Why I love teaching postnatal rehabilitation?
Contents:
- My Personal Dance Injury Experience
- What Multiple Injuries Have Taught Me
- Treating Pelvic Floor Dysfunction as an Injury
I wrote a post a while ago about how I came to teach Postnatal Rehab, and it was a good opportunity for me to reflect on how unexpectedly my journey has led me to where it has. But the bit that I want to talk more about, is my interest in injury, and how having experienced this within my own body has driven my passion in the work I now do.
My Personal Dance Injury Experience
When I injured my back during my dance training, I very quickly saw how it consumed my mind and by extension my life. My system became so hyper aware of how it was feeling at all times, what made it worse, what if anything made it better, I was continuously searching for answers. Knowing my pain became a full time occupation. I saw 13 medical professionals, many had conflicting opinions, not much helped. Until over a year later, I met a physio who literally changed my life and allowed me to have the dance career I had so desperately wanted. I was 15 and it was a lot to handle, my future career rested on not just being pain free, but being extremely flexible and strong. The experience really showed me how bodies heal when they get the correct treatment, and also how much pain affects our mental health.
What I found hard about dealing with injury was the seeming lack of control I felt I had around my recovery. Injury is a dancer's worst nightmare, a break in almost religious routine, continuous preoccupation with pain, a desperate hope for recovery and the inevitable crushing setbacks in the healing road. I had 2 serious injuries in my dance training and career, they were complicated and both times I landed up recovering and rehabilitating for over a year. In the short life of a dancer this is long and difficult.
What Multiple Injuries Have Taught Me
Looking at it now though, these times brought some unexpected gifts.
I learnt how to keep going despite things looking fairly unhopeful. I learnt that when you eventually find the right treatment, support, and rehab programme your body knows how to heal. I learnt that healing is non linear, setbacks will happen.
What I didn’t realise at the time was how much this was going to serve me, not just in my dance career, but in giving me an empathetic perspective on rehabilitation and healing, as well as a passion for it.
Treating Pelvic Floor Dysfunction as an Injury
When a new mum comes to me with a prolapse or Diastasis Recti symptoms or any pelvic floor dysfunction, I treat it as an injury, not just in terms of the physical support that body needs to rehabilitate, but also emotionally. I look at what she has had to deal with up till this point. She will most likely be extremely sleep deprived, and be spending many hours feeding, rocking, caring for her baby, with the discomfort, pain, and worry about her body humming away in the background. Often when women come to me it’s after a second pregnancy, so likely caring for a toddler as well at the same time.
It wasn’t until having my first child and having my own birth injuries, that a new path unfolded. I don’t have any regrets in having spent most of my life consumed by dance. It gave me my best friends and some unforgettable experiences, but mostly it taught me grit and fairly dogged determination to keep going and finding the solutions to enable healing.
The postnatal exercise plan I teach on re-centre, provides mums with the physical technique to improve their symptoms, but also the empowerment to know they have some control over this, and they are very much part of the healing picture, but most importantly that they can heal.
How re-centre works
Subscribe to a live or on-demand package
Sign-up to a fundamentals class to learn the technique
Start the beginner classes
Individual support via a one-to-one check-ins
Progress to more advanced levels at your own pace
All subscriptions include
A live fundamental class to learn the technique
Unlimited access to over 250+ videos
One-to-one check-ins with me to discuss progress
New weekly videos
Priority access to live workshops and retreats
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14-day free trial
What our members say
The best post-partum class, it really helped with my recovery. Simone is a great teacher, so knowledgeable and kind. I recommend her classes to all my friends who had a baby. Thank you Simone!
Anna
1/11
I’ve only been doing Simone’s classes for a short time but have noticed huge improvements in my core strength and posture. Great value and high quality recordings combined with live classes make it really easy to fit into your life. Highly recommended.
Clare
2/11
I cannot say enough good things about Simone’s classes - they have been really transformative for me. Her explanation of what are often unusual and specific techniques is so good that you never feel lost, and she has a wonderful way of connecting with the class on a really human level, as well as being a real expert in her field. Her classes are challenging, mindful, and have helped amazingly with my pelvic floor issues - I started seeing results after only 4 weeks of classes! Highly recommend.
Millay
3/11
Simone's classes are amazing. She combines her skills in pilates, yoga and hypopressives to provide a very holistic practice. I've seen a great improvement in my postnatal body thanks to her classes. I would recommend her to any woman who has had a baby.
Jazmin
4/11
I love Simone’s Low Pressure Fitness classes, they have helped with my prolapse symptoms and are something I turn to daily if I’m having a hard day. Simone is a great communicator and teacher, she explains everything very clearly and I have no trouble participating in the class even over zoom.
Jerry
5/11
Simone and re-centre were a saviour for me over lockdown. A great chance to just be in my body and switch on to what I was feeling. As a pelvic health physio I can highly recommend Simone and her method as a great form of rehab for many postnatal conditions.
Maternity Physio
6/11
I got to know about Low Pressure Fitness through Simone, in a workshop that I'm so lucky I attended. It was about 2 months after giving birth and I felt really weak, thinking that I could never get back to my strength before the pregnancy. Simone's help completely changed my perspective and with her brilliant classes slowly I got back my confidence and strength. I was worried that these exercises will be tricky with online classes, but she has been great in giving clear instructions and adjusting poses for everyone based on their needs. I don't know how she does it but she even gives individual feedback and helps you correct your pose in a group online class. Thanks Simone!
Sarah
7/11
Simone's classes and on-demand videos are excellent. She's such a good teacher, always learning new things herself to expand her teaching horizons. Would most definitely recommend to anyone with a postpartum body regardless how long it's been since you gave birth.
Ana
8/11
Simone is a great teacher, I highly recommend her work. Her online platform is well curated and excellent value and she gracefully manages to teach & give individual attention in her live Zoom classes.
Clio
9/11
I attend re-centre classes with Simone weekly and have noticed a huge improvement in my core strength and tone. Simone has a thoughtful and inclusive approach to her classes, they vary which means I stay focused and the relaxation time at the end is much needed in the life of a busy mum!
Alice
10/11
Simone is a brilliant teacher, she takes the time to check in with her students and work through exercises to fit individual injuries. She’s also really knowledgeable and supportive for post natal bodies. Doing hypopressors are a total life changer and I love the way this is incorporated into Pilates and stretching.
Beela
11/11
Learn the technique and get started
Hypopressives is an effective technique toward relieving symptoms related to Pelvic Organ Prolapse, Diastasis Recti and Urinary Incontinence. Hypopressives also improves poor posture, pelvic floor weakness and back pain. I offer a flexible approach to memberships and a 14-day free trial.
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About the Author
Simone Muller is the founder of re-centre and has over 22 years of teaching experience across Pilates, Low Pressure Fitness and Yoga.
She launched the online platform to make Low Pressure Fitness and Hypopressives more accessible to more women around the world so that they can become the strongest and most functional versions of themselves.
As the first level 3 instructor in London, she has witnessed transformative postnatal rehabilitation results in clients, addressing issues like Diastasis Recti, prolapse and incontinence.
Simone has written articles for the re-centre blog 'Kegels not Working?', 'The connection between menstruation and prolapse symptoms' and 'Why I love teaching postnatal rehabilitation?'.
Simone has also written guest posts for The Shala 'What is Low Pressure Fitness', Yana Active 'Prioritising your Pelvic Floor Health After Giving Birth and Nurturing the Core' and for The Pelvic Academy 'Empowering Women's Health - The Power of Collaboration Between Hypopressives, Physiotherapists and Osteopaths'.
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