes and courses that she runs in West London, in particular her Mindful Birthing course that she started earlier this year.

If like me, you are looking to be able to do something at home that is almost identical to what you would do outside at a class, I would wholly recommend this dvd. It’s absolutely fab and is available on Amazon for £16.99.

Disclosure
I was sent this dvd for the purpose of this review. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own.