Closing the Bones
Postnatal Ceremony
The once forgotten ancient transformative ritual that’s missing for Mums in the UK and Europe is allowing mothers nurturing time to recover from the birth of her baby.
Having a baby is one of the most if not the most significant live event in a woman’s life that will change her forever on every level.
In this fast turnaround hospital world we’ve forgotten how to slow down and let nature unfold.
Allowing new mothers to recalibrate…and find her footing as a Mum.
In most other cultures a new mother is also mothered , they will rest and be fully supported for around 40 days.
New mums are allowed to JUST BE with their babies and nothing more is expected of them.
They are fed special nourishing foods, receive daily massages surrounded by other women, who may be their own mother, sisters, etc, to help them adjust to motherhood and to support them with breastfeeding and caring for their baby.
Today we are missing this essential support.
The ‘Closing the Bones’ ritual is about honouring the new mother and supporting her on a physical, emotional and spiritual level as they recover and re-adjust to become a mother.
In the UK as soon as a baby is born the mothers needs are ‘forgotten about’ and the focus and attention switches to the baby and the woman just has “get on with it “ with no time to reflect or process what has just happened to her.
What is ‘Closing the Bones’?
During pregnancy, labour and birth our bodies undergo enormous physical changes. Once you have had your baby there are yet more hormonal influences at play which again have physical and emotional effects on you .
A pregnant woman’s body will produce a hormone called Relaxin. This plays an integral role in the remodelling of multiple tissues of the musculoskeletal system to ready your body for birthing your baby. Our organs are squashed by the growing baby, which may cause heartburn, and put pressure elsewhere on our diaphragm, pelvic floor, etc. Pregnancy hormones relax the ligaments which are attached to our bones often resulting in back pain, pelvic girdle pain and sciatica to name a few.
Closing the bones is a ritual and ceremony which incorporates massage, wrapping with a shawl.
There are many names for this shawl, but I use the Mexican name for the shawl: REBOZO.
Traditionally, a woman would wear a shawl throughout pregnancy and labour, to help relieve discomfort and support the optimal positioning of her baby ready for birth. After birth, the woman would then continue to use this shawl to carry her baby with her as she went about her daily business.
It was common practice to wear your baby tied in a shawl in the UK up until the early 20th century.
Utilising the ancient wisdom of wrapping, rocking and massage, we can hold a woman in a profoundly safe and loving space at any time during and after birth.
This has profound benefits for a new mother in alleviating anxiety, heal birth trauma and release tension that’s held in the body.
The ceremony has many benefits, including:
Emotional Healing
The ritual provides a safe space for the mother to release emotions associated with giving birth and motherhood so you can reflect and process your birth experience and release any trauma still being held in your mind and body.
Physical Healing
The ceremony helps to guide bones back into place, shift pelvic organs, and stimulate blood flow, so you release tension and aches and pains are alleviated.
Spiritual Healing
Healing occurs when you are held and rocked in a safe supportive place with trusted support, moving unhelpful, stuck emotions through our body so you can reconnect with your powerful instincts and fully trust yourself and your own natural intelligence of what is right for you.
Honouring the body
The ceremony honours you the whole mother for the profound, transformative journey you have experienced in becoming a mother.
The ceremony can be performed within hours of giving birth or years later.
It can be done once or multiple times, and can take place at a studio or in your home.
If you’d like to find out more about holding a ‘Closing the Bones’ postnatal ceremony, please get in touch: