A Rebozo (or Manta) is a woven shawl from Mexico or Ecuador, which is regarded as deeply sacred. It’s referred to as “an extension of loving hands”, and the weaving is still done according to age-old techniques on backstrap looms or pedal looms. It has been used for centuries by traditional indigenous midwives to help women during pregnancy, in labour, and during the postpartum, and has become increasingly popular in the West (where we used to have our own indigenous traditions of supporting women during pregnancy, in labour and postpartum with cloth binding and wrapping – unfortunately we started to lose these traditions during the Industrial Revolution and beyond).
In these sessions I work with Rebozo shawls in very specific ways and with specific techniques to help you with a whole lot of issues, pains and discomforts that can arise during your pregnancy. I typically also show you how you can wrap your bump for support with a Rebozo (or other shawl) in a variety of ways, and how you could use a rebozo as well as a womb belt for pelvic & back support.
This massage does not involve any hands-on massage, I only work with rebozos in these sessions. The techniques are typically done in a variety of positions: standing, sitting, lying down on your side or back, kneeling on all fours with the arms on a chair or birthing ball, … We explore what feels good for your body. This way we can massage the pelvic area, hips, lower back, shoulders, upper back, buttocks, arms, legs, head, … — all depending on where you are holding tension and what feels good for your body in the moment.
You will be able to choose between a 1-hour long session or a 1 1/2 hour long session — the second option is only suitable for 1st & 2nd trimester pregnancy; here we also gently envelope you in 8 rebozos (head, shoulders, abdomen, hips, thighs, knees, lower legs and feet) at the end, to let you rest in this deeply healing womb-like space and let your nervous system reset even more.
The Rebozo shawl becomes in a way like the weave of sisterhood and can put us back together or keep us together during times where we feel ourselves unravelling or need to physically feel that support of others around us. I often call Rebozos “the fascia (connective tissue) outside of the body”, as in many ways it takes over the function of our fascia, allows a deep release of tension from the connective tissue when worked with, and allows for a deep energetic feeling and connection to develop between the one offering the rocking and massaging with the rebozo, and the one receiving it, to the point that it almost becomes like a ‘dance’ between the two.
(An interesting article by Dr. Sara Wickham on the evidence for using rebozos in labour can be found here.)