Monday, 17 December 2012

JAMU UCINALY

One of our specialty that made us different and distinctive from others is, we did provide our own custom "jamu" which consist of "soreh, inai, kunyit kunci, halia, cekor, lempoyang, asam jawa, gula merah, and madu. Feel free to purchase this if u want it.!

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BENGKUNG UCINALY

Our bengkung is a long bengkung with 13cm and very useful especiall after delivery of baby which will help to prevent “wind” from entering our body and keep us warm. 

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Sunday, 16 December 2012

Confinement Practices, Practical or Irrational

Confinement practices range from the practical (having ginger in your food to rid the body of gas) to the downright unhygienic (not having a bath for a month). Should they be strictly adhered to or are they just a bunch of old wives' tales? There were a lot of confinement practices in the past which may not apply today. For example, mothers were told not to sit in an air-conditioned room. But if you think about it even the labour room is air-conditioned. What about the people living in Cameron Highlands or Beijing in the winter? Does it mean they have to move to a hotter country or location? These are some of the things that you have to think about - whether they are true or just myths. If you ask me I would say most of them are just myths. The most important aspects of the confinement period are your lifestyle and your rejuvenation. The first seven to 10 days is the crucial period. The confinement period is the time for the mother to rest and rejuvenate. In fact confinement practices don't just cover rest and nutrition; it also covers your lifestyle. In the old days most women worked on the farm, perhaps planting padi or working in the orchard. During confinement they actually had the time to rest. And those days you needed somebody to help you boil the water for your bath and also to bathe the baby. That's why they had a confinement nanny (pui yuet). In the past women needed a confinement nanny to help them do things like boil the water and do the washing but now you have a water heater, a washing machine and disposable diapers. So you don't need a confinement nanny anymore. Importantly, the confinement period has to be relaxing and a wonderful experience for the mother. It cannot be a matter of hiding yourself in the room and not being able to go out. That is not the right way to do it. Of course it's better to stay indoors but there is no solid evidence that if you go out there will be adverse effects. Look at the westerners - they go out after delivering their babies! One of the confinement practices that may conflict with the doctor's advice is the consumption of alcohol. When you talk about Chinese confinement one of the main ingredients in food preparation is wine. I don't believe the woman in confinement should take alcohol but she can take rice wine which has been boiled till the alcohol content is completely evaporated. Only then do you use it in food preparation. Drinking rice wine (without the alcohol) or what is sometimes called "confinement water" will help reduce the water retention in the woman. However, these days you don't even have to drink all this because there is R/O (Reverse Osmosis) water and you also have good filtration systems - so you don't need to have the confinement water, you can just take the R/O water. Another thing we don't encourage (which used to be done in the past) is the practice of buying raw herbs and boiling them because herbs by nature are toxic. So it is better to get processed herbs. Herbs are still important for rejuvenation but make sure you get the processed type in capsule or extract form. One cannot dismiss age-old practices totally, even in the modern era with advances in medical care and evidence-based medicine. A lot of the confinement practices (more than 60%) are related to foods and food directly contributes to nutrition, which is important to everyone, more so after childbirth. After childbirth, a woman may feel weak, and this is likely to be due to a sudden withdrawal of "feel good" hormones as well as anaemia due to the blood lost during labour. Also, the stomach and bowels which were initially compressed by the pregnant womb, now suddenly expands because of the sudden decrease in the size of the womb. These organs swell up with air and fluid, hence the sensation of bloatedness or "wind". If we can understand this, we can appreciate why the foods that are prepared (containing ginger or black pepper) for the mother in confinement appears to correct the problem. Confinement food and herbal food are also medication. They try to replace the hormones so that the woman feels better. But too much hormones is not good either. When you have just delivered, your womb is very big, your ovaries are very big, everything is large and if you take too much hormones sometimes it can result in problems like bleeding or if there are fibroids they can start to grow. My advice is that you can take everything that is prescribed but take it in moderation. I don't think there is any effect to the baby if the mother is still breastfeeding while taking the herbal medications. I don't think they will be toxic to the baby. Even the alcohol with a lot of herbs in it - it's fine to drink as well but the way to minimise the transfer to the baby is by drinking it late at night after you're done breastfeeding baby for the day. Then you sleep till morning and say about six hours later when it's time to feed baby again, the alcohol would have washed out of your system. If you are very concerned and baby is not yet sleeping for six hours then give one feed by the bottle. But I usually tell my patients not to worry, they can have the herbal preparation because the actual amount of alcohol that is released in the breast milk is very little. I believe one should be selective about confinement practices. Practices that are outright irrational cannot possibly be beneficial to the woman. For example, the prohibition on having a bath and washing the hair. It is illogical not to put hygiene as the top priority. Keeping one's body clean by having regular showers is more likely to contribute to a quick recovery. The other irrational practice is the avoidance of fruits or vegetables. These foods are a good source of vitamins and fibre which would help ensure good bowel habits and faster recovery. As for the advice not to touch water, if you are immersing yourself in iced water, then yes, it will cause temperature changes in you but if you are just washing your hands with cold water it wouldn't make much difference. So I think this belief that the woman shouldn't touch water is just an old wives' tale. There's another irrational practice that prohibits a woman from drinking water. There's no problem with drinking water. It may not be so appropriate to drink soft drinks because your tummy is already gassy. But if you drink plain water or warm water I don't see how there's anything wrong with that. When a woman tells me that she can't drink water and she's very dehydrated and constipated, I tell her to drink a lot of red dates water because red dates has a high iron content. Or she can drink milk. Otherwise (if she is not drinking water or milk) she would be constipated and then the milk won't come if she's trying to nurse baby. There's some rationale behind some of the confinement practices. For example, if you take ginger and black pepper to get rid of the wind - yes, it's very logical. But to restrict your fluid, to believe that you cannot drink water and cannot shower - those, I think, are not appropriate in this age. There's no truth to these unusual confinement practices.

Benefits of floral bath

Floral baths are found in the different cultures of Malaysia - Malay, Chinese, Indian. The whys and wherefores of partaking in such rites are various. For example, a girl hoping to seek a life partner may resort to a session of mandi bunga, whilst another who has been plagued with misfortune hopes to expel bad mojo (or in local parlance, to buang suey). As a child, I recalled my mother taking floral baths and vigorously rubbing pomelo leaves between the palm of her hands before a game of mahjong! How effective are such baths are in achieving desired results? Does it really work, or could it be nothing more than a case of mind over matter? Could human beings be able to exert a tangible influence upon real life - simply through the power of conscious intention, unconscious intention, or through the assistance of spiritual beings? Whatever may result from taking a floral bath, its process and practice is deeply ingrained in the local psyche. It is a tradition and a habit that has been observed for many generations. Malaysians, regardless of age, are more likely to believe in the power of mandi bunga than to dismiss it outright. In any case, if all else fails, a mandi bunga episode would at least leave the person smelling sweet and looking fresh! A girl seeking a partner in marriage partakes in a floral bathing ceremony in the hope of catching a good and desirable husband. A bomoh (Malay medicine man or shaman) usually oversees such a ceremony. He begins by asking the maiden to carefully prepare the required ingredients that will be mixed with the bathwater. These ingredients are usually plant based and include different types of fragrant flowers, coconut leaves, betel leaves, betel nuts, limau purut (Citrus hystrix) and akar sintok (Cinnamomum sintok BI.). They are to be used together with other materials which include ibu lilin (wax), benang mentah (unprocessed thread), chalk and bedak sejuk (face powder made from rice grains).The ceremony begins with the bomoh weaving four strands of coconut leaves into a shape. Then the wax is melted with the thread used as a wick. When that has been prepared and put aside, eight pieces of limau purut (cut from four fruits), some limau purut leaves, seven types of flowers, akar sintok, four betel leaves rubbed with a little chalk, and some ripe betel are kneaded thoroughly and placed in a special vessel filled with water. The bomoh then recites an incantation over the prepared ingredients while sprinkling grains of uncooked glutinous rice around the maiden. After the incantation has been recited, the bomoh bathes the girl with the prepared liquid. (It should be mentioned here that the maiden is usually dressed in a sarong while the bathwater is poured over her, and the entire ceremony is conducted with a selected audience). Of course not all floral baths are used to ensnare husbands. Some purposes are more 'prosaic.' For example, one may indulge in a floral bath for no other reason than to refresh the mind and body, and to beautify the skin. Floral baths that use plants as the main ingredients are also believed to shield people from calamities and disasters as well as to exorcise bad fortune. Baths can be conducted by bomohs (for magical purposes), beauty salons (for cosmetic benefits) or self administered. Suffice it to say that the ritual of mandi bunga is good for all occasions.

try to compare chinese and malay confinement services?

The aim of confinement care is to nurse the mother’s body back to health. After childbirth, the mother’s body undergoes several physical changes. The uterus gradually shrinks back to its pre-pregnancy size, the volume of blood returns to normal, the hormone levels in the body changes, and may lead to postnatal blues and hair loss. During this period, the mother is required to adhere to a strict regime of postnatal diet and a long list of confinement care practices. The special care is for the body to heal the wounds, shrink the uterus, invigorate the blood, strengthen joints and muscles, and also regain the pre-pregnancy figure. The Chinese believe that the mother is extremely “deficient” from the loss of blood and energy. So there is strong emphasis on keeping the body warm and avoiding exposure to “wind” and “cooling” elements. This is evident in the ingredients used for the confinement food and also in confinement care practices. Postnatal mothers are urged to avoid contact with cold water and windy environments. Despite so, the well-known custom that new mother should not shower and wash their hair is not recommended by gynecologists and experts. Good hand washing and personal hygiene is essential to protect both the baby and mother. Postnatal bleeding and sweat provides excellent sites for bacteria and infections. Some recommend herbal baths with different types of leaves, and they have the effect of warming the body and improving blood circulation. The mother is advised against leaving the house, as her immunity is low. Air-conditioner and direct fan are also discouraged. The pores on her skin had opened up and the joints had loosened to prepare for the labor. Exposure to windy environment would create opportunities for “wind” to enter her body. Consequences are rheumatism, backache, arthritis and incontinence later in life. A good postnatal massage helps to regulate blood flow, alleviate “wind” and reduce water retention. It also helps strengthens the uterus and allows the womb to go back to its prenatal size and position. If the womb is not properly aligned, the mother will experience discomfort e.g. bad stomach cramps. The choice of whether to abide by the traditional cultural practices is up to the mother. In any case, it should not cause harm or discomfort, and affect the mother psychologically.

Wednesday, 12 December 2012

Our Confinement Services

Getting the ‘right’ CONFINEMENT LADY is an exasperating task.
The nanny’s level of reliability and attitude are major concerns to all expectant mothers.


In our relentless pursuit to help you achieve total relaxation and a stress-free confinement, we have provide you with 3 PACKAGES which is FOR 1 WEEK, 1 MONTH and 44 DAYS with a good rate. WE COME TO YOUR HOUSE, WE COOK FOR YOU, WE TAKE CARE OF YOUR BABY. 

1 WEEK
RM820
1 MONTH
RM3700
44 DAYS
RM5200