With the onset of pregnancy, almost all women begin to monitor their health very carefully and reverently. However, I also don’t want to cancel my usual way of life. Therefore, the question of whether it is possible to take a steam bath during pregnancy worries more than one caring expectant mother.
Doctors have different opinions on this matter. Some even recommend this procedure, because they are inclined to believe that a moderate and competent approach will have a beneficial effect on the health of the newborn and the woman’s well-being. Also, some claim that visiting a bathhouse throughout pregnancy has a beneficial effect on the postpartum period and lactation.
Pregnancy is not a disease, so in this state you can do the same things as usual.
Others, on the contrary, categorically prohibit bathing during pregnancy, as they fear that this will lead to premature birth or other negative consequences. But who can a woman in this position trust if even experts cannot give a clear answer?
In fact, the solution to the problem of whether it is possible to visit a bathhouse during pregnancy must be approached strictly subjectively, since everyone’s physiology is different, therefore, the consequences can be either beneficial or not.
Therefore, in order not to harm both the baby and herself by visiting the bathhouse, a woman in such a responsible position should familiarize herself with all the available contraindications, as well as the impact of these procedures in general. Moreover, all this needs to be studied and analyzed immediately, as soon as it becomes known about pregnancy.
Note! If you decide to take bath procedures during pregnancy, you should first consult with your gynecologist, who may recommend any additional examination by other specialists. This article can only be used as a small instruction.
Olga Seryabkina
“Soup from Olenka” is what fans called the shot demonstrated by Olga Seryabkina (now Molly). Not long ago, the singer admitted that she was introduced to a bathhouse for the first time and was completely delighted! To confirm this, there is a photo in which Olga enjoys swimming in a vat of herbs and pine branches. And at the same time it shows off its appetizing forms (where would we be without this?).
Fans, however, remained intrigued: who photographed Seryabkina in the bathhouse? Some believe that it is Maxim Fadeev himself, with whom Olga allegedly has a long-term affair.
Men don't float anymore
Western European travelers who visited our country in the 16th-18th centuries were also surprised by the presence of bathhouse attendants in the steam rooms, who helped both women and men cleanse themselves of dirt. These girls were called rubers or wavers because they rubbed the bodies of bathhouse visitors and waved brooms. The Dutch politician Nicolaas Witsen, who visited Moscow, Pskov and Novgorod in 1664-1665, wrote the ethnographic work “Journey to Muscovy.” It says that pretty serf girls often worked as polishers, bathing the family and guests of their landowner. At the same time, Andrei Dachnik claims that wavers also worked in public baths. A researcher of Russian antiquity did not find any reliable historical evidence that these women could provide intimate services to their clients, writes Andrei Dachnik. But after the division of these public institutions into male and female representatives of the stronger sex, exclusively strong guys - bathhouse attendants - began to soar.
Tarzan
Natasha Koroleva’s husband appreciates and respects the bathhouse. But a naked selfie he once shared with his followers caused widespread confusion. Tarzan shouldn’t have shown his figure, many decided.
What confused the public? The dancer's breasts, because of which he was compared to a nursing mother and Anastasia Volochkova (without whom our selection, of course, would be incomplete). Fans' opinions about Sergei Glushko's torso were divided: some advised him to go to the gym more often, others thought that he had gone too far with the iron. Tarzan himself was not at all embarrassed by the critics' unrest. He is quite pleased with himself, and his wife does not complain.
Tarzan loves to show off his figure. Photo: Instagram
Larisa Guzeeva
60-year-old Larisa Guzeeva knows a lot about relaxation and self-care for her beloved. Host of the program “Let's Get Married!” I recently showed a photo taken... unfortunately, not in the steam room itself, but after leaving it. ""Day off! After the bath... This is my time and my beauty,” the actress signed a photo showing her in a robe over her naked body.
And although Larisa didn’t really show anything in the photo, fans found the photo very exciting. “That’s how sex comes from a person,” some said. Well, the fact that Guzeeva is a beautiful woman, even in a robe and with a turban on her head, is no secret to anyone. She recently delighted fans by appearing as the Snow Maiden. Here it is, the miraculous power of the bath!
Need to know
There are several rules that will help minimize risks when a pregnant woman visits a bathhouse. They are relevant specifically for those expectant mothers who visited the bathhouse even before pregnancy, and should be performed by them. It is worth repeating that if you have not visited a bathhouse before pregnancy, it is contraindicated for you during this period.
- Be sure to use a felt cap to protect your head from overheating, slippers and a towel for the same purposes - to isolate yourself from hot surfaces. It is imperative to remove metal items and jewelry to avoid overheating or burns;
- You don’t need to go to the top bunk immediately after entering the steam room, give yourself time to get used to the heat, sit below;
- If you sit on the top bunk, place your feet on it, do not hang them;
- You should not broom your lower back and stomach.
So there are no special restrictions, for the most part the rules remain standard, you just need to adhere to them more strictly and treat yourself and your condition as carefully as possible. Pregnancy is not a reason to refuse a bath if you are used to visiting it regularly and tolerate such procedures well.
However, in some cases, such an opportunity should be strictly and categorically rejected. So, if there is a threat of miscarriage, you should not go to the bathhouse. The same applies to increased uterine tone, high blood pressure, low presentation - these situations also exclude the possibility of visiting the bathhouse. Tuberculosis and skin diseases also exclude the possibility of going to the bathhouse.
Thus, if there are no health problems, the pregnancy is not in the first weeks and is progressing normally, if in the past you regularly visited the bathhouse - why not continue visiting it, no problems should arise on this basis. But what about those who are just about to have a baby? Are there any indications or contraindications for them in this regard?
Anna Semenovich
The busty singer once again showed off her “assets” by showing a video in the font. Visually, the footage turned out to be quite modest, but, according to many fans, still provocative. “Moos with pleasure,” this is how subscribers defined the sounds that Semenovich made while basking in the water.
Swimming in the font, Semenovich moaned with pleasure. Still from video: Instagram
Pelagia
Pelageya’s husband once showed a bathing video. Hockey player Ivan Telegin made a short video of himself relaxing in a sauna with friends and family and posted it on Instagram. “Here we have restoration procedures. Pelageya Sergeevna. Now we are in Minsk,” Telegin commented on the footage of his wife dancing spectacularly in a red swimsuit. The figure of Pelageya evoked only positive emotions among fans!
Pelageya showed an impeccable figure. Still from video: Instagram
Bath recommendations by trimester
The first weeks of pregnancy are marked by toxicosis, the body adapts to its new state, and here a bathhouse will be superfluous. Temperature changes can stimulate miscarriage and also disrupt the process of placenta genesis. And you certainly shouldn’t go to the bathhouse if there is a threat of miscarriage or if your pregnancy is starting to be difficult.
But in the second trimester, at later stages, a bathhouse for pregnant women turns out to be very useful, if you do not overdo it. It trains the cardiovascular system, protects against the risk of early aging of the placenta, and keeps the body in good shape. However, you cannot stay in the steam room for more than 10 minutes, and you should avoid contrasting temperatures - the cold after the heat will do more harm than good. Also, do not stay in the steam room if you feel unwell. Stretching in the lower abdomen, lightheadedness, even slight - all these are signs of trouble, in which case you should immediately leave the steam room.
Adeline Sotnikova
The Olympic champion also admitted that she loves to steam. According to her, this is not only a pleasant, but also a very useful procedure. At least for her: the skater needs to periodically relax her muscles, because thanks to this, the body’s recovery occurs an order of magnitude faster.
And although Adeline has already finished her active sports career, fans took her advice into account. And at the same time, they appreciated the figure, which can be seen even behind the muddy water and spruce branches.
Women's advice for any occasion
A visit to the bathhouse will bring you maximum benefit for any condition of your body if you take note and follow some very simple tips. So, it is worth drinking as much water as possible during bathing procedures; ideally, it will be clean, gas-free water, spring or artesian. This way you can rid your body of the maximum amount of harmful substances and toxins. It is worth protecting yourself from hot surfaces, always use a towel and wear a hat.
But visiting a bathhouse once a week is enough; this is a time-tested regime of its use, which brings maximum benefit to a person without harm.
Nyusha
The singer Nyusha was once almost pecked to death for this photo. Although there is no unnecessary pathos on it: the star was photographed at her own dacha in the Moscow region, in a rather modest and homely atmosphere. “This bath evening...” the artist wrote dreamily. But the fans were outraged. “How can you be half naked in front of the whole country?”; “What does the husband say to this?!” - Nyusha was called to account. To be fair, now the singer is posting more piquant pictures. Why everyone was so confused by Nyushin’s “bath evening” is a mystery.
Nyusha in the bathhouse at the dacha. Photo: Instagram
We used to wash together
If for modern residents of Russia, when visiting a public bathhouse, the main taboo is that you cannot enter the section where members of the opposite sex wash, then for residents of Rus' such a ban simply did not exist. As indicated in the book “Bath. Essays on ethnography and medicine" (St. Petersburg publishing house, 2015) researcher of Russian antiquity Andrei Dachnik, foreign travelers were extremely embarrassed that men and women were almost not embarrassed by their nudity while washing. Stiff Catholics and Protestants paid particular attention to this fact. For example, the ambassador of the Roman Emperor Augustine Mayerberg wrote in 1661: “In public baths there are also women of ordinary rank in large numbers... mingling with men and not at all considering it important to expose their nudity to their impudent glances, which arouses lust.” Although none of the numerous sources says that washing men and women together in Russian baths led to debauchery. Foreigners note that people calmly accepted other people's nudity, only allowing themselves jokes on this topic. In villages, families often washed together, primarily for reasons of economy: the bathhouse cools down quickly in winter, and if you heat it twice, you won’t have enough firewood. However, religious leaders, and then the secular authorities, sought to eradicate this custom, which seemed immoral to them. The corresponding ban is contained in a collection of decisions of the Council of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1551, called “Stoglav”. But ordinary people almost did not comply with this instruction of the holy fathers, so in 1782, Empress Catherine II signed the “Charter of Deanery,” prohibiting men and women from washing together. By the beginning of the 19th century, according to historian Andrei Dachnik, a clear gender division had already occurred in Russian steam rooms.
Olga Buzova
Olga Buzova also got it. And this is for a photo in a swimsuit! The singer and businesswoman took this photo in a Sochi sauna during the filming of a new video. They took place in April, and the bathhouse, according to Olga, was simply necessary. After all, during the two days of filming she was very cold.
“I took a steam bath, bathed in the font, they fed me, gave me a massage... and now I’m sitting by the fireplace, drinking tea with honey... looking at the fire... and getting high. Life is wonderful,” Buzova wrote then. But many followers, instead of being happy for the owner of the blog, began to reproach her for being too seductive in her swimsuit. Some time after this, Olga finally got tired of the criticism and made her account private.
Olga Buzova in a swimsuit somehow angered people. Photo: Instagram
Selecting materials for finishing a steam room in a bathhouse
When building the best steam room for a bath, owners always hope for long-term operation. To meet such expectations, it is necessary to build a bathhouse from quality materials.
For wall cladding, it is recommended to use natural wood lumber with low thermal conductivity and high moisture resistance. These species include cedar, linden, aspen, black alder and ash.
As a thermal insulation material, it is recommended to give preference to foiled mineral wool, which has better moisture-resistant properties. Foil materials are also suitable for waterproofing: aluminum foil, penoizol and glassine.
To remove air without contact with water, install a vapor barrier made of polypropylene film or membrane variolation made of kraft paper. Plastic ventilation pipes are the best option for air supply and circulation.
Ksenia Sobchak
It cannot be said that Ksenia Sobchak intensively promoted the benefits of the bathhouse with the help of candid photos. But this year she amazed the audience by taking a steam bath with Volochkova herself! The ladies had intimate conversations, sitting and lying on the shelf, and filmed everything that happened. It was then that the figure of Ksenia Sobchak came into the frame, which, to the horror of fans, turned out to be imperfect.
She groped her breasts and filmed with a hidden camera: Volochkova spoke about Sobchak’s visit
The TV presenter asked to visit the dancer, but behaved disgracefully
People scolded the “blonde in chocolate” both for her flabby sides and for her sophisticated bullying of the scandalous ballerina. However, with Ksyusha, any criticism is like water off a duck’s back. Moreover, her program, filmed visiting Anastasia, received 2.5 million views in less than a week.
Ksenia Sobchak (left) in Volochkova’s bathhouse. Still from video: YouTube
Men had their inhibitions
It may seem that men did not face various prohibitions while washing. This is wrong. The restrictions that visiting the steam room imposed on them are closely related to the habits to which only representatives of the stronger sex were subject in patriarchal Rus'. So, in the bathhouse, men were absolutely not allowed to:
- sit on the tub, because according to the sign, such a person risks becoming an alcoholic;
- drink alcohol;
- go there when a woman in labor is in the steam room (this is an exclusively female sacrament); spit, especially on the stove masonry, otherwise the offended Bannik will spit boiling water in response;
- steam with a woman's broom;
- wash the second time, after your wife.
Russian folk tradition contains many signs and beliefs, as well as outright taboos designed to protect people from drunkenness. In addition, in a bathhouse such libations are also dangerous, because drunk people cannot boast of precise movements and clarity of mind, which means they risk getting burned or burned. It is simply impossible to imagine that women in Rus' could get together and drink in a bathhouse, as well as spit in all corners, so such prohibitions simply did not exist for them.
Anastasia Volochkova
Now we have reached the queen of the entire selection. Anastasia Volochkova regularly pampers her fans with photos from the sauna and bathhouse, as well as from the ice plunge pool. She openly shares her secrets of proper “hovering”, does the splits on shelves and in the snow, poses naked, only slightly covering “strategically important places” with a broom... In general, unnecessary words are not needed here, and one photo cannot be limited.
Olga Volkovabath candid photo Russian bath
Prohibitions for the weaker sex
Contrary to the slightly biased attitude of Western European authors, the bathhouse has always been a sacred place for the inhabitants of Rus', a visit to which is associated with a large number of rules that must be observed. What kind of debauchery is there if, according to popular belief, everything that happens here is strictly monitored by Bannik, the mythical owner of the steam room, as well as the evil woman Obderiha, who must be appeased with a polite word or some symbolic offering. Women in Russian baths were not allowed to:
- to wash first, before their husbands, brothers and fathers;
- use brooms of the stronger sex;
- to be alone;
- wash your hair on Monday and Wednesday;
- leave the bathhouse immediately after childbirth;
- work as polishers (whiskers) after the 18th century.
Now let's talk about everything in order. Not all residents of Rus' took baths in families; more often, members of the rural community took turns washing: first the man, and then the women. Some sources explain this tradition by the patriarchal foundations of society. They say that the father of the family is the head of everything and the right of primacy in everything belongs only to him. In addition, the Christian tradition considers the fair sex “unclean,” and men were afraid of being “infected” with the sinfulness of women by visiting the bathhouse after them. However, there is another version of the origin of this tradition. The bathhouse in Rus' was heated very hot, and the fathers of families went to take a steam bath first, so as not to allow their wives and small children to experience unnecessary discomfort.
