Deirdra* came to me in the midst of struggling to conceive. During one of our Reflexology sessions, I intuitively sensed a 'block' at the reflex area of one of her fallopian tubes. I felt this was recent as it had not made itself known to me before. To understand Reflexology and its medicine, we must consider it both a physical and an energetic treatment - while it is a hands on bodywork therapy, it addresses energetic imbalances in the meridians, the 'electricity lines' of energy that run through us. It is not uncommon for physical imbalances to be reflected in the reflex areas of the feet but energetic blocks can sometimes show in this way too. I shared my feelings with Deirdra and that if she experienced any pain to go directly to her GP.  She said that she had not been feeling any discomfort or anything unusual.

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Deirdra then contacted me to say that she had recently been in hospital and had undergone emergency surgery. She had felt increasing pain in her lower abdomen to the point that she could not move and it become agonising, causing her to feel increasingly unwell and faint. On investigation, medical consultants discovered that Deirdra had an ectopic pregnancy present in one of her fallopian tubes - she had to be rushed to surgery and the affected tube removed immediately. This can profoundly affect women who have been  trying to conceive without success; the removal of a fallopian tube can come as a devastating loss. Often there is a period of bereavement, a deep mourning for the loss of hopes and dreams in creating a family. In my specialist work in supporting women trying to conceive, these feelings are an incredibly difficult part of their journey.

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Deirdra recovered well from her surgery and was optimistic about her future. She had always felt connected with - and drawn to - Reiki and attended one my Reiki Level 1 courses. She felt she had an affinity with energy and wanted to use this to support self treatments for her own healing and use the techniques she'd learn to incorporate Reiki into her every day life, informing her relationship with world and strengthening her intuition and spirituality. 

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Some months after her surgery, Deirdra did conceive but experienced a miscarriage. A few months later, she conceived again and had a healthy pregnancy carried to full term. Her baby had to be gently encouraged to make an appearance as she was close to being overdue. Deirdra wanted to avoid being induced and so she also attended my Maternity Due Date Reflexology Session. The sessions are intended to gently stimulate the contraction response and two days later Deirdra began having contractions. Almost three days after her session, Deirdra gave birth to a beautiful, healthy baby.

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"I'm delighted to tell you that our beautiful daughter was born on Sunday weighing 8lbs 1.5oz. She is amazing! She is looking forward to meeting you a bit further down the line! You were right that she's a girl! We are over the moon and completely in love with her!"

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The birth was unexpected for Deirdra, a labour of 19 hours as her baby was a little stubborn (and I suspect this will not be the last time that Deirdra's little one shows how headstrong she can be!). My Due Date Reflexology sessions can encourage a contraction response but sadly it cannot dictate how the babies wish to make their arrival...

The birth that Deirdra had initially hoped for - a natural birth at home - was not possible and she gave birth in hospital, which was entirely the right place considering Deirdra's historical experiences of reproductive difficulties. I did indeed meet Deirdra's daughter and she is as beautiful, lively and wondrous as she could be. It is such a joy for me to meet my client's babies. While baby and I establish a connection and understanding as they are growing in their mothers, it is always so lovely to meet them in person!

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After some months Deirdra came to me feeling a disconnect with her life. She felt exhausted. Deirdra's baby had been experiencing digestive issues and had not been sleeping and this was taking a huge toll. While Deirdra did not feel that she had been adversely affected by her experience of labour, I felt it was very important that it should not be overlooked. Labour is a deeply intense physical, mental, emotional and spiritual experience, one in which dissociation and out of body experiences are not uncommon. I support many women who have experienced difficult births of their babies; some women whose children are of school age, and even much older, can still retain the trauma of these experiences and I discuss the healing of this in more detail in my blog post Calling The Curandera.  

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Deirdra had expressed a desire to support other women through their pregnancies, and with some personal empowerment and mentoring work to help increase her confidence and shamanic soul retrieval to restore the energetic and spiritual body Deirdra lost during her experiences as a new mum, these proved the catalysts for deep change.  Deirdra began to reconnect with herself and what she now felt was a new purpose for her life. Her relationship with her daughter continues to strengthen and she has embarked on new and exciting endeavours that she feels more suited to her path. 

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*Deirdra is a pseudonym to protect client confidentiality

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Fertility Support

I provide a range of Fertility Support Plans dedicated to each woman's individual experiences of trying to conceive and their own fertility journey. The plans range from 6 - 12 months+, with weekly sessions, and are supportive for both natural cycle conception and for assisted conception/IVF.  For information on individual plans, please visit Fertility Support Plans. A short telephone consultation is also available to discuss - this can be booked online below.

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Healing From Childbirth and Labour Trauma

There are various holistic approaches to help heal from the physical, mental and emotional trauma of labour. For more information, please visit Post Natal | Childbirth Trauma.