Episode 16: Shiatsu for Safe, Supportive Touch in Pregnancy and the Deep Meaning of the Extraordinary Vessels with Suzanne Yates

Suzanne Yates is the founder and principal teacher at Wellmother. She teaches in French, Italian, and Spanish, as well as English. Suzanne has been working with shiatsu and massage for over 30 years and integrates an Eastern and Western approach of energy and bodywork. Wellmother offer courses to practitioners, midwives, and doulas.

Suzanne has written ‘Pregnancy and Childbirth: an holistic approach to massage and bodywork’, ‘Beautiful Birth’ and ‘Shiatsu for Midwives’

In this episode:

Suzanne was in the final year of a degree in Modern Languages when she got a kidney infection. She explored herbs, acupuncture and shiatsu
She enjoyed shiatsu as it had the elements of acupuncture as well as touch and was soothing and calming
After graduating, she decided to do some training in shiatsu and ended up becoming a shiatsu and massage practitioner
When Suzanne became pregnant, she felt healthy, strong and in tune with her daughter
She realised how much fear there was around treating a woman around pregnancy
Pregnancy in most cases is a healthy experience
Suzanne went to study in Boston with Elizabeth Noble, and obstetric physiotherapist
Working with antenatal and postnatal exercise, baby massage and shiatsu
Fear of treating in the first trimester around miscarriage, in actual fact, treatment supports the body
The challenges of the first trimester, with so many emotional and physical changes when women need more support
Adapting to each woman at each time
Fear at the end of the pregnancy regarding stillbirth
The importance of modifying treatment around pregnancy, but not avoiding bodywork at this time
Shiatsu as a way of being more connected with the body
Connection is key
Teaching Shiatsu for Midwives at St Michael’s Hospital in Bristol
Shiatsu in the last few weeks of pregnancy, during birth and supporting postnatally
In an ideal world, all women would receive touch-based treatment to connect with their bodies during pregnancy, as part of standard maternity care and integrated health system
The simplicity of touch and its deep benefits
Touch is our first developed sense, and it’s how we relate to the world
Our body also holds emotions in the tissues
Addressing what’s going on, rather than emphasising what’s wrong
Supporting the whole body to work in its best possible way
Nick Pole, a shiatsu practitioner encourages clients to find words to express what they are feeling and has a book called ‘Words That Touch’
The complexity of Chinese characters and how multi-layered the language and imagery is
Images from nature
Each meridian relates to an element e.g wood is tree energy and Spring
Meridians are described as rivers flowing through the body
The image of the inner landscape of the body, that looks like an embryo, the body is a microcosm of the universe.
The menstrual cycle: Spring energy building after menstruation, Summer releasing the egg, Autumn building the lining of the uterus, liver energy to gather and prepare for potential pregnancy (image of building the nest)
Double movement in menstruation of clearing and cleansing the blood
The extraordinary vessels are less well-known than the 12 meridians
The extraordinary vessels are said to be the overall regulators in our body and the reservoir of energy in the body
They are particularly connected to the brain, heart and the reproductive organs
Energies change in our bodies through life
Extraordinary vessels regulate cycles of 7 years for women and 8 years for men
The kidneys store the ancestral energy, or jing or essence.
The Qi are all the energies in the body
In utero
Extraordinary vessels contain the memory of things we used to have that are no longer there, like the umbilical cord and the placenta
The placenta is formed from cells from the fertilised egg
The energy field can be described as the memory of the amniotic sac, or the protective water around us when we were developing
Connecting with the energy of why we are here, in this life at this time
The impact of stress and nutrition on the baby in pregnancy
The lack of time to recover postnatally and the impact of depletion, and how this can impact the menopause
Rest and nourishment instead of pushing and being more and more exhausted
Breathing, movement, exercise, pure air, nourishing food, balance between rest and activity
Heart and womb connection
Heart and kidneys are in the meridians as well as the extraordinary vessels
The kidneys receive a quarter of the blood supply
Blood is an important concept in Chinese Medicine and is affected by the air we breathe and the food we eat
In Chinese Medicine, the first year is vital for postnatal recovery
The essence declines in later years. Physically less strong, but spiritually stronger as we prepare to return to the one. Trying not to hold on to the past or how we were when we were young. Staying well is helped by staying fluid and flexible like a child so we can adapt to different phases in our lives