When you become a parent, everything changes. You can read all the books, watch all the movies, and listen to all the Ted Talks—but the realities of parenthood often still come as a surprise—even for parents who already have kids. 

Movies would have you believe that having a new baby is all cuddles and a total lack of sleep. While this is true, you might be surprised to see just how many other changes there are. When you’re running on “Newborn Time”, you might find yourself struggling to remember when you last spoke to someone other than your baby. With all of the nappies, naps, and feeding times, it is easy to fall out of touch with the people that you used to speak to daily and it’s during the postnatal period that you are likely to fall out of contact with the people you love during the time when you need them the most.

Having a baby in the house can shake things up and during these strange, unusual, and beautiful times, you need a community that you can depend on.

Postpartum belly binding is a centuries old ancient tradition, commonly practised in Asia. Only recently have Western women discovered its genuine benefits. Vivian, founder of Deknot Bodywork and Massage is a massage therapist on the Sunshine Coast who provides this treatment. We were excited to chat with her and find out more about it.

What is postpartum belly binding?

In short, postpartum belly binding is the ancient Eastern art of wrapping the abdomen of a woman who has recently given birth. I apply a special technique that uses a long, thin piece of non-stretch fabric that is wrapped around the whole torso from hips to breasts. It can help bring your muscles and connective tissues back together as your organs move back into place following pregnancy and birth. It also provides the perfect lower back support. The wrapping is typically done daily, 8 hours per day for 4-6 weeks. It is a wonderful physical support for new mothers. To enhance the technique’s effectiveness, during the wrapping I conduct an abdominal massage with my own special essential oil blend that helps to ease any stretch marks. I call it the Art of Slowness in a fast-paced world.

Being proactive, rather than reactive, with regards to body safety education can begin at a very young age. When you teach your child the differences between privacy and secrecy you are giving them the tools to recognise the difference and the confidence to act accordingly.

Privacy is about keeping information and experiences to yourself.

Secrecy is about hiding information and experiences from others.

Here are some quick tips so you can begin to teach this age appropriately with your child:

In 2011 I had my first baby. His birth was hard. I felt really unprepared, out of control, and fear took over the whole experience. I remember one of the midwives asking me where my camera was and that she would take a few photos for me. I told her not to, but she insisted, and to this day I’m so glad that she did. I was so focused on getting through the pain that I had little recollection of all the beautiful moments in between - The way my husband’s hands gently cradled my belly or how I buried my face into his chest and closed my eyes when there was a break between surges. She captured my strength as I pushed my baby into this world, and the sheer joy and relief as I pulled him up and into my arms. These are transformative, life changing moments that you can never re-do. Even though most of the photos she took were blurry, I still cherish them dearly. 

Did you know that getting outside to ground at least once a day not only gives you beautiful fresh air and vitamin D but has also been proven to improve your mental wellbeing.

Grounding, otherwise known as earthing, is simply walking on the ground or earth barefoot. You don’t actually need to be walking, simply sitting down in the sun can have just as many benefits. Just as long as your skin is touching the earth or grass (concrete doesn’t count!).

Natalie from Placenta Vitality reflects on 10 years of encapsulating placentas on the Coast.

To be honest placenta encapsulation is not what I imagined I would be doing when I “grew up”. It’s one of those things I kind of fell into. After attempting to ingest placenta unsuccessfully after my first baby (I tried smoothies, but couldn’t stomach it), I then tried capsules with my second. The difference was night and day in terms of how I felt both physically and emotionally. Seeing that for herself my lovely midwife at the time convinced me to start offering it to others. Now 2 qualifications and 10 years later it is something I am well known for on the Coast.

Dear Mamas,

Please exist in photos.

There you are with your phone, capturing every last detail of your children. From the moment they are earthside, to their first foods, first steps, first day at school, first missing tooth, recording each milestone.

I see you; I see how proud you are of your children and how important it is for you to capture these memories.

But what about you?

What about when your children are older and they look back and none of the pictures include you?

"The future of our children’s mental health and wellness starts at birth with the mother".

After birth, the greatest thing we can do is heal the body from within. From an Ayurvedic view point, the postpartum period is known for an imbalance of the air and space elements. A large space filled with air remains where your growing baby, placenta and amniotic fluid once were. Combined, air and space are cold and drying. Left untreated, this imbalance can often cause over-thinking, anxiety and insomnia, and even lead to postpartum depression. In this time, new mothers need to nourish and replenish with warm, moist, nutritious foods and plenty of loving care.

Tina Kirkham Smith from Akiki Spinal Flow talks us through the importance of releasing built-up stress from the body, especially during pre-conception, pregnancy and the all-important postpartum healing period. 

The incredible process of creating a baby truly is a miracle. Did you know that the brain and the spinal cord, the conduit of consciousness, are formed in the very early stages of pregnancy?

Imagine a world where birth is not feared, where it is a celebrated pivotal moment in a woman’s life. Imagine a world where mothers are strong, confident and connected, and able to bond with their babies, trusting their own abilities and intuition. 

In western culture, birth is not as honoured as a rite of passage from maiden to motherhood as in other cultures around the globe. Very little is celebrated in the journey of women’s reproduction, despite it being such a huge part of our lives. Fear is generated by the media, through stories from friends and family, and sometimes from our own birthing experiences. Hospital attitudes and the way women are treated during their care often imply deficiencies in a woman’s decision-making capacities. Women who have amazing birth stories often don’t share them for fear of triggering women who have had trauma.

The 2020 Mothers and Babies report was released earlier this year and the results are disappointing. Up from 35.5% in 2010 the recent statistics show that 46.8% of first-time mums were induced, with no change to perinatal mortality rates (AIHW 2020). Is this telling us that humans have evolved as such so that 46.8% of women cannot birth their babies?  

Even though we know about the cascade of intervention and the increased likelihood of a caesarean (major surgery), infection and bleeding that comes from an induction (Coates et al 2020; Girvell et al 2012), these stats continue to rise.

While we are privileged to have access to the modern maternity care we do, could it be it is this very system that is creating the narrative that women’s bodies need to be managed? Is an unfortunate side effect of modern healthcare the belief that we are inherently incapable of growing and birthing our babies without intervention? 

Mama guilt, it’s something we have all felt. Perhaps even hearing that word took your mind back to a specific time where you felt the intense weight of mama guilt. The crippling kind. The kind that happens in the pit of your stomach, that you dwell on, and beat yourself up about, whilst also telling yourself stories like “I am not a good mama” or “I am such a failure”.

Most of our beliefs are formed from birth through to age seven. This period is fundamental in creating our entire belief system and is influenced by the people and environment around us, our primary caregivers and also societal expectations. The societal expectations placed on mothers are likely heavily contributing to the collective experience of mama guilt.

For the majority of my career, I hated talking about perineal massage. Despite there being good evidence for it, I didn’t believe in it. I believed that the body was made for birth full stop. It didn’t need any extra help, thank you very much.

I still very much believe the body is made to birth. I also now know a lot more about how the pelvis works during birth and how the state this space is in can impact our outcomes.

Let me explain a little more….

Pregnancy yoga is a valuable and important practice for women at all stages in their journey towards motherhood.

Through yoga, more and more women are now receiving the support, knowledge and tools that can help to alter their perspectives about pregnancy. Feeling strong, supported and empowered throughout your pregnancy can also change the way you approach childbirth.

Pregnancy yoga coach Kate, who runs the BEarth studio on the Sunshine Coast, says regular practice can help prepare expectant mothers for the rollercoaster journey of birthing and becoming a new mother. 

Imagine if you told people you’d become engaged to be married, and they congratulated you, then asked you if you were scared about the wedding? What if they said that it was lovely to get married but that you shouldn’t get your hopes up about your special day because things can go wrong and it’s best to go with the flow and be prepared for it to be a bad experience, but that doesn’t matter because at least you’ll have a husband at the end of the day?

Knowing what first foods to feed your baby can be daunting and confusing and where I feel conventional starting solids guidelines fall short. What I hope to share here with you is information that will help steer you in the direction of the most nourishing first foods to support your little one’s growth and development, and help you approach this milestone with a little more clarity and confidence (and an easy to clean high chair!).

A question I’m often asked by first-time parents is “when is the best time to have baby photographed?”

Should it be when they’re a tiny newborn or wait a few months till they can sit up? As much as most families would love to have someone beautifully document each tiny step of the way, this is not a realistic option. Hence, it is such an important decision for you as you will certainly treasure these photos forever.

And the answer is:

In Chinese Medicine, there are many ways of supporting mothers-to-be throughout their entire pregnancy journey, including in the weeks before the birth of their baby. At the clinic, we very frequently see mums-to-be for Labour Preparation treatments as a really important time to support our patients as they prepare for a very unique time in their life. When treatment is started early enough (we like to check in at around 32 weeks) we can help with getting bub in an optimal position…

Placenta encapsulation, while no longer in the realm of "something only the 'hippies' do", is still something quite 'out there' and can be a lot to get your own head around, let alone your partner's head around.

So we asked some Sunny Coast locals to ask their partners what they thought about them encapsulating their placenta.

Here's what they had to say: