Tummy Love, 33 Tuscany Park, Dublin (2026)

01/05/2026

April skies ☀️☔️🌈
Hello May 😎

30/04/2026

Healing after cesarean birth

I’m not a medical professional & there are amazing professionals out there with helpful C birth recovery tips. I can’t mention them all so apologies but ones I follow are:

.ie  
Here are some ways to support recovery, protect your scar & look after yourself.

1. Respect it’s a major surgery. Cesarean/Abdominal Birth is a significant abdominal operation. Recovery isn’t just about the skin, but multiple layers of tissue healing. Recovery looks & feels different for all.

2. Light movement supports circulation, healing & reduces tension,however,avoid heavy lifting&intense exercise until cleared by caregivers.Motion is lotion. There is lots you can do that is safe & effective.

3. Protect the incision early. Follow all medical advice given. Many find applying pressure that feels right with a pillow/cushion/folded blanket between hand & covered scar when coughing, sneezing, getting out of a chair/bed helpful to ease discomfort.

4. Gentle scar massage can,improve blood flow,reduce tightness & discomfort,help soften the scar & breakdown scar tissue
*Check accounts mentioned above for best advice for when it’s safe to start massage & how.

5. Nutrition is part of healing Think protein, iron, vitamin C, zinc & hydration. NB: Eat foods that help avoid constipation too!

6. Pelvic health physio, scar therapy & postpartum care can make a huge difference especially if you have pain, pulling, or a “shelf” & hope to get pregnant again one day.

7. Regardless how you birthed your baby you may or may not be ok with how the experience unfolded. It’s ok to not be ok & it’s ok to feel content. Many feel guilty for being upset, disappointed & feeling hard done by & many guilty for being delighted, elated & for having a positive experience. When we don’t truly listen to everyone’s experience we silence others.
I’ll do another post soon on supports for post birth trauma, birth reflections & healing mentally & vaginal birth after cesarean(VBAC)

Post in comments your tips too!

30/04/2026

Cause your deserves more than just Kegels, squeezes or whatever you’ve heard or want to call them!

Join me tonight 730-830pm for Pregnancy Yoga where we’ll explore, understand & feel your pelvic floor in action 🧭

DM for booking details.
Recording also included for 7 days.
Take live or recording in your own time.

You’ll need a yoga block or a cushion/rolled blanket

What we’ll cover:
🌺 The connection between breath & pelvic floor
🌺 Why your pelvic floor is a key part of your core system (working with your deep abs &diaphragm)
🌺 How to strengthen, lengthen & fully relax. All equally important
🌺 Evidence-based Yoga & Pilates approaches to pelvic floor function
🌺 The role of the pelvic floor in birth (learning to release is just as important as engaging)
🌺 Simple, practical ways to support your pelvic floor off the mat

Research highlights:
🌀Pelvic floor muscles work in synergy with breathing & deep core muscles to support stability & pressure management
🌀Both strength AND relaxation are essential for continence, daily life/maintenance & birth outcomes
🌀Regular, mindful movement (not just isolated squeezes!) improves pelvic floor function during pregnancy

Your pelvic floor is an incredible, responsive sling of muscles stretching from your p***c bone to tailbone & sitting bones (more to them tho!). Supporting your organs, maintaining continence, aiding circulation & playing a vital role in birth &recovery plus lots more

During pregnancy these muscles adapt to increasing load & stretch, which is why how you move, breath & exercise can matter.

Moving, breathing & training your body & mind as a whole should be non negotiable 🤗

Join me on the mat to find out & feel more 🥰

22/04/2026

Preparing for a woman & baby(babies) centered cesarean birth🌸
 Many women in my classes have shared how their cesarean births, even in emergencies,felt calm,connected & positive.

Practicing breathing & meditation techniques,specific yoga poses & bonding with baby during pregnancy can really help more than you know until its happening. You’re still giving birth! Don’t forget this.

Ways to prepare for a supportive cesarean birth & some when it’s an emergency:

*Harvest colostrum ahead of time in case your recovery takes longer than expected. A caregiver should have all this info & be able to support.

*Talk to your caregivers about breastfeeding support after. Side-lying is a favourite C Birth nursing position, but try others as you heal. Seek the help of a lactation consultant.

*Continue yoga, meditation & breathwork during pregnancy, these tools help release fear & build confidence. Keep up a yoga practice right up to baby’s birth.

*Change your language if helps.
E.g Section/Birth.

*Request IVs & monitors on your non-dominant side to allow for early skin to skin & to help start breastfeeding. When possible, skin to skin immediately after birth.

*Use visualizations like a rainbow from you to baby(babies). Imagine baby spiraling out with your breath & as you feel tugging & pressure as baby(babies)is born.Breathe baby out. This is incredibly empowering! Posting about all this soon.

*Choose your own music, ask for curtain to be lowered as baby is born & request that you or your partner announce the baby’s gender before anyone else.

*Ask for delayed cord clamping (Wait for white!) &for newborn checks to happen on your chest when possible.

*Take the pain meds.Taking care of yourself makes it easier to take care of baby.

*Visualize love,calm & connection as much as you can. Even if things don’t go as planned, your birth can still be beautiful. Very powerful if you need general anesthesia as you go asleep.

Share in comments 1 thing that made your experience feel positive⬇️

Women can feel elated,empowered, satisfied,disappointed,devastated after a cesarean birth. Everyone’s experience is not the same. Please acknowledge all feelings with no judgement🤗

20/04/2026

April is Cesarean Awareness Month

Birth is powerful, no matter how your baby enters the world. Whether vaginal or abdominal, your womb held wisdom. It grew, nourished & sheltered your baby (or babies)with love 💕

Some plan a cesarean birth by choice, others don’t get that choice & for many, it’s a life-saving emergency & for many others this was not how they envisaged giving birth. Every story matters.

We must honour all birthing experiences & hold space for the women who feel elated, relieved, empowered & satisfied.

We must also listen & see those that feel grief, frustration or disappointment when things didn’t go as hoped, be it an emergency, a medical reason or when interventions weren’t clearly explained or understood.

We can’t always plan how our pregnancy & birth journeys will unfold, but we can inform & empower ourselves.

Did you know private maternity care carries a higher chance of cesarean birth than public? I always recommend public care, unless you’ve done your research & found an Obstetrician who supports your preferences, has a low C-section rate, is VBAC-friendly & experienced with vaginal breech births.

Did you research your obstetrician? Were you happy? Drop their name in the comments to help others in Ireland navigating their maternity care.

Many women in my classes have shared how empowering their cesarean births were, even in emergencies because they stayed connected to their breath & their baby using the tools & visualizations they learned & practiced in my classes.

When a situation is unknown & out of your control the best you can do for yourself is use your breath as well as tried & tested tools to stay calm.

I’ll be sharing more on how to have a woman-centered cesarean birth this week. In the meantime, if you’ve had a cesarean birth, please share what helped you in the comments. Let’s support each other 💕

With love,
Melissa

16/04/2026

🔴 THURSDAY, APRIL 16th 🔴
ONLINE PREGNANCY YOGA
730-830PM

Take live or book in to also receive recording.

DM for booking details.

Tonight we’ll gently flow through a pregnancy yoga practice that’s grounding, mood lifting, also helping you connect with your pelvic floor while easing tension, gentle stretching & cultivating calm.

To finish, I’ll guide you through a beautiful, long Chakra Relaxation I’ve created for pregnancy to help you feel:

🌸Relaxed
🌸 Confident
🌸Connected
🌸Empowered

To prepare, think cozy blankets, soft lighting & I’ll encourage affirmations that remind you of your strength & power deep within.

13/04/2026

📣 Myself & are excited to announce our next
Active Birth Workshop at
Yoga Next Door, Sunday June 14th, 11am-545pm.

This Active Birth Workshop is designed for pregnant women & their birth partners to help you both feel Confident, Connected, Calm & Informed in preparation for & during labour.

With over 23yrs of experience as a Birth Educator & Pregnancy Yoga Teacher & Teacher Trainer, Melissa has supported countless women, birth partners & couples in preparing for a positive & empowered birth, whatever preferences or circumstances may be.

This is a one day, comprehensive & supportive workshop at the stunning Yoga Next Door, with information, tried & tested, evidence based & what you can apply to the birth of your baby or babies.

Some of what you will be learning on the day:

💕How to trust your body’s natural ability to birth
💕The vital role of birth hormones
💕How your partner can effectively support you
💕Comfort measures & positions for all stages of labor
💕Tools to create a calm, supportive birth environment
💕Effective breathing, relaxation & hypnobirthing techniques
💕Navigating interventions with confidence
💕Using birth balls, birth stools, peanut balls, bath, birthing pools, showers, chairs, walls & more for active birthing
💕Staying active even with an epidural, induction or cesarean birth
💕Visualizations & affirmations to turn fear into calm

**Take-home manual included

Please note: Birth partners come for free. Many women also attend solo, you are always welcome 🌸

Light refreshments provided throughout the day. We supply all birth props needed on the day too. More info once all booked in.

Book now via www.hotyogadublin.ie go to Workshops/June

Leave feeling confident, ready, supported & empowered with the tools & information you can apply.

If you can’t make June, our next workshop will be November 1st.

It’s never too early or too late to prepare for birth.

09/04/2026

🩷ONLINE PREGNANCY YOGA

Join me for TONIGHTS 730-830pm Online Pregnancy Yoga Class,
April 9th
Take live and/or recording

This evening is about the love, bonding & birthing hormone, Oxytocin 💞

This special class will help you connect with your body & mind while bonding with your little one💞

Dm for booking details.

Dim the lights,play soothing music, light candles,fairy lights to create a space that invites relaxation for you & connection with your baby.

💞Studies suggest that bonding with your baby during pregnancy can have positive effects on labour, birth outcomes & mindset.

Research in this area is still evolving. Some key findings highlight the benefits:

💞Oxytocin Release: Bonding, such as talking to your baby & practicing relaxation, promote the release of oxytocin, the “love” hormone. Oxytocin is crucial for labour, as it stimulates uterine contractions & helps with the progression of birth.

Bonding with baby can encourage the natural flow of this hormone before & during labour, potentially aiding in more effective contractions & a more efficient labour process.

💞Reduced Stress & Anxiety: Emotional bonding with the baby has been linked to reduced levels of stress, fear & anxiety in expectant mothers.

Lower stress levels can positively impact birth by helping the body to remain relaxed & focused, especially important with the physical demands of childbirth.

💞Improved Birth Outcomes: Studies have shown that mothers who engage in bonding activities (whatever works for you) report feeling more confident & empowered during birth.

This sense of emotional connection can improve the experience of childbirth, reduce feelings of fear & encourage a more positive mindset going into labour.

💞Increased Well-being: Bonding activities or simply being present with your baby, can enhance overall maternal health by increasing feelings of attachment & emotional security. Feeling more connected to baby may also lead to a more mindful & calmer approach to the challenges of birth regardless how you birth your baby.

💞Infant Development: Some research suggests that bonding with baby may support healthier brain development in your baby!

07/04/2026

Easter holiday joy at home & out west. Good food, belly laughs & nature. What more could a body ask for 🥰

Tummy Love

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