Pregnancy Yoga in Romsey & the New Forest | A Maternity Photographer’s Guide to Preparing for Newborn Life
For my second maternity leave, I spent a lot of time practising postnatal yoga with my daughter and the brilliant Rosie Gibson of Autumn Rose, a Romsey and New Forest-based pregnancy and postnatal yoga teacher. As a maternity and family photographer in Romsey and the New Forest, I see first-hand how important it is for parents to feel relaxed and connected with their babies, and pregnancy yoga does exactly that.
Practising yoga with my baby helped me reconnect with my body and gave me an opportunity to fill my cup while also bonding with my lovely baby, who grew to love the classes as much as I did. That sense of calm and connection is the same feeling I aim to create during my maternity photography sessions in Hampshire and my child-led family photography in the New Forest area.
As a second-time mum, I felt way less guilty finding time to do things for myself, but practically it is quite hard to fit in with two little ones, so finding this class was a total blessing. It was great for physical recovery and also for precious sanity when you are sleep-deprived.
About Rosie: Empowering Motherhood in Hampshire with Autumn Rose
LE: Hi Rosie, thanks so much for coming to chat with me today. Can you introduce yourself and tell me about your work with pregnancy and baby yoga in Romsey and the New Forest?
RG: Hi, I'm Rosie, I am a midwife, and I am co-owner of Autumn Rose. I've been a midwife for three years, qualified. And I started Autumn Rose about then as well.
LE: What first drew you to supporting parents during pregnancy and early parenthood?
RG: So when I qualified as a midwife, I wanted to go into finding out how I can get more into the holistic side and offer that more in pregnancy and for mums and babies. And I just absolutely love yoga.
It changed my life. So can I introduce that and offer that in pregnancy and for mums and babies.
And then all of a sudden everything just really came together. And now I offer it in Romsey and Lyndhurst, and also in Havant, through pregnancy, therapeutic yoga classes and birth preparation, and for mums and babies, just to come and have a really lovely time, basically.
LE: Well, it is a lovely time and I can attest to that having been there. Do you work with anyone else in Autumn Rose?
RG: My mum and I work together. It's a funny story, really. When I came to getting my qualification as a midwife, I then very quickly went on to get my qualification for my yoga. And my mum, at that time, was wanting to leave her permanent role in mental health and wanted to massage more. So we sat on the sofa one evening having dinner and went: oh my god, let's just work together! And then we sat that whole night writing down on a piece of paper, like, what we're going to call my business, like, what names we going to do? And I've still got this scrap piece of paper of all these really random names. We were just throwing around different ideas of names and then all of a sudden we just went, let's just call it like what we like to call ourselves. And my mum likes to be called Autumn and I like being called Rose. And then that was it. We went, well, it's Autumn Rose, then isn't that it? And we just went, let's not try and make it anything else but what it is yeah. Done.
Pregnancy Yoga
LE: Okay, so pregnancy yoga. Do you think you could just summarise for me what the physical benefits of pregnancy yoga are for expecting mums?
RG: Mental health is one of the biggest benefits. Anxiety and depression are reduced through doing pregnancy yoga and can significantly drop the rates and levels. It helps bonding with the baby, so the connections that are made instantly from just having a hand onto bump and holding. The oxytocin that's going through is really good, so it really increases bonding and attachment before these babies are even born, which is amazing.
For physical health reasons, obviously, the woman practising yoga, it's helping a physical body stretch and release, it helps babies be best optimal positions, as, you know, further going through the pregnancy
Massively helps sleep in pregnancy. Like, the biggest thing, actually. So I struggle to wake people up at the end of yoga, sometimes, especially in my recent classes. I'm like, “Hello!”. Sleep, anxiety, reducing depression, getting the babies in the best positions, attachment and bonding, increasing the oxytocin, lowering cortisone, and adrenaline. Amazing. So many amazing things that come with it. And generally, just increasing your mood and it's just so lovely.
LE: So that probably leads on quite neatly for helping with birth prep…
RG: I believe, as a midwife, that everybody deserves to have some type of birthing education and preparation. Unfortunately, not everybody can have it or has access to it. So I wanted to include it for those that can have it through me, can get it.
I welcome anybody who wants to find out more information, knowledge, education, physical moves, and I do like a whole range of things, but it's completely altered to what that person would like. So what type of delivery they might be thinking about, whether that's a vaginal delivery, a c-section, whatever is happening, I will go through, sort of with them at the beginning in a really chill, relaxed vibe, we literally sit down on yoga mats and big fluffy cushions, have some nice water, a cup of tea, and just sit, relax, get to know the couple, or the family, whoever's there, and go through what they already are thinking or no, and sometimes that's nothing, like, literally.
Some people will say “I have no idea, Rose. I'm just really scared. I don't even want to talk about it.” And that's quite normal for some people. So I just open it up and then we go through in a really gentle way of what things might look like, what it can be, expected, and then I dive a bit deeper into what they really specific things that I can offer them or teach them that can help them through that moment. So from that day that I meet them, however many weeks they are, we'll figure out what's going on at that moment. So I'll do a little bit of pregnancy yoga, do some stretches, then we go into quite a lot of evidence based research from my midwifery role.
And then I really involve the birthing partner. Sometimes there's two of them, sometimes there's just one, whoever they want it to be, and I teach them exactly what they can do in those moments when that person or women is needing them and what actually they can do not getting in the way and just to do everything that they can to do with bio-mechanics, which is getting the birthing person or mum into different positions to help release different ligaments and muscles in the moment, exactly there, they're like, oh, my God, this is just so nice, and I love it. And that birthing partner is just so excited being able to do different moves. Whether it's pressure, massage, making different noises, physical touch, all of this stuff, so it's really nice.
We finish with a yoga nidra, so a relaxation for them both and just bonding in with that baby in the moment, and just really them taking in, oh, my gosh, this isn't going to be long. You should do it from sort of like 36 weeks onwards, but try to get in that sort of week of 36 because babies can arrive earlier than expected! Sometimes we have some tears because it's already overwhelming, because we're bringing up a lot of stuff. And actually, if ladies and partners have had previous babies and deliveries, that's a really big thing, when you go through it again, talking about what's happened before and actually that worked, or that didn't work. So it's just being very gentle around those conversations. But it feels really good to be able to do it as well in an environment that's very calm, so you can do whatever you need to be in that moment. A lot of the birth partners just need to lie down on the floor, and we just sit there while we're having a chat. It's great.
LE: Oh, that sounds lovely. I'd love to have done that to prepare for my births. Is there a best time to start pregnancy yoga?
RG: So, ideally, if you already practice yoga, it's just continuing. So if you are practising yoga pre- pregnancy, just go, go, go, go, keep it going. But I say from sort of 12 to 14 weeks, generally, is when the best time to start is if you haven't before. A lot of ladies will have that anxiety around waiting for that 12 week scan and things anyway, so, I want people to feel in a place that they are ready to do, you know, do some movement and be ready. But the earliest, really, that you can get into it, and they're comfortable to get into it, especially if you, you know, you do move quite a lot and do things anyway, start. The more yoga and practice you can get in, the better it's going to be for you, especially then going into postnatal. What I find from my ladies that will literally practice every week, I just see the difference within month to month, how they're changing, and then it's like they're just doing it with their eyes closed. And then they come back with a baby often, and I'm like, oh, you know what you're doing? But yeah, you can start it early.
Postnatal & Baby Yoga
LE: In what ways can yoga help with postnatal recovery and bonding with your baby?
RG: Yoga helps with post natal recovery. And I'd like to say it's different for every single person because of the journey or birth that they've had. But yoga, specifically, I genuinely believe can help everybody if they're up for it, and would like to do it. I think a lot of people think it's just the movement, it's just the flow, the physical positions, all of these things. There is so much more to yoga and that really can just be the breathing. So, when you're breathing, this is massive because it's helping through all the abdominal muscles that have stretched and have opened and have increased and a hell of a lot of ways and pregnancy. So after, when you're doing yoga, basically, the idea of it is that it's supporting and really nurturing the body to come back to a way that it needs to be on that specific day. So you'll hear a lot, probably people saying, like, bouncing back, don't they? I can't stand it. Bouncing back is not what happens. However if you're practising yoga, day to day or weekly, your body is going to be connecting back into the muscles, the ligaments, the breath work, tuning in. So you're starting to replenish everything that was completely being taken away from you in pregnancy. It not only massively, again, helps you mentally, because you're physically there, but your brain is altering into the moment of, I'm here, I'm reconnecting, I'm rebuilding. The movements, when that comes in, is strengthening, and it's really bringing everything back together, in a supportive way and not forcing it, because that's we'll do the complete opposite and just take it all away from you again. So physically building strength, massively through the pelvic floor as well. So it just gives you that massive head start postnatally. So pelvic floor strength, mental strength, the physical strength, yeah, mainly, but literally pulling that all together.
The benefit of post natal yoga is beyond and then going into how it supports bonding. Babies are either underneath you, beside you or on you in my classes. So they're close at all times. When we start we actually tuning into the baby's breath with the mum so that they get into that calm rhythm together, and you'll find when they do that the babies are generally a lot more calm because they're going, oh, my mum's happy. So they don't need to feel like they're under threat at all. And they're like having gentle hand movements on the babies, sweeping them across. We do a lot of the sensory with scarfs that we use, bringing them up and down and around, which babies love to look at. And a lot of the time, when you're hearing the mums breathe and then just smiling, laughing, whoever they're with, the baby's just looking up, you're doing that, for a pure hour. How lovely to be looking up at the mum, just like flowing around. The babies are bonding through the hormones you're releasing, coming straight into them, looking, if we smile when a baby sees us and you're staring at them that's beautiful communication. So it's at an hour just completely dedicated to that mum and baby purely for that.
LE: Is there anything that you notice as in parents that regularly go to baby yoga?
RG: Yes, I would say, once they start coming for a little while, and they get used to me or my mum and whatever's happening, they just genuinely cannot wait to come through the door, sit down, have a massive natter, they are just happier, generally can't wait to come in, dump the prams, whatever's going on. And they just are happier and the feedback I get is, I just can't wait, I can't wait to come back through the door. I feel so much happier. I just feel so much happier. It doesn't matter how I am. I like, when I'm here, I'm fine. I hear that one quite a lot. Which is all we ever wanted, was for whoever it is to come through and just go, oh, I'm at Autumn Rose that is all I ever wanted and this happens weekly now. With first time parents I noticed they're more confident. Their confidence has grown just with their babies and with their selves and with their bodies, and that's really nice to see. So I say, yeah, happiness, confidence, sleep.
Slowing Down & Presence
LE: What does being present look like in real life with a newborn?
RG: I think this looks different for every single person being presently because for me that could be being present, like looking just feeling really calm, really being aware of everything that's happening around me, but for a new mum or anybody else that could be actually feeling really uptight, but knowing because I could what's in front of them, what they're going to be doing next. So I think with a new baby being present and what I like to teach is capturing mini moments, which is what I say to people, whether that is literally five seconds or hearing your own breath while you've got your baby absolutely screaming. But you're just thinking, oh my gosh, this is really crazy. And I'm so stimulated and overwhelmed right now. I'm just gonna actually hear my own breath for the first time today properly and I'm just gonna take three deep breaths and I'm gonna get back into touch with what I need, and that's how I tried to teach it. For me, I'm really present in knowing I need to take a moment whether that's something they're doing physically with their fingers. So like hold your fingertips with your thumb. “Oh, I'm feeling that right now. I'm present.” Yeah. That's fine. That's a mini moment. You've gone, that's calmed me for five seconds and I'm back into it now. But I don't know, how about you. Do you find there's things that help with you, or that helped with you being present in it?
LE: I think that being able to, like, breathe and kind of ground yourself and you're back to your self does really help. I do that when I'm taking photos as well. So that then you can notice whether I'm doing it for my own family or for other families. can notice those small moments of connection for others and from like myself. And actually yoga does really help with that as well because you're in that calmer state.
RG: Yeah, I think, and it's the practice of it and you might find you obviously find that as well, like when you're doing whether it's photography, whatever, there's you can literally capture the moment and you just focus on that for however long that's going to take and then you can zoom back out of it and go, that was amazing. I was present then. And now I'm back out into the world. Oh, I love that for us.
Practical Support for Parents
Golden Breath technique
Take a soft breath in the fill the lungs and exhale with a paper thin gap through your lips and slowly blow out so your lungs are completely empty. Tiny pause before next breath in and be aware that lungs are empty. Start again soft and silky and envision a golden thread in through the nose into lungs and blowing out - can be golden honey. A cross between visualisation and breathing.
LE: What would you say to a parent who feels overwhelmed in the early weeks?
RG: It is Ok to be overwhelmed and understandable - is there anything that helps you feel even 5% less overwhelmed and lets focus on doing those things even if it is for just 5 mins a day, breathing techniques, go outside. If you need to put baby down to make a tea, do it. Yoga, watch this space
LE: How can parents invest in their wellbeing without feeling guilty?
RG: Well Autumn Rose, obviously, but linking back to those mini-moments I would suggest: a walk on their own, cup of tea without holding the baby, music on and dancing. Allowing yourself to do something without the baby can be so beneficial. With our post natal massage you can bring your baby or leave them with someone, as we recognise that some parents want to always be close to their baby.
Local Community
LE: Where can families find your classes and how can they book?
RG: At Lyndhurst we offer:
Pregnancy and post natal massage and return massage (anyone who has been to Autumn Rose can go at a reduced cost)
Havant we offer the same, although the yoga classes are 1-1.
Romsey 1-1 or 2-1 classes only - watch this space 👀
The power of presence for yoga and family photography
One of the things that really stayed with me from talking to Rosie was the idea of “mini moments”, small pauses to breathe, notice your body, and connect with your baby. As a maternity and family photographer based in Romsey and the New Forest. The way I make photos with families and mothers is to slow down and connect with the people in the frames, allow them to connect with each other and be able to capture those beautiful in between moments together. The most meaningful images happen when families slow down and simply focus on each other.
In pregnancy, slowing down might be a quiet moment with your hands on your bump, thinking about the baby you’re about to meet. These are the same calm, connected moments we create during my maternity photography sessions in Romsey and the New Forest, where the focus is on how this season feels rather than how it looks.
My relaxed newborn photography approach is completely baby-led, allowing time for cuddles, breathers, and those real interactions Rosie talks about in her postnatal yoga classes. My family photography is also child led when that once tiny baby is now charging around at high speed, we are all present in their joy and chaos.
Having supportive local services, from pregnancy yoga in Romsey, to postnatal groups, to natural family photography in the New Forest, helps parents feel grounded and seen during a huge life transition.
Speaking to Rosie reminds me that none of us need perfect conditions to be present. A few slow breaths holding the hand of your toddler, or a hand resting on your bump is enough. Those are the moments that become our memories, and the ones worth documenting.
If you feel ready to book your maternity photo shoot or family photo shoot you can contact me here.
About the author
I’m Libby, a maternity, newborn and family photographer based in Romsey and working across the New Forest and Hampshire. I specialise in relaxed, baby-led photography on film and digital, creating natural images that focus on connection and real family life.
