KIH Products Volunteering Day

I had a lovely time at Bristol Shelter today volunteering my painting skills! it was really lovely to hear first hand some of the projects they are working and how many people they are helping on a day to day basis.

So many of us are so vulnerable to being made homeless and Charities such as Shelter are crucial to help us through difficult times.  Taking time out from our own day-to-day business and activities to volunteer in such away helps us to remain grounded and connect with the real issues that surround us.

With connection comes greater understanding and raised awareness of how we can help to build a better society.  It just needs a few leaders, a few game-changers, a few people in power with the ability to make small life altering changes to what is perceived to be normal.

Longer tenancy agreements (of course with landlord protection clauses!)

The freedom to decorate ones home

The freedom to hang pictures (enjoy a private life & make a home!)

The freedom to have pets in your family

Being a tenant is rarely a lifestyle choice

Being in receipt of benefits is rarely a lifestyle choice

Minimum wage is legal, not ethical

Working a 25 hour week really need not be a problem.. Most people would jump at the chance to work in school hours & be removed from the benefits system & vulnerable living

Decent working hours, decent wage, decent tenancies, and happy landlords with a property at the end of covered mortgage payments #whatmorecouldyouwishfor!

Also, mortgages - end, tenancies, never end, you find that rent til the day you die.  So much work to be done here guys! More leaders & game changers required.

@ShelterBristol #housingcrisis #minimumwage #flexibleworking #johannhari @kihbed 

The KIH Bed Pregnancy Cushion is in SCOTLAND

The KIH Bed Pregnancy Cushion is in SCOTLAND Great news if you're #pregnant in #Inverness - you can now enjoy a Pregnancy Massage on your belly full-term - at the Sleeping Beauty Salon in INVERNESS

https://www.sleepingbeautysalon.com/ 

@sleepingbeautysalonlimited 

for more info on the KIH Bed Pregnancy Cushion visit www.kihproducts.co.uk

Pregnancy Massage in East Sussex

If you are #pregnant and in East Sussex and would like a #massage that enables you to lay on your #belly full term -
The #KIH Bed #Pregnancy #Cushion is now with Mandorla Massage https://www.facebook.com/MandorlaMassagePage/https://www.mandorlamassage.com/about

www.kihproducts.co.uk

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1rO7yx0lTTnPk7CvlrP9c82WFDuZ3k0U-&usp=sharing

Laying Prone in Pregnancy and Pregnancy Massage Tables

When I designed the KIH Bed Pregnancy Cushion in 2011 so that I could lay prone during my third trimester of pregnancy I immediately embarked on research to ensure that this position was safe, not only for me, but for my unborn child.  I had miscarried during my first pregnancy in this is not an experience I wanted to do everything in my power to avoid ever happening again. My research reassured me and so I enjoyed the use of the KIH Bed during my own pregnancy. I am sharing some research with you in this post.

When I decided to bring the KIH Bed to market, already satisfied with the pregnancy safety element, I then needed to ensure it complied with other health and safety aspects such as breathability, toxicity and fire, and so the KIH Bed underwent British Standards Safety Testing as carried out on cot mattresses and household furniture (BS7177, BS5852 and BSEN713).  All the safety testing boxes ticked the KIH Bed was protected, mass produced and launched to market in 2013.

In the last five years the KIH Bed has been used and loved by professional practitioners such as Osteopaths, Chiropractors, Physiotherapists and Massage Therapists as well as by mums-to-be for private use in the home, with consistently excellent feedback from both practitioners and their clients.  

Some therapists however are still nervous to lay their pregnant clients prone as traditional pregnancy massage training advises to lay a client on her left side.   This post is to offer some insight and clarity into the sometimes confusing advice. The choice used to be to lay a client on her left, her right, or her back. The right hand side and the back cause concern with respect to pressure on the aorta and vena cavae.

'The researchers say that previous studies have found that sleeping on the back is associated with a disruption in normal breathing patterns. They also say that lying flat on the back during late pregnancy can reduce the mother’s cardiac output (the amount of blood pumped out from the heart with each heartbeat). This is because the major veins in the body that return blood to the heart (the vena cavae) are positioned just to the right side of the centre of the body. As such, it is possible that in heavily pregnant women, the pressure of the baby when lying flat or just to the right could interrupt the return of blood to the heart. This could reduce the mother’s cardiac output and, in turn, affect blood supply to the uterus and placenta.'

Source: https://www.nhs.uk/news/pregnancy-and-child/mothers-sleeping-position-and-risk-of-stillbirth/

Equally where pregnancy massage couches did exist they were designed in such a way that put pressure on the uterine ligaments and lumbar area.  The KIH Bed has been designed to support these. Normally past 13 weeks gestation the client would not be comfortable to lay on her front due to the discomfort but this would be the stage to use the 4" depth of the KIH Bed to release pressure and to support the lumbar vertebra.  The KIH Beds 'sling' design soft cover will support the uterine ligaments at variable stages of pregnancy. The full depth of the KIH Bed is 8" offering full term support.

In 2017 a report was published on the PMC titled the ‘Influence of the prone position on a stretcher for pregnant women on maternal and fetal hemodynamic parameters and comfort in pregnancy’.  Extensive research was carried out and part concludes that:

‘The prone position was considered safe and comfortable and could be advantageous for improving oxygen saturation and reducing the systolic blood pressure and respiratory rate.’ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5463251/  It is worth reading the full report and worth noting that the KIH Bed was designed to offer the same curvature to the spine and comfort to the client as the stretcher that was used in these experiments.

Tommy’s charity also offer reassurance on laying on front during pregnancy here https://www.tommys.org/pregnancy-information/im-pregnant/pregnancy-calendar/third-trimester-weeks-29-40/sleep-position-pregnancy-qa

It is also worth reading up on Optimal Foetal Positioning and Spinning Babies: http://optimal-foetal-positioning.co.nz/ https://spinningbabies.com/2013/12/

Just as training courses are updated when it comes to advances in technology it is time for pregnancy massage training to be updated based on equipment and clinical information that is now available, that was not available when the original training courses were developed.

I hope that this post is insightful and useful to those of you who have been in any doubt and further supports the work of those currently using the KIH Bed Pregnancy Cushion to fully support their clients throughout pregnancy.

Julie Hawkins, KIH Products Ltd. 21/06/2018

Finalist at The Mpower National Business Awards

A big 'thank you' to Nicola Huelin and her team at Mpower for making me a finalist at The Mpower National Business Awards. I am a finalist in the 'spirit' category, that recognises not only my achievements to date with KIH Products but how I am actively working to help others, via my blogs, book, facebook page and support network. We all come up against naysayers on a daily basis and it takes a lot of self-belief not to let them kill your confidence. Remember. 'Only you can stop you!' - you know inside what you are capable of and 'who you are' - do not exept anything or anybody who is toxic to your wellbeing. Do not underestimate your ability to survive difficult changes. @Mpowermumsinbiz #mpowerawards #mumsmakeithappen

KIH Bed Pregnancy Cushion
Julie's Blog
@JulieHawkinsKIH 
Book
KIH Holistics

KIH Bed Pregnancy Cushion loved by Massage Therapists, Osteopaths, Chiropractors, Spas and Physiotherapists - as well as mums-to-be

Nova Jones Massage

2 November 2017 · 

It's arrived! - Thank you KIH Products (Amazing Customer Service by the way - the lovely Julie takes care of everything for you - HIGHLY recommended)

Nicky Royall ❤️ my KIH pregnancy cushion.....my mums to be love it too! I always get great feedback when it’s been used x

‎Michelle Hawkins‎ to KIH Products

17 May 2016 · 

Fantastic product.
Id forgotten how nice it is to rest on my stomach.
im currently 36 weeks pregnant and have been using the pregnancy cushion.
everything fits perfectly so i can just flop and relax completely.
highly recommended.

‎Roisin Cairns‎ to KIH Products

9 October 2015 · 

The KIH bed is absolutely fantastic my clients are loving it and spreading the word. The KIH bed enhances the whole pregnancy massage and I have not looked back since investing in it. Also I am absolutely chuffed to be the first therapist in the North of Ireland to be offering it.
It is wonderful tool for therapist offering pregnancy massage.
A delighted practitioner
Róisín
The Little House of Calm

Melissa Cowan Love this product makes my treatments stand out from the rest I can offer my clients complete comfort knowing that they are safe and fully supported. In fact I need some more leaflets as always pass on your details after their treatments and how happy they feel using your product 😍

KIH Products Ltd

KIH Bed Pregnancy Cushion for Clients to Lay Prone Third Trimester

The KIH Bed Pregnancy Cushion

Specially designed in the UK in 2011 for pregnant clients to lay on their front at variable stages of pregnancy.

Made in the UK.

Fully Compliant with British Standards and loved by Massage Therapists, Osteopaths, Chiropractors and other practitioners not only for pregnancy but to help clients who may find it uncomfortable to lay on their bellies for various reasons.

Designed by therapist Julie Hawkins when pregnant and desperate to lay on her belly

Pregnancy Cushion - KIH Bed

Julie

KIH Bed Pregnancy Cushion

I am very proud of the journey to date to bring you this product. I always 100% appreciate caring, sharing. feedback and support. Years of hard work & supporting UK economy are always worth it when I see your feedback and your clients feedback. Thank you!

The KIH Bed #Pregnancy Cushion

The KIH Bed was designed in 2011 when Director of KIH Products Ltd and ITEC qualified practitioner Julie Hawkins was in her third trimester of pregnancy and desperate to lay on her front. The 8” Depth is essential for full term support. The structure leaves no risk of bump pushing against couch surface yet the design of the cover is specifically designed to support ligaments.

Julie spent two years researching the health and safety, not only of the design but of #laying #prone in pregnancy - having the KIH Bed tested to British Standards, designing, patenting and launching the KIH (pronounced ‘key’) bed pregnancy cushion before it’s official launch in 2013. The KIH Bed Pregnancy Cushion was designed in the UK in 2011, it is still produced in the UK and shipped next day to Chiropractors, Osteopaths, Massage Therapists and other Qualified Practitioners

For the past 5 years the KIH Bed #Pregnancy has been used and loved by mums-to-be, #Massage Therapists, #Ostoepaths, #Chiropractors and Physiotherapists, in the #UK and Worldwide and is increasingly popular as feedback and durability is consistently excellent.

The KIH Bed Pregnancy Cushion is particularly popular due to the design of two layers and the ‘hammoc’ style soft brushed cotton cover that supports the clients round ligaments reducing the strain to the bump commonly associated with prone laying pregnancy products. The Soft Brushed 100% Cotton cover will keep your client COOL and COMFY, it is removeable and washable and you can buy as many spare covers as you like.

Payment plans are also available if finances are touch. Just e-mail me. I’m human too :)

Please contact any practitioner or director Julie Hawkins with any questions you have about using this product. A list of practitioners can be found on the main website www.kihproducts.co.uk

#chiropractic_pregnancy_pillow #massage_pregnancy_pillow#Osteopath_pregnancy_pillow_cushion

KIH Products Pregnancy Cushion Website