What is hypnobirthing?
Don’t panic! Hypnobirthing is not stage-hypnosis. You will not join my classes and end up clucking like a chicken! Hypnobirthing is a mindset – I want you to go into labour feeling calm and confident, informed and prepared. If you are seeking a natural physiological birth, my aim is to empower you so you can trust your instincts, allowing your body to do what it is designed to do. If you are preparing for induction or a caesarean birth, I will help to educate you so you can make informed decisions that are right for you and your baby.
My hypnobirthing antenatal course is a complete birthing programme which will support you and your chosen birth partner/s in your preparation for labour and birth however you are choosing to birth your baby. It is science-based and packed full of tools and techniques for you to draw on when you are in labour wherever your birth journey takes you. You will remember your baby’s birth forever – I want you to look back on your experience with feelings of positivity and happiness.
Does hypnobirthing really work?
In 2011, a review of studies, showed that hypnobirthing may encourage a vaginal birth.
- Women who have used hypnobirthing techniques report reduced fear and anxiety levels.
- Birthing mothers report they have an increased sense of control due to feeling more informed and active in the decision-making process.
- Studies have shown that hypnobirthing may lessen the need for interventions.
- Women report feeling more positive about their birthing experience before, during and after they have given birth. Read birth stories from Tranquil Baby clients here.
- Birth partners know how to support the birthing woman and have a central and active role in the birth. Read birth partner, and Dad, Elliot’s story of William’s birth here.
How does hypnobirthing work?
Think back to films you have watched where a woman is giving birth and consider how labour is represented. Often, images of birth that have filled our subconscious as we grown up are of women lying on their backs, screaming in pain. These images, and any statements we hear, ultimately shape our thoughts and beliefs as we enter adulthood. Stories/words/images hold more power than we realise and massively impact how we respond to the things we face in life, pregnancy and birth included. If we go into labour with negative thinking, and self-limiting beliefs, these generate fear and increase tension along with the hormone, adrenaline. This interferes with the natural birth process as well as increasing the perception of pain. During my hypnobirthing antenatal sessions, I aim to reframe any negativity surrounding labour and birth, promoting a relaxed state to absorb positive thoughts and ideas, allowing an increased production of the ‘feel good’ hormones, oxytocin and endorphins. When these hormones are elevated in our bodies, the uterus is able to work much more efficiently and birth becomes more manageable.
How often should I practise hypnobirthing techniques?
How frequently you practise the hypnobirthing techniques you learn on my course is entirely up to you. Hypnobirthing is a mindset not an outcome and the effects of hypnobirthing are cumulative – the more practice you put in, the more you get out. Regular practice is important. You can’t just tell your body to just relax – if only it was that simple! You have to practise allowing your body to enter a deep state of relaxation often, so that you will be able to enter this state of mind more quickly when you go into labour. Where the mind leads, the body follows! Putting time aside regularly as you near the end of your pregnancy is hugely important so that you are ready to work with your body to birth your baby when they are ready to enter this world.
What else will I learn on a hypnobirthing course?
Not only do we look at preparing the mind on my hypnobirthing antenatal course, we also look at ways you can prepare your body and practical things you can do during pregnancy and labour to support your birth experience. This includes, setting up a positive birthing environment, learning non-medicalised ways to increase comfort, and ways to reduce tearing. Birth partners are able to learn how they can support you on the day too!
What are the benefits of hypnobirthing?
- Reduces fear and anxiety surrounding labour and birth
- Helps you to feel calm and in control
- Encourages relaxation and helps you to achieve the right level of pregnancy hormones to help you give birth
- Builds trust in your body’s natural ability to birth a baby
- Arms you with tools and techniques to support you during pregnancy and on the day of your baby’s birth
- Educates you, giving you the confidence to ask questions and be active in any decision-making process
- Supports your birth partner/s with their role
References: Wang et al, 2024
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