One of my favorite ways to relax is to do a progressive muscle relaxation. To do a progressive muscle relaxation, you go through each body part, tense it, and then feel the difference as you relax it. So I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how to teach kids how to do a progressive muscle relaxation. Here are my thoughts.
Welcome to Little Elf Family Services! I’m Lara Elfstrand. I am a parent coach, and I am here to help parents to feel connected, rested, and thriving. I have a master’s degree in early childhood special education (and a clear teaching credential), and I am endorsed as an infant family advanced transdisciplinary mental health practitioner.
I became a parent in 2007, and it changed me and my life completely. I realized just how much a person changes when they become a parent. It changed my values, my priorities, and my marriage! The things I learned cannot be summarized in one blog post or even in one blog. But here are just a few things that I would start with:
Nesting parties ask us to re-think the way that we celebrate new parents and challenge us to focus on what the expecting parents need. It’s really less of a party and more of an opportunity to provide the family help.
Unlike baby showers, “Nesting parties shift the focus from stuff to support to help families prepare their homes and hearts for life with a new baby,” explains Lara Elfstrand, the pediatric sleep practitioner of Little Elf Family Services.
When should new moms should start pelvic floor exercises? When should they start walking? How can new birthing parents find a balance between "not too much too soon" and "not too little either"? When can they resume high impact exercises like running? What are signs that new moms should pay attention to after birth, which may indicate they need to scale back their activity level?
This week I spoke with Dr. Hannah Flammang about C-section scars. We talked about self care and things that we can do to help with recovery and healing after a c-section.
Dr. Hannah is a local chiropractor. She is opening her practice in Rocklin, but she does a lot more than just chiropractic. She really likes to work with women’s health patients, specifically in the prenatal and postpartum periods.
Recently I had the exciting opportunity to interview Juan Irby II. Juan is a postpartum doula for dads. Here’s an excerpt from our conversation together.
Juan, tell me a little bit about how you got started as a postpartum doula.
I am Juan Irby. I am a postpartum doula for dads and also for families. I'm located in the North Carolina area--the Charlotte/Concord area. I started my journey with my first son
I have been interviewing parents and professionals about what it’s like to have a baby during the pandemic. Recently I interviewed Dr. Romy Havard (she/her) of Peregrine Physical Therapy. Dr. Havard provides the East Bay Area, CA with orthopedic, prenatal, postpartum, pelvic floor, and wellness services. She went to UC Berkeley for undergraduate and later attended the UCSF/SFSU Joint Graduate Program in Physical Therapy with MS and DPT degrees. She is also Board Certified in the Orthopedic Section (OCS).
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©Lara Elfstrand, MA ECSE, IF-ATMHP, CPSI - Little Elf Family Services, P.O. Box 5098, Auburn, CA 95604
