Our midwife, Valorie, recently became certified to teach Dancing for Birth. Here is her story;
I recently had the privilege of attending Dancing for Birth training in Bali. The training took place over the span of 6 days with 16 birth workers from all over the globe led by Stephanie Larson, founder of Dancing for Birth. To say that I was inspired would be a gross understatement! I am so excited to share my newfound knowledge of the interconnections of movement and birth with our Seasons families and anyone else who is interested!
My love of dance and all things related to childbirth drew me to the Dancing for Birth training but I gained so much more than dance moves. I learned how our cultural perspective affects our perception of birth. We studied Latin, Middle Eastern, Caribbean, and African cultures where childbirth is not feared or seen as a painful experience that the birthing person just wants to get over with and possibly even numb themselves to. In these cultures, birth is a right of passage and a time to celebrate! And what do we do when we celebrate? We dance! It is common practice for the women in the community to come together and form a circle around the birthing person where they remain together offering support and dancing until the baby is born
Dancing supports physiologic birth by keeping an upright position where gravity can help the baby descend. It also creates more space for the baby to navigate through the pelvis when the hips move in an asymmetric motion. Finally, dancing releases oxytocin which not only helps labor progress but also gives the birthing person a euphoric feeling. So basically not only does dancing in birth shorten the length of labor, it also allows the birthing person to experience joy and pleasure amidst the discomfort
Our bodies are so amazing! When we experience full sensation and freedom of movement during labor and childbirth, our bodies will instinctively move in a certain way that facilitates baby’s journey to outside the womb. In Dancing for Birth classes we will practice those instinctive movements and integrate them into fun and uplifting exercises set to music. After getting familiar with these physiologic movements during class, using them to dance the baby out will come even more naturally. Then postpartum return to class with the new baby in a sling or wrap to start easing back in to exercise and sooth a baby who is familiar with these movements from their time in the womb!
You can learn more about Dancing for Birth here: http://dancingforbirth.com/
Midwife Valorie is now offerings her Dancing for Birth classes at Seasons Midwifery & Birth Center class room on Thursday evenings at 5:45, the drop in rate is only $5 per class.
