00:00:00 Can you create or influence the foundation of a baby's long-term health even before its conception? The short answer is yes. Both modern science and Ayurveda agree upon this statement. In modern science it's called early nutrition programming or metabolic programming. It basically means that by taking care of the right diet, by the right nutrient intake, the exercises, the lifestyle that we maintain in the preconception stage, we can take care of the baby's long-term health in the we maintain in the preconception stage, we can take care of the baby's long-term health in the future and avoid certain diseases to occur. For example, diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity. Ayurveda takes it even a step further. It just doesn't only focus on the nutrition part,
00:00:43 but also the lifestyle practices, the mind-body practices. And by taking care of these measures, we can not only take care of the physical health of the baby but also the spiritual, mental and emotional health. My name is Suzanne, I'm a certified Ayurvedic practitioner, full-spectrum doula, fertility coach and childbirth educator. practitioner, full-spectrum doula, fertility coach and childbirth educator. In my practice I incorporate holistic modalities like Ayurveda but also somatic work, breath work which is also part of Ayurveda and I combine them with more than modern tools of modern life, for example science and evidence-based
00:01:17 information to support my clients in the best way as possible. I became an Ayurvedic practitioner because of my own health journey. I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease 11 years ago. It's called ulcerative colitis and this kind autoimmune disease 11 years ago. It's called ulcerative colitis and this kind of sparked the interest to explore holistic healing modalities. Ayurveda was one of them and it gave me the right tools, framework and understanding of how my body works and how my body interacts with the world around me, with the foods I consume, even with the information that I digest, and the daily routines and the lifestyle practice that I maintain in order to prevent diseases from happening.
00:01:57 Originally, I'm from the Netherlands, so in my doula and Ayurveda practice, I'm incorporating basically the main school of thought of the Dutch maternal care system, which is more holistic, so to say. Originally, I'm from the Netherlands, so in my doula and Ayurveda practice, I'm incorporating basically the main school of thought of the Dutch maternal care system, which is more holistic, so to say. The main school of thought is that we believe in the physiologic birth. Physiologic birth means that we allow the body to unfold and to use its innate power to give birth to new life, instead of seeing it as a medical event. Why I like to combine Ayurveda with the modern tools that we have is that Ayurveda gives great practices, protocols and detailed descriptions that we have is that Ayurveda gives great practices, protocols and detailed descriptions of how we should live our lives basically from the moment we wake up till the moment we go to bed.
00:02:40 In order to prepare our bodies to conceive we need to reach this excellent state of being, excellent state of health. And we can achieve that by incorporating for example Dhinacharya. Dhinacharya means Dhinah is daily routine, Charya is knowledge. By incorporating these protocols Dhinacharya means Dhinah is daily routine, Charya is knowledge. By incorporating these protocols on a day-to-day basis, we basically build up our stamina, we build up our tissues, because as a mother especially, going into pregnancy, we need to make sure that we have the right nutrient intakes, the right digestion, because the digestion is related to the absorption of nutrients. For example, it has been shown that a deficiency of iron can make pregnancy more difficult, as you
00:03:24 understand that the blood levels will increase by 50% throughout the whole pregnancy journey, So when we are preparing for the actual conception, we need to make sure that our absorption levels are amazing. We do this by balancing the doshas. There are three main doshas in Ayurveda, vata, pitta and kapha. They are ruling the elements in our bodies, but also in our environment and the foods that we eat, the exercises that we do and the practices that we do on a daily basis. So by balancing all these facets or aspects of our life, we can create this equilibrium in both mind, body and spirit. So by balancing all these facets or aspects of our life, we can create this equilibrium in both mind, body and spirit.
00:04:08 One of the most important aspects to incorporate from Ayurveda when you're pregnant is hydration. If we are dehydrated, our body creates this hormone called vasopressin. Vasopressin basically deregulates our circadian rhythm, but it can also deregulate our hormones. So in the Ayurvedic practice, it's also relevant for the preconception phase, So in the Ayurvedic practice, it's also relevant for the preconception phase, but also in the pregnancy phase, very important is that you start your day with hydrating. 750 milliliters or 25 ounces of water should be the first thing you consume on a daily basis, To create more like resilience in your tissues, in your abdomen, in your waist, in your hips.
00:04:52 These areas are super important. Of course, before giving birth, we need to make sure that they're hydrated, lubricated with certain oils.
