The Benefits of Hypnobirthing
Discover what hypnobirthing is and the key benefits it can bring to your pregnancy and childbirth experience. Not sure what hypnobirthing is, if it’s right for you or when to start? Read on to find out more.
What is Hypnobirthing?
Firstly, let’s start with what Hypnobirthing is (and what it’s not!). A hypnobirthing course is a full birth preparation course that equips women and their birth partners with evidence-based knowledge, skills, powerful tools and questioning techniques so that they can have the best possible birth experience that's right for them.
Birth, just like anything in life, can take its own twists and turns. A hypnobirthing course can provide couples with the skills to be able to adapt and make the best of any situation that the birth journey can throw at them.
Hypnobirthing uses a variety of techniques from self-hypnosis, deep relaxation techniques, birth breathing exercises, visualisations, affirmations and more that make a powerful difference to birth. We also delve into the pros and cons of the different birthplaces available and your birth rights, so you can make informed choices depending on what meets your personal circumstances and preferences.
Key Benefits of Hypnobirthing
Hypnobirthing offers lots of benefits to expectant mothers-to-be and their birthing partners, which you’ll learn more about in a course with me. For now, let’s take a look at the top benefits of hypnobirthing:
More Information about Hypnobirthing
Interested in Hypnobirthing and what it has to offer? Discover some of the top questions hypnobirthing teachers are asked around the specific techniques, tools and topics of hypnobirthing.
What is Hypnosis?
Swinging pendulums? A hypnotist taking charge of your mind? This is definitely not what the hypnosis in Hypnobirthing is about!
Hypnosis in Hypnobirthing is a form of self-hypnosis, taking you into a focused, yet day-dream-like state of deep relaxation. It’s a way of completely clearing your mind, choosing to disconnect with the sounds and external stimuli around you, and voluntarily accepting positive messages into your subconscious mind so you can let go of the negative beliefs that you may have formed around childbirth.
Self-hypnosis has lots of benefits, including being able to call a calm state of mind when needed, on demand. Remember, you’ll remain in control of your mind throughout the entire process.
Does Hypnobirthing work & is it less Painful?
Research has shown that hypnobirthing can reduce the amount of anxiety, fear and tension we build up in our bodies and minds around childbirth.
Releasing this fear and tension, particularly in our bodies, can lead to more comfortable surges during labour, meaning the woman is more relaxed, allowing her body to do what it’s naturally meant to do in labour. There’s also evidence that hypnobirthing may reduce the need for drug management and medical interventions, although not all studies have found this.
Whilst hypnobirthing is not guaranteeing you a pain-free birth, it focuses on the techniques to best manage your comfort levels. In hypnobirthing, we talk about the fear-tension-pain cycle and how to break it, the natural birthing hormones we want to encourage our bodies to release (and one that we don’t!), and helpful techniques to promote a calmer mindset and knowledge around the stages of birth.
How Can I Practice Hypnobirthing at Home?
Easy! You’ve probably heard of the phrase “practice makes perfect”, and it’s exactly that theory when practising hypnobirthing. You have to practice it so that it becomes second nature to you. Like a Swiss army knife, you can then pull out what you need, when you need it!
Many women find listening to hypnosis scripts and audios more relaxing at night time, just before bed, so that when they’ve finished, they’re in a beautiful state of deep relaxation to fall asleep. Other techniques can be done throughout the day, depending on your schedule, but we’ll cover these in the course.
What is the role of the birth partner in Hypnobirthing?
A hypnobirthing course offers something for both the woman and their birth partner. The birth partner plays an important part in this incredible process, whether it's protecting and setting up the birthing environment, supporting the woman with their relaxation and birth breathing techniques, advocating and relaying the woman’s birthing preferences with the maternity professionals…and so much more!
Book one of my courses to learn more about how your birth partner can play an important role!
What are Positive Affirmations?
According to PositivePsychology.com,
“positive affirmations are positively loaded phrases or statements that are used to challenge unhelpful or negative thoughts.”
Repeatedly seeing or hearing these positive statements can help to turn them into beliefs and help clients to let go of some of the limiting and negative beliefs they may have built up in their mind over time around childbirth and labour.
When Should I Start Practicing Hypnobirthing?
You can start anytime! Some women like to be super prepared, but I’d recommend to start in your second trimester, following your 20-week scan - that way you have plenty of time to practice the hypnobirthing techniques and arm yourself with all the knowledge and questioning techniques you may need in the run-up to meeting your baby!
That said, I can offer intensive courses if you’re already nearing the end of your term and have just found out how hypnobirthing may be able to help. Just reach out to discuss!
Can I use Hypnobirthing for Cesarean Births?
Absolutely! Hypnobirthing can be used for all types of birth - be it natural, medically assisted or for cesarean births. The wonderful tools and techniques - from visualisations, breathing, self-hypnosis scripts, questioning techniques etc. - that you learn on your course with me can all be applied no matter what stage of pregnancy or childbirth you’re at.
I have first-hand experience of this through the birth of my child via an elective c-section. Read my story here!
What's the Difference between Antenatal Classes & a Hypnobirthing Course?
Whilst both antenatal and hypnobirthing are forms of childbirth education, they are very different in their focus and approach.
Antenatal classes often cover information about the stages of labour, pain relief options, birth places, feeding, newborn care and postpartum recovery.
Hypnobirthing goes a little deeper. Whilst there’s lots of information around birth places, stages of labour, hormones, types of interventions etc., it also teaches deep relaxation, self-hypnosis, and mindfulness techniques to positively change your mindset around birth. You'll learn how to better manage comfort levels during labour and important knowledge around birth rights and questioning techniques to use with your maternity care providers.
