A healing and nurturing postpartum ritual – Closing the Bones
Closing the Bones is a practice that can be transformational for any postpartum mama–whether you are 3 days or 30 years postpartum–who is looking to find more peace within. This is a profoundly powerful tool, which acknowledges the immense challenges a woman has undergone in pregnancy and childbirth and assists in bringing her spirit back into her body.
When we grow and birth a baby, we change and open in every sense, physically, energetically and emotionally. Beyond the physical aspect of these rituals, there is a spiritual aspect to the massage, which provide a safe space/ritual for the mother to feel nurtured and release emotions associated with the birth and motherhood.
It is a time out for the mother; a time to have a silent communion with herself and reflect on her journey to motherhood and to feel the loving hands of another woman nurturing her.
Women who are honoured in this way, experience a sense of calm and grounding. It is my hope that more women, will learn about this wonderful practice, and participate in a Closing the Bones ritual after birthing.
Closing the Bones can be a ceremony offered to a woman at any time in her life, even if she has not experienced child birth. It can assist a women to regather the energy expended as she has moved through the stages of her life and to become whole and centered again. These life changes can included life passages from first mensural period to menopause.
What to expect
In a warm and quiet room, a sacred healing space is created for this ceremony. Lights are dimmed, a mat, some blankets and rebozos are placed on the floor, there is soft music playing.
With the help of a rebozo, different areas of the body are rocked with special attention to the hips. The rocking provides movement and articulation of the sacro-iliac joints and of the lumbar spine, areas which are submitted to a lot of pressure during pregnancy. This helps move these joints and remove tension. It also provides slight movement into the viscera (organs), and the uterus in particular. The gentle rocking movement has a soothing and calming effect.
Some oil is applied over the skin of the belly and a gentle massage begins. The movements are rhythmic and relaxing, bringing the energy of the woman back to her centre. We are lovingly taking care of this area where a baby grew. Both giver and receiver acknowledge this great achievement.
For the last part of the ceremony, a woman’s body is tightly wrapped using five to seven rebozos. We wrap and honour different parts of her body—feet, knees, hips, ribs, shoulders, head. The woman is then left to rest as we hold this sacred space for her. Some energy work may be done, sound healing, drumming, reading of a poem or an oracle card, to bring her back to centre, balance her energy and relax her. This part of the ceremony is discussed prior to the ritual to cater to individual preferences.
What I offer
Two options.
The first option is the traditionally inspired Closing the Bones massage done on the floor. This option involves having the body body rocked with rebozos, a massage of the abdomen, then wrapping tightly head to toe.
The second option is for people who find it difficult to work on the floor. It is called a Postnatal Recovery Massage and is done on a massage table. There is slightly more oil massage and less rocking in this option and includes being wrapped at the end of the session.
Both options whilst you are wrapped and relaxing, some energy work may be done, sound healing, drumming, reading of a poem or an oracle card, to bring her back to centre, balance her energy and relax her. This part of the ceremony is discussed prior to the ritual to cater to individual preferences.
The massage is even more beneficial if done several times, and I offer a buy 2, get a 3rd one half price package.
History and Culture
Closing the Bones is a ceremony with massage and body wrapping at the heart of it. It consists of an oil massage of the abdomen and uses fabric (a Mexican scarf called a rebozo) to rock and bind the body. It is a traditional ritual used in Ecuador and other parts of Central and South America after women have given birth to support their postnatal recovery. As well as many benefits physically, there is also an emotional and spiritual aspect to the massage too, it provides the mother space to feel nurtured and release emotions associated with giving birth and motherhood. The ceremony can be considerably powerful in helping to heal emotions, even many years after the birth itself.
Closing the Bones brings an ancient ceremony that can offered by midwives in our modern day. My teacher (Dr Sophie Messenger) since learning the Ecuadorian Closing the Bones, has come to realise that every culture in the world had some form of bodywork designed to close a new mother and return her to her centre.
I want to honour this practice were it has been lost to the world of women due to witch burnings and the repression of feminine wisdom. I have the upmost respect and gratitude to the places where the tradition is still in practice to this day, which is why this sacred ceremony is now filtering back in to our modern world. I am so very grateful that this ceremony is now being embraced into the western world where I believe it is greatly needed by the women in the west.