All About Pranayama and Pregnancy
If you’ve ever been in labor, or done anything else tremendously painful, you understand the importance of breathwork. I can remember being in the hospital delivering my son after having been in labor for four days. I was in great pain, but the nurses kept complimenting me on my ability to breathe through it. Did I take a birthing class? No (but in retrospect I wish I had). I practiced yoga- pranayama more specifically.
What is Pranayama?
Prana is the life-force energy that resides in our solar plexus and moves throughout our bodies. Pranayama, then is a method of restoring the prana through our breathing. It should be done regularly when the universal energy must be replenished, as well as when healing is needed.
Most people today practice faulty breathing. Shallow high-chest breathing instead of deeply filling the belly and chest. This poorly oxygenates the bloodstream and results in fatigue, headache, and neurasthenia. I believe this is an issue because people are not mindful of their breathing. They suck in and out without thinking about it, assuming because they inhale they are oxygenating properly. However, for blood to carry nutrients, it must have proper oxygen. According to yogis, the most essential food is air. This is because dirty air can make us very sick and kill us, and we cannot survive long without air. Thus, we must practice proper breathing. We practice pranayama as a process of purification with or without asanas. It helps bring about calmness, concentration, and mindfulness. It also improves blood flow, metabolism, circulation, and it improves lung elasticity and breath control. Proper breathing improves overall physical, mental, and emotional wellness.
So, how do we practice Pranayama?
Breathing in Yoga should be deep and slow, it should fill and expand the entire belly and chest. Breath should be mindful and align with the bodily movements. Meaning, if the front of the body is open, we should be inhaling, if it is closed or crunched, we should be exhaling. The process of yogic (proper) breathing involves four parts: puraka, rechaka, and two forms of kumbaka. In ideal breathing, all four parts are done with the same speed, steadiness, depth, and control. Puraka is the inhale, kumbaka (1) is pausing with the lungs completely full of air, rechaka is complete exhalation, and kumbaka (2) is pausing with the lungs completely empty. In a normal pranayama practice, the ratio between inhalation and exhalation should be 1:2. Inhalation, retention, and exhalation should be 1:4:2. This is because it allows for maximum breath control, and allows for the expulsion of all of the old air in the lungs. BUT IN A PRENATAL PRACTICE, THE BREATH SHOULD NEVER BE HELD.
Simple Pranayama Exercises
Advanced pranayama should be practiced with the guidance of an experienced teacher or guru. However, if you keep it simple and don’t push yourself, basic practices can be done at home. Here are a few simple exercises to try.
Alternate nostril breathing (for pregnancy): in this type of breath, the right thumb is used to close the right nostril. We then breathe in fully through the left nostril. Next, block the left nostril with your right ring finger, release the right nostril, and exhale. Inhale through the same nostril, then block it again and return to the left nostril. This is one cycle. Continue these cycles for 5 minutes. This is a calming breath great for pregnancy that allows you to relax and come back to your body.
Ujjayi breathing (for labor): This is also referred to in the birth community as “birth breathing”. To do this breath, take a long, slow inhale to the count of four. Then exhale to the count of 6 through the nose, tightening the throat to make a snore sound. This breathing focusses on a downward motion and allows us to “breathe our babies out” during the pushing phase of birth by relaxing our muscles and pelvic floor and shifting our energy downward.
