Mommy’s back is getting worse..Well, its definitely because she has gain approx. 8-9kg so far.. now, the scale shows that she’s 46.7 kg and she has approx. 3months to go, before the lil’ one comes out.

At the moment, she just can’t wait for the next appointment with the midwife so that she can arrange for a physiotherapy session … hoping that it would soothe her back ache.. But for the time being, hope this helps….

Ten Minutes to Back Pain Relief during Pregnancy

Pregnancy-related back pain ranges from mild discomfort after standing for long periods, to debilitating pain that can limit your ability to function. Although back pain can be a sign of a more serious condition, including labor, in most cases it is the result of changes happening within the body.

The pregnant spine is prone to developing painful conditions as a result of a combination of the following factors:

• hormone production makes joint more mobile (to allow the pelvis to spread as the baby grows)
• weight gain of 25-35 pounds over a short period of time, with the majority distributed in the front of the abdomen
• changes in posture as the body compensates for the change in weight distribution.

Although it may seem logical that if you are in pain you should rest and not undertake an exercise routine, gentle stretching and movement will often decrease muscle spasm and improve posture, resulting in decreased pain. These simple exercises can be performed almost anywhere and are safe from first trimester through postpartum.

1. Take at least a 5 minute walk at a moderate pace to loosen the muscles throughout the body. You could also substitute a warm shower or bath as a warm-up. (Total time – 5 minutes) Strengthening: Perform 2 sets of 10 repetitions for each of the following exercises. (Total time – 2-3 minutes)a. Pelvic Tilts (to strengthen the abdominals): The simplest way to learn the pelvic tilt is to kneel on your hands and knees. In this position, you’ll notice an inward arch in your lower back. Tilt your pelvis backwards, so you flatten your back, keeping your buttocks relaxed. Avoid rounding the upper back when you do the tilt. The pelvic tilt can be performed while lying on your back, standing, on your hands and knee, or sitting.

   

   b. Kegels (to strengthen the pelvic floor): To exercise the pelvic floor muscles, try to envision pulling the muscles of the vaginal area up and in towards your baby. You should not feel your buttocks, thighs, or abdominals tightening as you do this. One of the simplest ways to learn to contract the pelvic floor is to stop the flow of urine while you are on the toilet. You can try this technique to verify which muscles to isolate, but avoid doing this often, as it can cause urinary tract infections.

2. Stretching: Hold each stretch for 20 seconds, and repeat 2-3 times. (Total time – 2-3 minutes)
   a. Back Stretch: Start on your hands and knees, with your legs wide apart. Place a small pillow under you to give support to your abdomen. Sit back on your knees and stretch your arms forward to feel a stretch along the spine.

   b. Hamstring Stretch: Facing a chair or a step, place one foot up on it, keeping both hips and feet facing forward. Keep your back straight and lean forward from your hips to increase the stretch in the back thigh muscles. If you are unable to keep your back straight or your knees start to bend, the chair or step is likely too high for your flexibility level. Try a lower surface.

   c. Wall Posture Stretch: Stand with your head, shoulders and back against a wall with your feet shoulders width apart, about 1-2 feet from the wall. Bring your arms out to your sides with your palms facing away from the wall. Do a pelvic tilt to press the lower back into the wall. Press your upper back and shoulders against the wall without letting your lower back move away from the wall. Next, press the back of your head back into the wall, without tilting your chin up or down. You should feel a stretch along the entire spine if you do this correctly. Once this exercise gets easier, you may raise your arms higher overhead for increased stretch.

This 10 minute program targets muscles that most often contribute to back pain during pregnancy. Setting aside a few minutes each day to complete these exercises can allow you to enjoy your pregnancy, feel healthy, and maintain your busy lifestyle. And if you’re one of the lucky 20% who don’t suffer with back pain, performing these exercises can prevent future episodes of back pain and help make your labor, delivery, and postpartum recovery easier.

Note: Some forms of back pain may require more intensive or individualized treatment, so be sure to discuss any back pain you experience with your health care provider. This information is not intended as a substitute to medical care.

Editorial provided by Alicia Silva, MSPT is a physical therapist, founder of Expect Fitness, and the author of “Preventing and Managing Back Pain During Pregnancy”.

Source: http://www.expectantmothersguide.com/library/EUSbackpain.htm

Love,

Aisya

How time flies..Mommy is already in her 20th week of pregnancy… (Can’t believe that she’s half way there…)

Believe it or not, she’s one of the lucky ones that does not experience any sickness during pregnancy.. . That’s why the only thing that makes her feel  pregnant is the growing belly and during the scanning.. However, she do have some backaches whenever she lay her body flat on any type of surface, be it the bed, floor, sofa or anything, as long as its a flat surface..  she still can’t figure out whether its because of the pregnancy or the side effect of epidural that she took previously .. (delivering me.. hehehe)

Here are some pics of my baby sis / baby bro in my mommy’s tummy…

Enjoy!

Love,

Aisya

It’s been a long while since this blog is updated..

Winter is over, now Spring is here.. and everybody is loving it.. !!

Including our dear Aisya..

Love,

Aisya’s mommy

Something to share…

A New Arrival in the Family

A Difficult but Fulfilling Process
A Muslim’s every act is an ibadah (servitude to Allah). What else could be more rewarding than helping create and welcoming a new servant of Allah on earth? Nine months may not be that much, but for a baby in the womb it brings the end of an extraordinary stage of his journey. It is a journey through which an impure ’spurting fluid’ (al-Qur’an 86:6) is fashioned in the safe lodging of mother’s womb (al-Qur’an 23:12-14) and grows bigger and bigger to become a ‘human being’. As the human being is not meant to be confined in a tiny space, he needs a wider physical world in order to go through the process of ‘test and tribulation’ for which he is destined.

A Question to think about : According to the Quran, how important is the stage of the child being in the mother’s womb and what bearing does it have on the human being’s life?
The Birth
The birth of a baby is a mixture of anxiety, excitement and expectation. For mothers it is a fulfilling experience. Allah has given in them unusual resilience strength and courage to bear the burden and discomfort. A new life in their lap is a dream coming true for both the parents. It is the ultimate experience for a couple of ‘togetherness”, both working in unison to bring a new creature into the world.
Although parenthood is a matter of preparedness from the time one plans to marry, birth initiates the ‘real world’ experience of parenting. Labour is a traumatic and painful physical, as well as psychological, experience for a woman. For many husbands it may be hard to watch their beloved one in pain, but their presence has soothing effect on their partners. It reduces anxiety and provides a feeling of security to wives when most needed. The shared experience creates deeper bond between the couple in their common goal to serve Allah.

A Question to think about :“The shared experience creates deeper bond between the couple.” In your view, what are the ways in which a husband can support his wife during birth? Show how each way can strengthen the bond between them.

Islamic Customs on Birth of a Child
The comfort and safety of the baby suddenly shatters in the new unknown world. The new born (al-mawlood, pl-mawalid) cries out. The Sunnah of the Prophet teaches that when a baby is born he needs to be cleansed and dressed. A male adult, father or some one close in the family, should recite adhan (ritual call for collective prayer) in the right ear and iqamah (ritual announcement for starting the prayer) in the left ear. In the world of spirit man declared his instinctive readiness to accept Allah as his Lord (al-Qur’an 7:172). The first sound to reach a baby’s ear should thus be the declaration of Allah’s greatness, so that the sound always reverberates in his memory and settled in his soul. It is mentioned in a hadith that devil runs away by the sound of the adhan.
The mother of the faithful Ayesha (RA) mentioned, “I saw the prophet give adhan in the ear of al-Hussein ibn Ali when his mother, Fatima, gave birth to him”. (Ahmad, Abu Dawud and Tirmidhi).
When a child was born in a family, Ayesha (RA) would not ask whether it was a
boy or girl, rather she would ask “is it complete and sound?” so, if she was
told that it was, she would say, “all praise and thanks for Allah, Lord of
all creation”. (Bukhari)
It is an excellent practice to give a bit of small chewed date to the baby,
so that he starts his life with sweetness.
Ayesha (RA) said “new born children used to be brought to Allah’s messenger
and he would supplicate for blessing for them and rub a chewed date upon his
palate” (Muslim, Abu Dawud).
Muslims parents have instinctive dua (supplication) for their new-born. The
supplication by Mariam’s (AS) in this regard is unique mother (al-Qur’an
3:36).
Arrival of a child in a family is a glad tiding that needs to be conveyed and
shared (al-Qur’an 3:39, 37:101).

A Question to think about : Give a pointwise list of things to do (as reflected by the sunnah) after the child is born. Show the order of precedence and comment on the significance of each action.

Islamic Customs in the first Week of a Child
“Every child is held in pledge for his aqiqa which is sacrificed for him on
his seventh day and he is named on it and his head is shaved” (Ahmad and Abu
Dawud).
Names should be linked with his father (al-Qur’an 33:5). Names have to be
meaningful. Praiseworthy names are those which mean slaves of Allah or His
attributes, the Prophets and the pious people.
“The most beloved of your names in the eye of Allah, the Mighty and
Magnificent, are Abdullah and Abdur Rahman” (Muslim).
Names should not be such which are disapproved or forbidden by the Prophet.
Whoever has a child born to him and wishes to offer a sacrifice then let him
sacrifice two sheep for a boy and a single sheep for a girl. (Abu Dawud and
Nasa’i)
With the child there is aqiqa, so spill blood for him and remove the harm
from him (Bukhari, Ahmad, Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi)
When al-Hasan was born, he (messenger) said to her (Fatima) : shave his head
and give the weight of his hair in silver to the poor. So, she shaved off his
hair, weighed it and its weight was a dirham or a part of dirham. (Ahmad and
al-Baihaqi)
The fitrah (the natural way) is five : circumcision, shaving the private
parts, trimming the moustache, clipping the nails and plucking hair from the
armpits (Bukhari, Muslim) Circumcision is better on the 7th day.

A Question to think about : There is indeed great wisdom in the Islamic customs in the first week of a child. Can you find points that justify this statement.

Sons and Daughters to be Treated Equally
The gender of a child should not bother parents. After all, it is divine
will. Sons and daughters must be treated equally. In pre-Islamic Arab and
some other societies daughters were the symbol of embarrassment and were
treated in shameful manner to the extent that some Arab fathers buried them
alive. It is an irony that many societies even today do not welcome the birth
of daughters in the same way they do with sons.
Whoever takes care of two girls until they reach adulthood he and I will stay
on the Day of Resurrection – and he interlaced his fingers (Muslim).
Prophet’s behaviour with his daughter Fatima was exemplary.

A Question to think about : Can you think of reasons why, even today, many societies do not welcome the birth of daughters?

The Demand from the Newborn Babies
The demand from the newborn babies is continuous and tremendous. Mothers
should be in the forefront in making sure that the baby is clean, well-fed,
loved and protected. Breast-milk is the perfect food for human babies. The
physical touch of the baby with the mother during breastfeeding creates
exhilarated relationship between the two. This is the root of life-long love
between a mother and a child.
Newborn babies are fully dependent on adults. The only way they can
communicate is crying when they are hungry or uncomfortable and smiling when
they are happy. Their hands and feet participate in their action. Babies like
to be rocked and talked to. The excellent practice for parents is to recite
the Qur’an for them.

A Question to think about : The child is completely dependent on his parents. Suggest ways in which parents can make sure that they are always aware of the child’s needs and fulfill them.

What about other Children?
A newborn baby naturally gets all the attention in a family. Older brothers
and sisters can feel a little bit left out. The youngest one, who had
probably so far monopolised parental attention, can be confused or jealous.
Parents have to be sensitive on this. It is just a matter of time when things
settle down and the brothers and sisters learn to accommodate themselves to
create a lifelong relationship.

Passing on the Trust of Faith
Holding a baby in the arms is one of the most emotionally fulfilling
experiences in life. Watching a baby grow and thrive is most rewarding.
Getting to know a new born baby in the first few days and weeks is also a
thrilling experience which reaches far beyond just caring for his daily
needs. The baby learns about his parents, the family and the surroundings. It
is an unforgettable time for the whole family watching a tiny person making
sense of the world around him. In this process parents also get more matured
and responsible in life. It is an interactive dynamic process.
Children are a source of vigour to the heart, joy to the souls and pleasure
to the eyes. Wealth and children are adornments to human beings (al-Qur’an
18:47) which allure them toward worldly life. Many forget the role of proper
upbringing their children because of the intense love for them. Parents are
for the protection and physical care of their children. Time is the
invaluable gift parents can give to their children. On top of everything,
Muslim parents are in obligation to pass on the amanah (Trust) of faith to
their children from the very young and tender age, so that they can grow with
balanced Muslim personality. Only then they can bear witness to the Truth
before mankind in the future.

A Question to think about : “In this process parents also get more matured and responsible in life.” Expand on this by showing what aspects of the parents’ character improve. Also show how children can allure human beings toward worldly life.

* While carrying my dear aisya at 8 months*

Sharing some thoughts,

Aisya ’s mommy

Its been snowing lightly for the past few days.. but today.. ‘it’s beginning to look a lot like christmas.. lalalala….’

Well, everyone starts to get excited with the snow.. even our neighbours went out to build up their snowman in the middle of the night..*omputih pun jakun snow jugak..* heheheh

As this is my first encounter with snow.. mommy+daddy were wondering, how I would react.. well, mcm mommy and daddy jugak, I was excited when I saw everything’s white..  hehehe..

*Kalau dekat Malaysia, bila hantar keta kat mamak cuci, baru dpt jadi mcm ni..

Aisya gedik snow…

Bye for now.. will update more later..

Love,

Aisya

Hello everyone.. This blog would be my very first blog.. It’s going to be a place for me, my mommy and daddy to update on what ever is happening around us. I don’t know how often its going to be updated. So let’s see how my mommy and daddy would manage their time to update this blog.

Love,

Aisya