Most expectant mothers find it hard to relax. The busy schedules, routine work, running chores around the house and stress at workplace can leave you quite frazzles especially when you’re pregnant. A pregnant woman needs time to relax her mind off all worries. The reality of being pregnant itself is something that makes women worrisome and they dwell on every single thing that they might have done that could harm the baby.

Other stressors include conflicts with partners, deadlines that have to be met at work and being stuck in a traffic jam during rush hour. Though stress can actually be good for your immune response as it prepares for any potential risk or possible accident, infection or injury but stressing out on every little thing can wear you down

Pregnant women should try to take as little stress as can be and rejuvenate and revitalize themselves to ensure their own and the baby’s health. Stress promotes high blood pressure and pregnant women having it are apt to have babies with increased heart rates. Research is also being conducted to investigate the link between stress and premature births.

There are a few stress reducing techniques that slow down the body and relax the mind. These include:

• Guided Imagery
• Yoga
• Meditation
• Breathing Exercises
• Progressive Muscle Imagery

These establish mind-body connection and you can have a quieter and deeper insight on the events going on in life and things that are beyond your control.

You can release stress by adopting little habits and practices that can be a great help even when you’re not pregnant and particularly during pregnancy. Retreat to a quiet room and lay down comfortably. Close your eyes and take deep breaths in and out. Start with 10 breaths and count backwards from 10 to 1. You can also take mindful walks by walking at slower than normal pace. Feel the aroma and sensations around you. Your body will react to it, calming your senses and centering you in the moment. Stress reducing exercises can help you to shift from shallow chest breathing to deep abdominal breathing.

These reduce your heart rate and blood pressure and help the body to recover the anxiety response. Sometimes stress level ratchets up a notch. During pregnancy you might be anxious about your baby’s health, the delivery marathon and motherhood. It is but normal for a pregnant woman to get an anxiety attack at some point. Obviously, a whole new being is forming inside of her and soon she’s going to give birth. Transcendental meditation requires you to sit in an upright position and adopt an unreceptive attitude and chant a simple word over and over for 15 to 20 minutes. Such meditation can reduce blood pressure. Massage and external stimulation are effective techniques to relax too. Avoid sauna at all times during pregnancy. The body temperature rises so high in saunas that it can directly harm the baby. Music can be relaxing especially when sound waves of different frequencies are used to obtain slower breathing rates. This technique of releasing stress is called music therapy.