Holistic Health For Moms And Babies. An interview with Tami Hinden.

Before my son was born, I was preparing for his birth with anything and everything I could get my hands on. As I have shared many times, I wanted a natural birth if it was healthy for our son and myself, and I would do anything I could for the least intervention. Because I am a holistic person and psychotherapist, I knew that I would use all the tools I could afford to bring on a natural labor and comfortable birth.

I met Tami Hinden, creator and owner of Inspire Mind Body Spirit. I had walked by her office many times and was curious about what she offered. When her name came up in a birth professionals meeting, I knew I had to meet her. I had already been to acupuncture and craniosacral so I was ready.

When my son was over due and approaching 9 pounds, I knew that I wanted some support. I met Tami and my experience was profound. I returned to her after my son’s birth. This time shedding a lot of grief around his C Section birth. She held space for me in a compassionate and calm way. I was able to grieve, to cry, and to let go of my ‘dream’ birth.

Tami is a master at what she does. Not only did she work on me but she also worked on my son when he was born. She is highly intuitive, insightful, and kind. If you are curious about her work with new moms and babies, check out the interview below!

What gave you the idea to start Inspire, Mind, Body, Spirit?

There are several things that lead me to create Inspire Mind Body Spirit. I was raised in a household where keeping healthy was an everyday routine rather than waiting for a problem to arise and then treating it. I think the largest impact was my own health and how I had suffered with physical issues as I approached my twenties and was misdiagnosed and mistreated for a long time. It was upon meeting an incredible doctor who looked at my body as a whole and treated me in that manner, that lead me back to better health. That was the turning point for me. It inspired me in many ways and I found myself applying to acupuncture school and that was the beginning of my journey as a practitioner.

What services do you offer?

I have taken several therapeutic modalities and have created a multi-dimensional treatment system that can help people find balance in their health at the physical, emotional and spiritual levels. I offer acupuncture and herbs, Craniosacral Therapy (CST) and therapeutic movement through body awareness.

Who do you mostly love to work with?

I love working with babies and children. They are so receptive and this work can change the future of their health. Why wait until there is a problem? I think it is important to give our children the best possible start to their lives by clearing any obstacles that can be impairing the balance in their bodies, which eventually will lead to disease and disorder.

How do you offer a holistic approach? Your views, philosophy, training?

This work is holistic because I am always considering the person as whole. There are so many parts of us that need to be considered in the healing process. Most of my training has come from these principles and is also a philosophy I was raised with and have continued to explore and expand on in my own health and well-being. In my 13 years of practice, my biggest inspiration to keep exploring and learning about the body and all its elements has been from my patients and their stories.

For a new mom, how could you be helpful?

This work can help new moms in many ways. A healthy mom, means a healthy family! Postpartum is such a crucial time for a woman, and most times mom is put on the back burner. Not only can I support mom at this time by helping her body recover from her labor and delivery at a more rapid rate, I can help regulate her hormones, rid the body of drug intervention, ease breastfeeding and reduce chances of getting breast infections. As this work helps to regulate the body it can help mom and baby bond and decrease the chances of postpartum depression.

For a new baby, what services do you offer?

I strongly believe every baby should have a craniosacral therapy treatment. Newborns benefit from this work to correct hidden imbalances that may have occurred during pregnancy and birth. As mentioned above, why not give your child every possible chance to be healthy. This first treatment can help the baby with alignment that may have been affected from the delivery process, both from vaginal and c-section births, since how can this process not have an impact on their tiny little bodies. Beyond the physical, if there is any emotional strain that mom may have experienced in the process or through the pregnancy, that can translate to baby and affect their balance. In addition, it helps with issues affecting nursing, sucking, swallowing, tongue control, coordination with breathing, tongue-tie, preparation and recover from tongue-tie and lip-tie release/ surgery, colic, infections, torticollis, motor issues, growth delays, sleep issues, fussiness and asymmetries of the cranial bones, including plagiocephaly. The list goes on… I also do acupuncture on babies and children, when needed and teach parents acupressure points that they can use to help their children between treatments.

What is the best piece of advice for a pregnant woman?

My best advice for a pregnant woman is to try and be in the moment, connect with baby and remember this is a process for not only you, but your baby too! If none of this makes sense or you need to get in touch with this, getting body-work can help you find that grounding, get you in your body and keep you out of your head!

What do you think would be helpful for a new mother to remember?

There is so much happening when you become a new mom. It is hard to find which way is up and to remember who you are in the process, since every moment is dedicated to this new being and no matter how confident you are, raising a baby will really test you. Try to be in the moment, try to stay connected to who you are and what you want for yourself, your baby and your family and surround yourself with people who can empower this!

How do you balance being a working mother?

Balance and being a working mom, is there such a thing?! It is so tough. There are moments of balance tossed in with moments of being completely overwhelmed. Trying to be ok with that process is hard but it helps. Finding time for me is most important, and in that time doing things for my health and for fun. If I feel like I have space, I can keep things in perspective.

You can find more about Tami and her services here:

Tami Joy Hindin, L.Ac., Dipl.O.M
Inspire Mind Body Spirit
117 Main St
Dobbs Ferry, NY 10522
914. 478. 1452
www.inspiremindbodyspirit.com