‍ ‍Pregnancy

Sessions during pregnancy are aimed at alleviating discomforts, fostering relaxation, and preparing for labor & birth. Sessions can help both the pregnant person and the baby - if the tissues are more relaxed, aches, pains, & discomforts may be relieved, while also helping to make space for baby to settle into a favorable position for labor & birth. Although not all babies are born vaginally, midwives around the world have repeatedly found that their clients experience significantly shorter and easier labors and have fewer cesareans when receiving abdominal care.

It advisable to schedule sessions throughout the prenatal period to provide maximum benefits. If not already receiving care, a common starting point is at 16-20 weeks. Sessions are safely modified for the number of weeks pregnant and any concerns present.

Care in pregnancy can help with

• Muscle aches and tension

• Rib pain

• Sacral pain, immobility (or overmobility)

• Tailbone issues

• Round ligament pain

• Sciatica

• Pelvic pressure

• Pubic bone /Pubic symphysis pain

• Back pain

• Hip pain

• Varicose veins, Swelling/edema

• Heartburn

• Indigestion

• Constipation

• Shallow breathing related to pregnancy

• Stress & Anxiety

• Support for a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean)

• Breech or otherwise not head-down babies

• And more

  Breech Babies

Diana specializes in Breech Bodywork. Not all babies are meant to turn head-down, but visceral care can create more space in the pelvis and abdomen, promoting a more favorable environment for the baby to turn - babies sometimes even turn during sessions. Breech sessions are also supportive in navigating the decision-making and processing that often come when babies are breech.

Although Diana does not do External Cephalic Versions (ECVs) at Athens Visceral Care®, she uses these same techniques before and as a part of ECVs in other settings. Babies often turn without any force when space is made, and she has found that ECVs are usually much more gentle when the surrounding tissues are relaxed.

Breech sessions are up to two hours long and include time on the table and on an incline if needed. Additionally, clients are taught exercises and techniques they can continue at home. Although many babies will turn head down on their own later in pregnancy, breech sessions ideally start by 32-34 weeks of pregnancy if a breech position is known.

Maya Massage & Therapies

Maya Abdominal Massage is an ancient, non-invasive, external massage technique. Diana continues to be amazed by the effects of this work, which had stood the test of time of generations. The Maya abdominal techniques work by relieving congestion and blockages to improve the flow of the of circulatory, digestive, lymphatic, and nervous systems, and by working directly with organ tissues and their connections to the spine and bony structures. This work releases physical and emotional congestion and supports organ function, especially of the reproductive and digestive systems. Many seek this care to support fertility, pregnancy, fetal positioning, and postpartum healing. This work can also help with various gynecological conditions, an alternative to pharmaceutical or surgical interventions or in collaboration with them when they are needed.

Diana has learned about Mayan massage & medicine in various settings over the years. Formally, she is a certified Abdominal Therapist with Advanced Pregnancy Certification through the Abdominal Therapy Collective (previously known as The Arvigo Institute for Mayan Abdominal Therapies). She has had many teachers throughout her learning, her primary teacher being Rosita Arvigo via the lineage of the famed Mayan healer, Don Elijio Panti.

Postpartum Care

Postpartum sessions emphasize physical and emotional recovery after pregnancy and can address the following:

• Physically and emotionally rebalancing after pregnancy and birth

• Abdominal, pelvic, and back pain, including sacral and coccyx injuries that can occur during birth

• Emotional healing from traumatic birth

• Healing from miscarriage and other loss

• Reducing and resolving scar tissue that may have resulted from a cesarean birth

• Improving the potential for a successful VBAC

• Postpartum hormonal challenges

Postpartum healing includes support after perinatal losses, abortions, and miscarriages.

Cerradas ~ Postpartum Sealing ~ Closing of The Bones

These sessions are often done postpartum, during life transitions, or when someone feels they otherwise need tender attention, including after trauma, stress, or a build-up of life-events. These are longer sessions held at home and incorporate herbs, baths, steams, massage, and the wrapping of the body in a ceremonial approach to healing. Diana is grateful to have learned the art of the Cerrada from Tema Mercado in Mexico in 2023. She is currently offering it on a limited basis to former and active clients.

Scar Tissue Care/ScarWork®

By working with restrictions and integrating scars with the surrounding tissue, visceral and abdominal therapies can greatly help with scar healing. Diana is also certified in a specific method of scar tissue care called ScarWork®. Scar care is full-person care. Scar sessions can increase sensation in numbed areas, lessen pain, aid in mobility, improve scar appearance, and release restrictions in the surrounding anatomy. They can also address deeper tensions that are often bound up with scars. After sessions, clients often describe feelings of an area “waking up”, a “release”, and a sense of wholeness. Although Diana can work with any scar, she specializes in abdominal scars, particularly those from cesarean births and pelvic/abdominal surgeries.

Sharon Wheeler describes the effects of ScarWork® here:

“Creating scar tissue is our body’s way of mending trauma. However, these adhesions often leave us compromised with tension, restriction, and disorganization. As scar tissue matures, it begins to pull and drag on other surrounding tissues, and can sometimes create further complications. For example, abdominal adhesions can interfere with normal peristaltic action of the colon which can lead to an obstructed bowel.

Sharon Wheeler jokes about this being a “design flaw” because such compensations often lead to future complications. But, what if… we could “erase” the scarring, and integrate the tissue back into the fascial web?
Beyond relief with local restrictions, clients have also reported results that include whole-body shifts and trauma resolution. 

ScarWork’s gentle, innovative, and effective approach results in lasting functional change as well as cosmetic improvement. Whether new or old, most types of scars seem to respond with rapid healing and further improvement after the session work.

ScarWork, as an intervention therapy:

• Reduces swelling, tightness and numbing

• Improves general overall tissue function

• Helps restore natural appearance

• Is fast, painless and permanent

ScarWork uses a very light touch. Lumps, gaps, ridges, holes, bumps, knots, and strings in the tissue rapidly smooth out into the surrounding three-dimensional fascial web. ScarWork starts with surface layers and eventually goes further into involved viscera which often reduces nerve-impaired numbness.”

from https://sharonwheeler.com/about-scarwork/