Myofascial Lines & Your Cervix
At Soulshine Doula Services, I specialize in providing exceptional local doula support, dedicated to supporting you
through one of life’s most beautiful and challenging experiences: childbirth and early parenthood.
5 Ways to Relax your Jaw
Have you ever heard of the phrase that a relaxed jaw equals a relaxed pelvis/cervix? Honestly, I never heard of it until getting into doula work! I had heard the terms myofascial and fascia tissue prior but never had any idea about the connection to labor.
In our bodies there are chains of tissues that are connected and run from head to toe. These chains are called Myofascial Lines. This tissue connects the muscles, joints and bones as well as helps keep your organs in place. These chains react to movement causing a ripple reaction throughout the chain. If one area is tense it will cause tension throughout the entire line. The chain of tissues I am specifically speaking of is the Deep Front Line. This chain of tissues begins at your feet, continues through your pelvic region and ends at your jaw/skull base. This line connects your jaw to your pelvis. You can see these tissues in the image below.
Ways to Relax During Labor
Take a moment and think of a time when you were stressed out. Where did you feel it in your body? Did you…
- tighten your shoulders?
- clench your jaw/teeth?
- furrow your eye brows?
All of these reactions can create tension in other parts of your body.
Now think about what you may look like when it is come to push. What do we normally see on TV or in movies?
- tensed up face
- high pitched screaming
- bearing down hard and curling of the upper body
Let’s think of the saying “a relaxed jaw equals a relaxed pelvis.” With the information you know now about the myofascial lines…what can we gather? When we are anxious or scared we tend to tighten up different groups of muscles in our body, especially around our face. Through the chain reaction, it can cause tension in your pelvic area impacting your uterus and cervix. In the end all of this tension can make labor more difficult
5 Ways to Help Keep Your Jaw Relaxed:
- let your jaw hang & release your tongue
- open mouth breathing
- horse lips (gently closed lips with jaw loose, breathe in through your nose and then forcefully out through your mouth causing your lips to flutter)
- have your support person softly rub your jaw
- vocalize through low tones (breathe out through your mouth while making “ah” “oh” “oo” or similar sounds.
Just remember “A Relaxed Jaw Equals A Relaxed Pelvis“
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