Relaxation Techniques: Mental Relaxation
Now that you know The Basics of Relaxation, the time has come to start testing out different relaxation techniques. As you try out various techniques, it’s important to remember that every relaxation technique doesn’t work for every woman. As you continue through your pregnancy, practice the relaxation techniques that actually relax you and ignore the ones that don’t.
What types of relaxation are there?
There are many different categories of relaxation techniques. Among these are physical relaxation, mental relaxation, emotional relaxation, sensory recall, and imagination relaxation. For most of these, you will need a partner to practice with you. This person can be your husband/significant other, a family member or friend, a doula, or some combination of the above. You’ll also need to practice somewhat frequently if you want to be able to relax during contractions, which is what makes the entire birth process easier.
Mental relaxation
For beginning any relaxation exercise, it’s important to be in a comfortable position (side lying to start with) and to use abdominal breathing. For a more in-depth explanation, hearken back to The Basics of Relaxation section. Next, you can pick one of several types of mental relaxation.
Music
Having music play in the background is a reasonably easy form of mental relaxation. Try to pick one playlist that contains music that completely relaxes you, as this could be useful for specific parts of your labor. You can have another playlist with music that is more distracting because you may benefit from focusing on your music more during the more intense portions of labor. You can even play nature sounds (birds chirping, waterfalls, ocean waves, etc) if those work better for you.
Stories
Another form of mental relaxation is storytelling. Your chosen partner can read a book, short story, or poem, or just tell you stories. Have your partner experiment with multiple different types of storytelling to see what, if any, appeal to you.
Prayers
You and your partner can also say prayers either together or individually. Practice using either memorized or spontaneous prayers to find out if that is a type of mental relaxation that works for you.
Happy relaxing!
If you find other methods of mental relaxation that help you relax, feel free to use those. It’s best to practice your preferred mental relaxation techniques often during your pregnancy. This way, you’ll be better able to use those techniques to relax during labor.
