Kobido during pregnancy: what's possible, with what precautions

Kobido — a Japanese facial massage practised on the face alone — doesn't carry the same considerations as a body massage during pregnancy, but, like any manual treatment received in this period, it calls for caution and the prior agreement of your GP or midwife. I see most of my pregnant clients from the second trimester onwards, in an adapted position, without essential oils, and with the facial work adjusted to their situation. Here is, in practice, what is possible at each stage of pregnancy, what I prefer to postpone, and what I modify in the way a session unfolds.

Contents

• Why pregnancy is a special case, even for a facial treatment
• Face only or body massage: why the caution isn't the same
• First trimester: why I prefer to postpone by default
• Second trimester: the most comfortable window
• Third trimester: adapting position and intensity
• What I modify during a session with a pregnant client
• In short
• Frequently asked questions about Kobido during pregnancy

Why pregnancy is a special case, even for a facial treatment

Pregnancy isn't a pathology, but it is a period where collective caution — practitioners, doctors, mothers-to-be — is rightly heightened, and the NHS pregnancy guidance remains the authoritative reference for what is and isn't advisable at each stage. Three reasons. The first trimester remains statistically the period when miscarriages are most frequent; their causes are overwhelmingly independent of any external treatment, but many practitioners prefer not to schedule anything in those first weeks as a matter of principle. Certain products associated with facial treatments (essential oils, some cosmetic actives) are also discouraged during pregnancy. Finally, the flat-on-the-back lying position, standard for a facial treatment, becomes progressively uncomfortable as the months go on.

None of these points rules out Kobido during pregnancy. They simply outline the adjustments to plan, and explain why I always prefer your GP or midwife to weigh in before confirming an appointment — as I already note in Kobido contraindications: what I check first.

Face only or body massage: why the caution isn't the same

A question that comes up often: "I've read that massage is discouraged when pregnant, is it the same for the face?" The honest answer is: no, it isn't quite the same.

The caution recommended for prenatal massage largely targets work on the body — lower back, abdomen, certain pressures on the legs or feet, where acupressure points are traditionally considered contraindicated during pregnancy in traditional Chinese medicine. Kobido works only on the face — forehead, area around the eyes, cheekbones, jawline, scalp. The areas and points engaged don't carry the same caution profile as the rest of the body. This doesn't make Kobido a treatment without precautions; it simply explains why the stance of specialist facial practitioners is generally less restrictive — without replacing your GP's or midwife's advice.

First trimester: why I prefer to postpone by default

During the first twelve weeks of pregnancy, my default stance is to invite postponement of the session, unless explicit agreement from your GP or midwife. It isn't because a facial Kobido has been identified as dangerous during this period; it is simply a measure of caution, in a phase of pregnancy where I prefer not to add anything without explicit medical advice.

Concretely, if you contact me and let me know you are early in pregnancy, I'll suggest waiting until the end of the first trimester. If you'd like to come before — because your GP has explicitly told you they see no obstacle, for instance — I'll ask for a message or email confirming that agreement before confirming an appointment. It's the same logic I apply for post-injection situations: I defer to the doctor looking after you.

A common case: clients who already had recurring appointments before their pregnancy and discover the pregnancy after a booking. I then always reschedule the session and invite you to get back in touch once the twelve-week mark has passed.

Second trimester: the most comfortable window

The second trimester — roughly from the thirteenth to the twenty-seventh week — is the easiest period to receive a Kobido during pregnancy. Early nausea has generally settled, the bump isn't yet large enough to make lying down uncomfortable, and the heightened caution around early pregnancy has passed. It's the moment when I see most of my pregnant clients.

At this stage, the session looks much like a regular one. For many women, lying flat on the back remains comfortable in the second trimester, but I adapt it whenever needed: a cushion under the knees or the pelvis to relieve the lower back, the chest slightly raised, or a change of position at the slightest discomfort. The initial conversation is a little longer than usual — I ask a few additional questions about how the pregnancy is going and any skin changes you may have noticed (pregnancy mask, drier or more reactive skin) — to fine-tune what I'm going to do.

And for other life moments? Kobido can accompany different stages — not only pregnancy. For the full list of situations that ask for medical advice, see Kobido contraindications: what I check first. To prepare for a personal event such as a wedding with a session-by-session plan, see preparing your skin before a wedding and how many Kobido sessions to plan.

Third trimester: adapting position and intensity

From the third trimester — and, as a precaution, as soon as the flat-back position becomes uncomfortable, without a rigid calendar — I no longer work in strict supine position during a long session. The weight of the uterus can compress the inferior vena cava and bring on a feeling of faintness, a point midwives know well. Two options are possible, depending on your comfort.

Semi-reclined setup, the chest raised to 30 or 45 degrees using cushions and an adjusted backrest, is the simplest. It keeps you comfortable, leaves your breathing free, and lets me work the face in conditions very close to a regular session. It is the option I most often offer.

Left-side lying — on the left side, knees slightly bent, supported by cushions — is the other alternative, particularly useful late in pregnancy. It is often easier to set up at home than at the studio.

Beyond position, I ease the intensity: I lean more on manoeuvres designed to bring brightness back and on gentle drainage of the facial expression muscles, and I lighten the firmer pressures on the jawline and temples. The session remains precise and complete — simply adapted to a body that's already working hard for two.

What I modify during a session with a pregnant client

Beyond position and trimester, several concrete adjustments distinguish a session with a pregnant client from a standard one.

No essential oils, neither in the massage oils nor in the room. On this point, my practice doesn't change: I don't use essential oils in the studio, whatever the client. The Kobido products I use are imported directly from Japan — distributed only to apprentices trained by Master Shogo Mochizuki, 26th Generation Grandmaster and official lineage holder, and not sold elsewhere. They are neutral vegetable oils, without actives discouraged during pregnancy, whose composition I can share with you before the session so you can check it with your GP or midwife.

A duration sometimes adjusted. Third-trimester sessions are often slightly shortened — not for medical reasons but for comfort: staying still for a long stretch becomes more tiring late in pregnancy. I'd rather a fifty-minute session you fully enjoy than a seventy-five-minute one where you are no longer at ease in the final stretch.

Heightened attention to sensations. I ask you to flag any discomfort immediately — feeling of dizziness, breathing tightness, tingling, contractions — so we can interrupt or adjust the session. It is almost never necessary, but it is an explicit instruction given at the start of every pregnancy session.

No intensive course during pregnancy. An occasional session, yes; a sustained protocol over several weeks, no — the one-session-a-week rhythm I describe in how many Kobido sessions you should plan is not adapted to pregnancy.

What I observe What strikes me, in the studio, with pregnant clients, is rarely what they say they want over the phone. When booking, they mention the skin that is changing, the pregnancy mask, the tired-looking complexion. Once on the table, they close their eyes and, almost all of them, end up saying the same thing — that no one, since they announced the pregnancy, has paid attention to their face any more. Everyone asks how the baby is, how the bump is, how the nights are going. The face has become invisible. The session doesn't only work on the skin; for an hour, it gives them back a place as whole women — not only as mothers-to-be.

In short

In my studio, I can usually see pregnant clients from the second trimester onwards, subject to the agreement of your GP or midwife. In the first trimester, I prefer to postpone by default, except with explicit medical advice. In the third trimester, I adapt the position — semi-reclined or left-side lying — and ease the intensity of certain manoeuvres. No essential oils, no intensive course during pregnancy, and heightened attention throughout the session. Beyond that, it is a full facial treatment, designed to give you back, for the duration of one appointment, a face that feels like your own.

A conversation before booking — Paris 17 studio (or Milan studio in Navigli) If you are pregnant and considering a Kobido session, it is best to write or call before booking, ideally after a first word from your GP or midwife. A few minutes of conversation let us settle the right trimester, the right position and the right format together — either at my Paris 17 studio, my Milan studio in Navigli, or at home in the Paris area. See my treatments → | Book a session →

Frequently asked questions about Kobido during pregnancy