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Printable flyer (PDF)
Research shows that pregnant and postpartum women and their babies benefit from supportive touch. This course is designed for anyone in a support role with a pregnant woman (partners, doulas, midwives, nurses, close friends or relatives, etc.) looking to learn and develop respectful, safe and effective skills for using touch to support, reassure and relax a new or expecting mother.
While physical therapists and massage therapists are especially suited and trained to address the musculoskeletal changes that pregnancy brings, touch lies within the scope of partners, doulas, midwives and nurses – a whole community that can support the mother in this way. Often women either cannot afford massage or simply feel more comfortable being touched by someone they already know. Non-LMP-PT care providers are in a unique position to provide comforting touch and to help identify when a referral would be appropriate and necessary.
During this seven-hour course, students will receive an introduction to hands-on techniques for pregnancy, birth and postpartum. Course topics include:
- Benefits of touch during pregnancy and postpartum
- Physiology of touch and stress
- How touch impacts the giver
- Safe touch, boundaries and permission
- ‘Listening’ with your hands
- Contraindications for touch during pregnancy and postpartum
- Overview of common pregnancy and postpartum pain patterns, causes and compensations
- Positioning for comfort
- When and how to refer
- Hands-on techniques and how they work
- How to use what is in the doula resource bag
- Resources for additional learning
Laurie Levy LMT, MA has been a massage therapist since 1997. She holds a
masters degree in counseling and has taught human anatomy and physiology for
over 10 years. She is certified in pregnancy massage and has been a
practicing doula since 2000. Since a car accident while pregnant with
her first child, Laurie's private practice has specialized in pregnant
clients with injuries. Laurie is passionate about women's reproductive
health and helping families create solid foundations. She volunteers with a
number of organizations including Postpartum Support International of WA and
Jewish Family Service's Mom-2-Mom program.
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