Ep 135: Bilal - The importance of the nervous system.Chiropractic care through pregnancy and birth.

Well, welcome back. I've got with me a beautiful man that actually was here last in my last episode with his beautiful partner Chelsea and sharing the story of their second birth. And I asked Bilal to come back because I'm a great proponent of bodywork. You know, our lifestyle these days causes us to do a lot of sitting and a lot of poor posture and, you know, turtle heads and all these sorts of things. And we think that that's, you know, doesn't have a big impact but actually it does. We need to understand that our body-mind intelligence, and particularly the way it plays out in birth, pregnancy, and then how the birth unfolds, will have a lot to do with how balanced your body is, how it's communicating, all the different systems being optimized, hormone release being optimized. These are all things that are an important part of being able to welcome these babies. So Bilal is a chiropractor and he specializes in field. Both he and his partner Chelsea have a deep love for this area and a lot of experience. So thank you, Bilal, for coming.

Thank you for having me, Tracey Anderson Askew Askew.

Yeah, it's good. I'm not sick of you yet, so I thought I'd get you on again this week.

That's so nice. So nice of you to say. Thank you.

I'm very— I'm so fortunate. I'm surrounded by the most incredible people, and you're, you're one of them. So tell us a little bit about how you got to being a chiropractor and then why you decided to specialize in this field.

Great questions. Um, it was an interesting one, Tracey. Uh, I think I, I, like probably a lot of young people, you know, do your education and then you go to uni and then you're still trying to really figure out what you're going to do. And that was probably one of them. And I knew I wanted to be helping people, like hands-on, you know. So healthcare was my thing. So I thought physio was it. And I was going to do it. Um, and I had a really chance encounter in my final year of my undergraduate degree before I went into physio that, that kind of stuck with me. It was one of those special moments of, um, this, this— she wasn't— she was a teacher, and she kind of reflected what the physio life could be, and she's like, you know, it's cool, but do you want to do that, or do you want to change lives? Oh, what an offer! And she said it in it in her unique way. I'm just, you know, summarizing that. And, uh, I couldn't help but have that stick in my head.

Yeah, yeah.

Um, and so weeks went by, and then I, I was literally in my last semester, and I decided, no, I don't want to be a physio. So here I was. So, you know, graduated in a science degree and then did random jobs and I just had a good catch-up with a good friend of mine who's actually working in Sydney, and he was working in a practice that belonged to a chiropractor. Um, and I'd actually seen chiropractors before, but there was just something about that fortunate timing. And I was, I was about a year out of uni, and I, I just thought, oh, I like the sounds of this, I'm going to look into it. So I, I made my application and I almost like, I kind of forgot about it. And, and then, you know, about 11 months later, I got an email from the university saying, hey, we've accepted you into this. And everything in my beingness said yes, like without hesitation. Left a well-paying job, you know, in Canberra, and I was like, no hesitation, that's fine. And, um, that was really it. It wasn't a lifetime experience of wanting to be a chiropractor. It was fate, if you like, that kind of bumped me along the way, and I haven't looked back. And so let's fast forward now. Um, I love chiropractic, and it's so diverse, and it has a lot to it where we can just really help people. And really what shaped the direction I'm, I'm heading down now and where I'm exploring is really how do we work with kids and families and pregnant women particularly, um, is because I went through the process, you know, um, becoming a dad and seeing Chelsea go through pregnancy and learning about the birth process. And, um, meeting you, Tracey, and doing your course was really profound in also shaping that viewpoint. And ultimately, uh, on reflection, there's a lot of couples slash parents-to-be, and then crossing over after birth, parents, um, they're looking for guidance in, in that they don't always have the easiest experiences. And I just thought we were so blessed to have now two children who— and we've had amazing experiences with pregnancy and birth. And I felt like there needs to be more of this. And, and specifically, how do we empower people to have, um, meet their goals in, in that space and really have an amazing time when it comes to that part of life?

Yeah.

And so that, that's what drove me.

Yeah. Can I ask you, what do you think chiropractors see that other— like, how in terms of their filters and how they look at the body as opposed to, say, physios or doctors? What, what's that?

That's a profound question, Tracey. I, I love that you asked that. And look, you know, to understand that is, is to look at sort of, you know, even a public perception of things, you know, where people often ask what's the difference between chiro and physios, you know, that's a common comparison. Um, and, and actually the truth is, is this chiropractic encompasses a big range, as does physio, and they might cross over in the middle somewhere. Yeah, ultimately chiropractic is philosophically speaking, where it differs, it's, it's based on a fundamental presence of an innate intelligent system.

Yeah.

That exists within us all.

Mm-hmm.

And that our job is to assist and help that beautiful body in that system to function at its highest.

Yeah.

And, and so that's the basic premise, foundational premise. Mm-hmm. And so it moves away from what we call allopathic style of care where it's like, you know, how do we treat what's broken and fix you, to how do we allow your body to express the way it was designed to in the best way possible. And so that, that's a big, um, tenant for a lot of chiropractors and, and how they work. So that's the basic philosophical—

yeah, a lot of disease and, um, you know, struggles with the body is as a result of, um, the nervous system being compromised in some way, because the body has an innate healing response within it. A lot of people don't appreciate the significance of that. I mean, it's as simple as you cut your, you cut your arm and the body heals, but it's even deeper than that. You know, it has a blueprint of potential, and given the right conditions, it optimizes and functions. But of course, You know, the conditions sometimes need to be explored and what is it getting in the way of the body being fully ready? And in the case of what we're talking about with birth, to optimize that birth, that physiological response to the birth process through hormone release, through being soft in places you need to be soft and activated in places you need to be activated and supporting the intelligence system within the baby as well to find its way. Through creating space for it to navigate its way down. So there's a lot of things interconnected there. And, and in my experience, the women who do the bodywork in pregnancy do tend to have less, um, struggles on that other side if they really focus on that physiological response. So most people tend to associate chiropractic with back pain, okay? But we're looking at it in much broader terms. So what does a neurological approach to chiropractic have to do with pregnancy, birth, and the nervous system?

Yeah, that's a great question. And it's almost like asking how long is a piece of string. And, you know, let's dispel the common misconception where— and it's not the public fault, it's we see it through advertising and in through media that, you know, we just crack backs and we go crunch, crunch, off you go. So why would I need it as a pregnant woman or as a child? Well, actually, that's in fact not, not what we're focusing on at all. And while that, that is the methodology applied, and the reasoning behind it is affecting the nervous system, as you so beautifully put, and your nervous system's central to everything that functions in your body, and almost everything goes through the nervous system. And while people understand the importance of nervous system for, you know, physical function, sometimes what gets forgotten that there's a lot of that, as you suggested, the innate intelligence, which is referring to the things that are happening in the background that are, that are there all the time. And, um, and while that's, that's occurring in the background, that is prone to different stresses that can affect the way your body functions overall. And so when we speak about neurological focus, that's what, what I'm looking at when I work with people. It's not so much about let's fix that point that's broken there or this joint, but rather how do we get your whole nervous system operating really well, and what is actually keeping the nervous system away from optimal function? Experience. So, you know, that, that is a primary focus of what not just me, but a lot of chiropractors do. So we're not, we're not moving bones and joints, and our effect is not purely physical because your body's so intricately designed. It's actually a holistic, uh, effect that impacts, you know, physical body, brain, emotions, and as well as the physiology, as you mentioned. So it's very important when going into birth and thinking about pregnancy and birth that, that we make sure that part of our body is optimized and working well because we don't always have a conscious connection to it. Doesn't mean it's not there and doesn't mean it doesn't need help.

Yeah, it's so true. One of the most impressive chiros that I've ever met in my life is Joe Dispenza. Dr. Joe Dispenza is doing incredible work now with helping people to make those intrinsic changes within their system, but not just physiologically. I mean, he does work a lot with disease, knees and things, but he uses the art of meditation, um, to help people to make those internal changes and downregulating stress and giving the body the opportunity to reconfigure itself. He studied, he studied the placebo effect. When you think you're being fixed, your body responds accordingly, that sort of stuff. And he wrote more recently, Becoming Supernatural, and his work is being studied worldwide now. He's really, and I think it's that chiropractic lens that sees the body as a whole system. Whereas medicine tends to cut it up and we have specialists for this and specialists for that. But it's all connected, isn't it? Absolutely. Yeah. So what do you see are the biggest issues that, say, a pregnant woman would come to you with that would be worth balancing out? Oh, that's—

yeah, there's so much in play. And it's, again, I want to change the narrative from, all right, how do we fix what's going on to how do we set you up for the best outcome for your pregnancy. Yeah, cool. Um, what's important to remember is what you do in your pregnancy is inherently impacting the child even before they're born.

Yeah, no pressure, people.

Yeah. And so, um, you're not only priming your body to be prepared, but guess what? Your child is getting primed before you've even met them, right? And I can't emphasize that enough. And so You know, when I work with people, and I, I'd love to put some research to it, and I know Tracey Anderson Askew, you, you bummed— you poked me and said you should definitely do it. But I have so much anecdotal, um, data here in my office of the difference chiropractic makes to these women and their birth outcomes. More often than not, they have the birth outcome that they originally desired. With less intervention.

Yeah.

Um, and it just allows your body to sink into its natural rhythm. And what I would say is, let's get your body as a— through pregnancy in the best state. And more importantly, and my biggest driver for pregnant women, is let's get you more confident and believing in the full capacity of your body. So you totally trust it when the time comes. Yeah, it's not going to let you down and you're going to feel confident because your body is not just an expression of the physical, it's an expression of the mental and the emotional state. And I do meet a lot of— I did meet a lot of couples going through pregnancy for the first time being really anxious and being really worried about what could go wrong, as opposed to priming for what could go amazingly well. Um, and that's not just necessarily belief system. That could be a function of a stressed out nervous system.

Mm-hmm. Yeah. Stress is the culprit, really. Correct. That comes in many forms, and it's one of the biggest things that will upset the balance of the body because you, you go from, you know, functioning to into survival and all of your internal resources gets redirected in that way. And that changes the biochemistry. It changes everything quite significantly. Absolutely. Absolutely. I often say to women though, you know, because we can get stressed about being stressed in pregnancy and that's not helpful either. Stress is actually a good thing for the body. It juices it up. You know, it's like a nice supercharge. It's staying in stress. That's the problem. It's not. You know, having a shit day at work and coming home and relaxing and, you know, debriefing and unloading and all of that. That's fine. It's when you're in a consistently, you know, activated, hyperactivated state. All of those valuable resources are moving into survival and not just normal functioning.

Yeah. Yeah. And, and, um, If you don't mind me adding, Tracey, going off that, stress shows up in ways people don't realize, and particularly through pregnancy. Um, a lot of things get normalized, and I often see, you know, there's definitely a wait-and-see approach when dealing with, you know, obstetricians, um, things like that. And, and hold on, you've, you've got a time, you've got a window where you can help with that. So, you know, if your baby's breech or, or sitting on one side or, you know, you're getting pain, that's not a normal— that doesn't have to be a normal experience of pregnancy, and that's actually just a function of stress, right? And, and when you stress, things tighten up, and then the baby doesn't have room to move. So, uh, a lot of this people don't even consider is impacting their child, and yeah, priming your child without you intentionally doing it into a stress state. Throughout pregnancy, and then which is likely to impact the birth.

Mm-hmm. Very interesting. Um, last year when I did my clinical training for my hypnotherapy, um, part of my, um, work was to do some cases, and I chose 3 pregnant women, and we went into the subconscious with the question, you know, what is going to get in the way of this woman being able to birth calmly, gently, lovingly, under all circumstances, which is the goal that I have for all of my families. And it was so It was so very interesting what came out of each one of those sessions. Every one of them was a sort of psychosocial belief system, pattern of thought, feeling, and behavior that was now coming to the reckoning of— whilst when we learn behaviors, patterns of behavior, they were relevant at the time in adapting and surviving, but when you go through something as significant as having a baby, they become maladaptive and they're no longer working for you. And so So working with some of those emotional stresses can be really, really helpful. And chiropractic does that a little bit too, doesn't it? Tell us a bit about that.

Yeah, absolutely. And so when we, when we talk about stress and how does chiropractic help it, well, we're actually trying to rewire a nervous system to operate, to change from a level of stress and then operate from a state of ease or parasympathetic state as a primary state to then ideal, ideal conditions for birth. Yeah. Um, we are— I'm gonna just say this, right? Every one of us is living through a lens of some form of emotional pattern and stress from our childhood. We all are.

Even if you had a good childhood.

Yep, yep. And it's not about whether it's objectively good. Yeah, it's, it's how you perceive that experience. And, and what tends to happen is that's really important. That first 5 years, at the very least, is so essential for bedding in patterns. And so if there's maladaptive patterns, then that starts to, um, translate later in life unless you do the work to actually bring that up to the surface, like what you do with the hypnobirthing and what the nervous system, you know, can do and what it is capable of changing. All of that, it's the right sort of awareness and input in order to, to, to get that out. So, um, 95% of my work is, is stress-based and how stress manifests in the subconscious part of the nervous system. Yeah, that impacts us. And when it's subconscious, we don't even know it's there, and it needs to be brought to the surface so that, that it, it no longer puts us in a pattern of staying in stress, as you so, so beautifully mentioned before. And that's the key. Stress is good, particularly when that, you know, part parts of the birthing process, you do need a sympathetic sort of shift to get things going. But yes, you also need access to the other side of the nervous system that helps you relax too. So, you know, they're both essential. We just need both of them working, um, in the same way. And so that's, that's the big, big focus, not just, um, actually most of my clients, but particularly, um, through pregnancy and then afterwards. As well.

So what can someone expect going to have a session with you or somebody like you? Yeah. What's the experience like for them?

Yeah, absolutely. Look, I'm not conventional by any means. So whatever people—

You on the fringes, Bilal.

That's the way I am, right?

I'm having a party on the fringes. I've been on the fringes for my life.

And it's because we have a big purpose and we have a big driver. And I can see how we can help people. And so that, that's the biggest driver for me. I, I, I can function to try and fix you just like any other practitioner does, but I, I always ask, is that fundamentally changing your life and is that making a bigger impact? And more often than not, segmentalizing your health does not work like that. So when you come and see me, we, we go through a really thorough check and I get to know you and I figure out if you're in the right space. I figure out, cool, what is it that you want to achieve and not just get rid of. I often ask, what do you want to gain from this process? Where do you want to get to? Um, so I do really thorough checks of the nervous system using, you know, um, a lot of technical data, including, um, a suite of neurological scanning tools that are electronic that pick up what's happening in the background, which includes things like heart rate variability. And Tracey, you might already know the, the heart rate variability in pregnancy and how impacts with, with, um, you know, the, the whole process. So we look at your baseline and we'll say, okay, where is your nervous system really at? And then what does it need to get it back to, you know, the best possible state? So, you know, we'll dive into the physical, but I might dive into the mental and emotional stuff as well. And then we, I carve out a little plan for that person based on their findings, and we look at, okay, how do we get your, your goals, and how do we tick those boxes? And in the case of pregnancy, Often how do we, how do we get you to the point where your birth, you get your number one birth planning goal and that's, that, that becomes the reality.

Nice.

Yeah, it's lovely.

A bit of that. Sounds very appealing. Um, tell us a little bit now, because I've had a lot of experience both with osteos and chiros who work in this field of, um, watching really unsettled babies go and and have some work done and it just, they turn the corner. You know, you have to appreciate that when a baby's in utero, it's pretty squishy in there. There's certain compressions and, you know, forces at play, even though they're in a sac of waters. And then of course they go through the birth process and their little systems are, you know, their skeletal system's very soft and the nervous system's attached to the skeletal system and it's very easy. For, well, for when a baby's born, you know, they've got, once they're earthside, their whole system has got to adjust to being in life outside the womb. And so there's a lot of transition and change, and then they've got to go through digestion. Watching them squirm and do poos and things is fascinating. They make all sorts of gorgeous sounds. And so a lot of that adjustment for them can be really enhanced and supported through getting treatment. Tell us a bit about how that works and what it what it looks like for the baby.

I love, love, love working with babies. Like pregnancy, I love babies. I love how, how adaptive they are. Yeah. And so one thing people don't realize is how often their system is changing, right? And so people seem to be surprised when I say I'm adjusting babies or treating babies regularly, like multiple times a week. And I did it with my children. That was a learning curve when I our daughter, our number one, I was adjusting them 3, 4 times a week. Why? Was she broken? No, their, their system is needing to adapt. They've just come Earthside and they, they're needing to learn really quickly, and it's happening subconsciously. And they, they can be influenced by external forces very easily. The system is still learning, it can get overwhelmed quickly. So it doesn't mean it doesn't need traumatic stuff to get there, but it can be something really simple that their body just needs a little bit of connection and, and gentle work, and their body goes, great, I can readapt again to the new level that I'm going at. And so babies are amazing and they're adaptable. And I want to— you said something really pertinent before, when they come earthside and then there's a lot happening, they need to reference to a point to regulate it, which is the parent. That's right. So mums and dads out there, they're regulating to you. And guess what? Your nervous system determines how well they're going to regulate.

No pressure, Bilal.

Yeah, yeah. And the reality is you're all doing your best. That every parent is doing amazing, and I'll never judge a parent for their efforts.

Of course not.

But what people don't realize, and this is just a lack of education in, in the field of health and well-being, that your nervous system is this, the set point for your child for, for several years. And particularly mum, not that dad doesn't, isn't influencing it, but it— mums are going to be the greatest influence because that's how we're biologically designed. And so if you're strung out, you're stressed out, you're exhausted, we've all been there, right? That's in unintentionally and subconsciously you, you are priming and seeding to your baby, hey, this is the set point. So I always encourage kids to come in, or babies to come in with parents, both, you know, the system checked. Um, because, uh, and I, I just, I like to say things when I'm passionate, so I don't mean to offend any particular people, but, you know, there's this concept of co-regulation. Or then helping a child, especially when they get toddlers, to regulate. And there's all these social media stuff that's just fucking crap. And I'm just going to say that, right? A child doesn't—

feel free. Yeah.

And a child doesn't need help to regulate. It's an inherent inborn system in them, right? And so when they have a lack of regulation, doesn't mean it's not— it doesn't happen. You know, we've all seen the toddlers or the babies that just cry and cry or, you know, can't settle. That's not because they can't regulate, it's because their nervous system is harboring more stress than what it should be handling. And so that process through bodywork, whether it's chiro or osteo, but people really love working with babies, will be able to just give it a little nudge to reset at a new point where it then settles really quickly. And that's why you don't need to train a kid to do that. They have it inbuilt. We just need to allow it to thrive.

Yeah, yeah. That's, yeah. I mean, that connection between the mother and the baby is so biologically necessary and real and solid that it makes sense that how we are is going to influence how they are. And even, you know, things like temperature regulation, you know, if the baby's cold, the mother's body heats up. And if the baby's hot, the mother's body cools down like this.

Right.

We are primates. That's why babies, when they're born, they want to attach. They want to be primarily on their mothers, but they'll be happy with other people too at different times. But there's a lot of pressure on mums sometimes in those early days and weeks. And, um, the baby, you know, tends to settle the best when they're on the mother. But if it's all on the mother, it can be too much for her too. It's got to be shared as well.

Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. And, and You know, there's, you know, always opportunities to make that process easier. Mums do it tough. I've seen it. It's— they do such an amazing job. Yeah. And, and now the, the big— is such a big influence on their kids. And I love that relationship and, and how important it is to children. And what you want to do is also look after yourself as a mum, because it, it's often the case that the mum is the glue and puts everyone else before herself. Yeah, um, and, and your child really needs you, um, at your best as well. And so, you know, a lot of things that I see throughout after birth and, and as a child grows is, um, you know, certain stresses or behaviors that kind of get normalized when you see, you know, go through a medical paradigm and pediatricians. And, um, there's often this, all right, we'll just— it's normal, let's just—

they'll grow out of it, they'll grow out of it. Yeah, the old— they don't grow out of it.

It's just stress nervous system. And, and more, most importantly to this point, you know, the mother is the happiest when they see their child thriving.

Yeah, of course.

And, and, you know, I can, I know how stressful it is when you can see there's something up with your child, or you just, you, you can see. And, and in those moments, trust your gut. You know, you're often the best judge, even more so than, than us practitioners. Hey, you know, if your gut is telling you, you know, I reckon my child, you know, is thriving or not thriving, it's not a personal slight against you. Hey, you just want to do— you want to see your child thrive, you know. We can actually help with a lot of this stuff and save you lost sleep and, and, you know, all the stresses around that.

I've seen so many babies turn the corner with this stuff. I remember I had a GP, gorgeous woman, in my class, and, um, she had a really unsettled baby. And I'm just— I can't remember how many I can't remember how many months the baby was. Um, but it was still, you know, still quite an unsettled baby and she was really struggling. And I said, you know, you probably should go and see an osteo or a chiropractor. I don't believe in those things. Anyway, the next week she came to me and she said, give me the name of one and make sure they're good. All right. And it just changed her life. So she had to herself move from that medical paradigm of how you learn to see see a body to, through just completely different filters. And the beautiful thing was she went to a really good practitioner that I knew, and they were able to help her to understand, um, stuff that she just made total sense to her. Like, it doesn't require a big leap of faith. But one of the things that can be surprising, I've certainly seen it when I've taken my babies and you look at, you know, they've got their hands on their head and things, and you think, what the hell am I paying for here? You don't look like you're doing anything. It's a very subtle process. Can you just talk to that a bit?

Yeah, um, I want to use an analogy I often use or talk to with clients, right? Um, there's often this perception that if, if care or, or whatever you're receiving in terms of treatment is um, more intense, harder, it seems to be working better.

Yeah, right. No pain, no gain.

Correct. And, and we can accept the premise that we can operate one of these things with light touch.

Yeah.

And we can swipe and tap and it opens up applications and you don't have to bang on it. That's right. Now Here's what I would ask: is your body or is your phone smarter and more intelligent?

Yeah, bad question to ask because I know a lot of people who aren't as smart as their phone.

And you know what, Tracey Anderson Askew, everyone answers that correctly and everyone knows it's your body is more intelligent. 100%. When we talk with babies, they don't need big, big input. Input, their body and their nervous system is really primed and really receptive. Our nervous system is, is primarily sensory. It's, it's a lot of its function is devoted to sensory. So it's got so much information and input designed for that, so it doesn't need a lot of force. And so kids just have this inherent adaptable mechanism that if you give the right kind of force and focus in the right spots, then, then it starts to unwind.

And that's that. So describe that more for us, Bilal. What does that actually look like?

So, you know, for me, a lot of my contacts with kids are just really, really light touches. And, and I, I promise you, that's all I do. Um, what I'm focused on is how can— which areas of their body and their nervous system will bring about the biggest change with the least amount of force. What I do means, uh, you know, with those light touches, we're actually tapping into what the body cues is telling me. So I'm not necessarily the one fixing. I'm looking at the body and I'm looking at certain things and I'm saying, okay, this is what the body's giving me feedback on, and it's telling me, great, these are the areas I want you to look at and take contact. So it doesn't necessarily mean that it's the area where there's a problem or where there's a localized issue. And, and even extending to adults, my treatment is the same with them, but it's— I don't take contacts at points where there's pain. I take contacts at points where the body will create the biggest change. And that's a whole philosophical difference.

Yeah, it is, isn't it?

And really, your question is based upon the current understanding that there's a, there's a fix-it treat kind of mentality in the world. And fixing and treating only just restores you to the prior state before you got hurt, which actually was a state that got you into that hurt or dysfunctional position in the first place. So when, when we change our focus from, uh, what's, what's hurt or what needs fixing to how do we get well and how do we feel well, and in the way of a child, how do we allow them to express at their best and meet their milestones and, and make sure that, you know, they tick all those boxes. That's a whole different lens.

Yeah. When I was, um, a breathing retrainer and educator, I'd work with people who had breathing dysfunction, like people with asthma, anxiety, panic, snoring, sleep apnea, mouth breathing children, and even athletes who wanted to get more out of their bodies because the, the breathing system is so fundamental to everything. In the body. And one of the, um, same sort of ideas that you're describing there that I had to help people to do, they, they'd say, oh, give me breathing exercises so I can fix it. It's like, no, there's nothing to fix. Your body knows how to breathe. What we're trying to do is to create the right conditions for you to get more out of each breath. And that was just, you know, that automatic, you know, autonomic response requires nothing from you. However, your posture is influencing your breathing. When you have your mouth open and you mouth breathe, that's changing your breathing. So, you know, good posture, close your mouth, allow your breath to happen. Don't force it. We're not trying to force the air in or push the air out. And then let's just invite it to slow down a little bit. And then, you know, there was work required to help people increase their CO2 tolerance in the blood to then help them to get more out of a smaller breath so they were less likely to overbreathe. But it was that same concept. Of the body knows how to do this, but there's a few things that you're doing which is making it harder for your body. Right. And it sounds like you're talking about the same idea. And, and this is important stuff, I think, more than ever now. And, you know, I talked earlier about being on the fringes, but, um, a lot of these allied health professions that do tend to work more systemically to really look at causal factors rather than just treating symptoms— medicine's got a lot of catching up to do on that account. Medicine's incredibly good with pharmacological support and, you know, surgery and things like that, but they can be very blind to looking at what's creating these health issues. Correct. So if you're out there listening, you know, and thinking about these issues, especially being pregnant, it's a really special time in your life. And have a think about, you know, how you can support your body to be in the optimal state. To welcome the birth process and hopefully with as little fuss as possible where you don't actually need help or need people to interfere or intervene on your behalf and the baby's behalf. Yeah. Is there anything else you'd like to finish us off with, Bilal, around the conversation we've had?

You know, you, you've, we've said a lot of stuff and there's some really a lot of information in there. I said this in our last interview, and it applies in this instance. Um, your, your bodies are made for this. And I, I'd love to see more people connected to the rhythm of their body so they know when it's functioning optimally versus when it's not. Yeah.

Um, how do they know that? Sorry, I've got to ask that question.

Tap into some resources, and, and there's no one way You know, we can start with breathing. You know, how are you breathing? Is it expansive and open? That's always a gateway for all my clients to start. Is your breathing expansive, open, and from your diaphragm, or is it short and sharp and kind of coming up in the chest? Those two things reveal what state you're in and how you're priming your body. What happens when you're focusing on your breathing and then you think about stress, something stressful? What does that do to your breathing? So you are constantly changing and adapting and your body's giving you cues all the time. You know, start learning what that is for each individual and start with breath. If you have no idea where to start, start there. You know, am I breathing fluidly, openly? Am I breathing in through my nose? Am I breathing in my mouth breathing? What do those do to my posture, my thoughts, my feelings, my experience of the world? Because they're actually all interconnected. You know, and, and I want— I'd love for everyone to start thinking about how to, in, in the realm of pregnancy and birthing, how to just get so freaking excited and get the best outcome for your little family and, and do whatever you need to do and surround yourself with the people who match that energy and that goal with you.

Well said.

Thank you.

Thank you. If you want to learn more about breathing, I've got one of my episodes is on breathing because it has been, you know, an area I was running the Better Breathing Clinic here in Canberra for probably over 8 years, um, working with all sorts of things. And I learned so much in that time of the power of the breath and the influence it has on that sort of nervous system response and everything else in the body. So our bodies are designed to be in balance and find their way back to optimal functioning. But sometimes we need to give them a little bit of a hand. So a big thanks to Bilal and his expertise and his great passion for the work that he does. Yeah, have a think about those issues that we brought up today. And it's an important time. Gift yourself with a little bit of bodywork and finding a practitioner who can really support you in that optimal optimization process, particularly those performance-enhancing feel-good hormones. The more of those we get, the more manageable birth becomes. So that's great. Worth it.

Amazing.

Thank you, Bilal, and thanks everybody for listening in. And, um, yeah, it's beautiful to have you. Take care. Bye.