Day 2 of Massage Therapy Awareness Week! Today we are highlighting our Prenatal Liaision Rebecca's Post on Prenatal Massages and when you can get one!!

When Is Prenatal Massage Safe?

Answer: Anytime! As long as the pregnancy is low-risk, and you are working with a knowledgeable Prenatal Massage Therapist.   

It is completely safe to get a massage in your first, second, and third trimester. We have worked on clients who didn’t know they were pregnant at the time and still went on to have a healthy pregnancy and baby. There is a lot of misconception of prenatal massage in the first trimester. Some massage therapists will not work on a woman in her first trimester because the risk for a miscarriage is high until after 12 weeks. Because of this risk, establishments fear they will be blamed for the miscarriage. However, there is no scientific proof that a massage can cause a miscarriage. On the contrary, massage helps reduce stress and tension while helping to balance your hormones and boosting immune function. All of these can help support a growing baby.

Women can receive prenatal massage at any time throughout their pregnancy. A question that we get asked often is “How late in my pregnancy can I get a massage?” As long as the pregnancy is low-risk, Mom and Baby are healthy, then there is no cut-off point. In fact, most massage therapists will recommend that you receive massages more often the closer you are to your due date because of the added strain on the body as the baby gets bigger.  

*We recommend that all prenatal clients speak with their doctors before scheduling an appointment to be sure that massage is safe for them. We can do massage on high-risk clients, with a note from your doctor.*

If you have any questions regarding prenatal massage you can reach out to our Prenatal Liaison, Rebecca at rebecca@massagehope.com or call the office at 703-858-2323.

Feel free to read more on prenatal massage on the American Pregnancy Associations website:

http://americanpregnancy.org/pregnancy-health/prenatal-massage/