In recent years, Jamu has been the most sort after postnatal treatment to help new mummies get back into shape. So what exactly is this popular postnatal treatment everyone is talking about?
What is Jamu?
Jamu is a traditional postnatal massage originates from Indonesia, to help mums get back into shape after childbirth. This technique consists of three parts:
Traditional massage technique
Natural herbal ingredients
Traditional Jamu abdominal binding
This treatment starts off with a massage to increase your blood flow for better circulation. Followed by the belly binding to assist the abdominal wall muscle retraction, support loosened ligaments, and reduce water retention. A lot of mothers have opted for the Jamu postnatal recovery because it is safe and can be done in the comfort of your own home.
From my personal and friend's experience, there are different types of belly binding methods. There is the one with all the knots, some use a corset-like binder with the lacing, others use a thick binder for a simple tight wrap. Some use belly masks, some don't, so depending on your therapist, the massage and binding can feel very different.
The Golden Period
So when is the best time to do this treatment? For the optimum result, it is recommended to start your treatment within 90s days after delivery.
If you had a natural delivery, you could start the treatment as early as 7 days after delivery. Helping you expel any blood clots and bruises from the body.
If you had a C-section, it is best to wait between 30 - 40 days before you start treatment, as you need to give your scar time to heal. I would recommend starting when your scar doesn't hurt anymore when you touch it. When I first started mine, my scar was still a bit tender, so the first couple of sessions was not that comfortable.
www.bellyandbloom.com Tel: 9853 9533
My experience with Belly & Bloom was very relaxing and pretty much the highlight of my day. The sessions start off with a lovely full body massage using essential oils. Not only is it a great way to unwind, but it also helps shrink the uterus, treats fluid retention, and relieves back pain. This is my favorite part, most of the time, I pretty much drift off and fall asleep.
The message is followed by a belly mask, made out of crushed coral from Indonesia (natural mineral to eliminate stretch marks); betel leaf (for healing) and essential oil ( for antibacterial). The mask stimulates blood circulation and muscle contraction, to encourage toxins to be flushed out of your system. It also helps lighten the scar and tighten up the skin, so it is beneficial inside and out.
After the mask is applied, you will then have your stomach bound. The waist binder is made out of a unique fabric found in Southeast Asia, it is thick and sturdy. The binding wraps from the bottom of the abdominal to the bottom of the breasts. Assisting the abdominal wall muscle to retract and prevents the widening of the hip.
I found Belly & Bloom's wrapping method less complicated and quicker, compared to the other methods. Ina (the therapist), simply wraps the binding tightly until the end of the cloth, and tuck the ends into the binding itself to secure it. Surprisingly, the binding did not undo by itself, considering there were no safety pins to secure it.
My sessions felt like a spa treatment in the comfort of my own home. Her massages were similar to the Swedish massage, and the binding was quite comfortable. As it doesn't have all the knots or lacing, it was quite flat, so I can go out without anyone knowing that I have the belly binding on.
Notes: Belly & Bloom will provide two sets of waist binder, so you can wash one, while the other one is in use. The waist binders are to be returned after the treatments.
The Results
I would say the results are satisfactory, but of course, I would like to have lost more weight by the end of my sessions. (Like every woman on the planet.) However, there were a few pleasant benefits that I wasn't expecting, such as better digestion and increase of breastmilk after I take off the binding.
I think how effective Jamu is, highly depends on the person itself. For me, I know it always takes my body sometimes for any diet or treatment to work. So if I wanted better results, I would probably go for more sessions, and make sure I can do them back to back.
Another tip I would suggest is, if you have time and energy, to do some form of exercise before or after the tummy binding sessions. I didn't do that, as I simply didn't have time or any energy. However, if I had a full-time helper, I would definitely take the time to do 15 mins of exercise a day during my tummy binding sessions.
Would I do it again? Yes, but only if I have help around the house. I did find taking care of Joshua on my own with the binding on quite challenging at times.
My Advice
Do your sessions back to back without taking breaks in between - it will be more effective. I wasn't able to do that, as I fell ill midway through my sessions, but I feel if I did it back to back the result will be better.
Make sure you have help during the belly binding days. As I don't have a full-time helper, the binding session can be quite stressful at times when Joshua was being fussing. I constantly have to stop and attend to Joshua because he was crying. In the end, I had to ask my dad to come over and watch him for the duration of my session, so I can do it in peace.
Don't be too greedy - make sure you know your limit on how tight you can have the binding. There were a couple of times when I had the binding too tight (because I wanted fast and effective results). I ended up with a massive headache and felt super dizzy, so I had to take the binding off before 6 hours. Which was a bit of a waste.
There are different theories out there whether or not you should have the binding overnight or not. Personally, I think having the binding on overnight would be easier. As it doesn't get in the way of your day to day chores, plus it is quite comfortable to sleep in. But speak to your therapist to see what their thoughts are on this matter, as I know some would not advise it.
If you are going with a stomach binding with a tummy mask, unwrap yourself in the shower as it can get quite messy.
If you can withstand it, try to keep it on for 8 hours.
Eat small meals when the binding is on, if you overeat, you can feel a bit sick.
My Final Thoughts
My sessions with Belly and Bloom was very relaxing, and the binding is surprisingly quite comfortable. As a full-time mum without a helper, after my stomach binding, I still have to be very hands-on with Joshua and taking care of the house. I have to constantly bend down, potter around and be on the go, and with the other stomach binding method, it does restrict my movement a bit. However, the binding from Belly and Blooms was quite comfortable, because it was flat. So I was still able to do all the chores around the house and take care of Joshua at the same time.
If you have a full-time helper though, I think the knotted method would probably give you quickest results, as the therapist can make the binding quite tight in specific areas you would like to work on. Your movement might be restricted, but if you have someone to help you out, you can just relax and let the binding do its magic.
Don't Miss out
If you are thinking of doing the Jamu postnatal Massage, then I have two great promotions for you!
Belly and Bloom is doing an Early Bird Special for 2020, if you book before 30th September 2019, you will get 25% off their Packages for treatment starting in 2020.
5 sessions
Package price HK$7,812.
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10 sessions
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15 sessions
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20 sessions
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If you cannot wait until 2020, for my readers and followers only, book on or before 30th September 2019, then you will get 15% off their packages this year!
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Original price HK$7,812.
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10 sessions
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Terms and Condition:
❣deposit of HK$2000 is required to secure bookings.
❣Deposit ($2000) is non refundable nor transferable.
❣Note that transportation fee is exclusive.
Limited space available, so book now before they are full.
I hope you enjoyed my blog post about my Jamu experience. What other postnatal treatment did you do? Did you find it effective? Please share your experience with me at the comment below. Or if there are postnatal treatment you want to find out more, please let me know and I will try it out.
Sending you love and positive thoughts,
Christine xxx