For most of our lives we are bombarded with messages that childbirth is excruciatingly painful. It is therefore only natural to feel sceptical when told that HypnoBirthing mothers can have a natural birth without pain or pain relief. However, when you learn the physiology of childbirth, it all starts to make sense. So, how does HypnoBirthing work?
HypnoBirthing is different from other childbirth classes.
While other classes teach mothers how to cope with pain, HypnoBirthing teaches
us how to eliminate
the causes of pain. The programme hinges on the
Fear-Tension-Pain connection discovered by Dr Grantly Dick-Read in the 1940’s.
When a mother is able to give birth free from fear, she is not only able to
avoid unnecessary pain; she is also able to harness her body’s own endorphins
which are many times stronger than morphine.
All mammals want to give birth in a quiet and safe environment. When we feel unsafe or scared, our body responds by going into fight-flight-freeze mode. Unfortunately, when this response is triggered during labour, it is incredibly painful and also stressful for the baby. Labour can slow or stop completely, leading to unwanted interventions such as inductions, forceps deliveries, or emergency caesareans.
Using HypnoBirthing techniques, a mother works with her body. The deep relaxation from self-hypnosis, breathing techniques, and fear-release, allow the cervix to open with little pain. Instead of stress hormones, the mother’s system is flooded with natural endorphins which enhance her relaxation further and allow labour to progress as nature intended – quickly and easily.
The latest research (Swencionis, 2013) backs up the theory. The results showed that HypnoBirthing mothers were significantly less likely to have many undesirable birth outcomes including:
· Fewer epidural anaesthesias
· Fewer intravenous or intra-muscular anaesthesias
· Fewer caesarean sections
· Fewer episiotomies
· Fewer medical inductions
· Fewer babies born at low-birth-weights
The vast majority of HypnoBirthing mothers feel that HypnoBirthing helped them to be more confident about their ability to birth, have a more gentle birth, and make good decisions for birthing.
To learn more about HypnoBirthing please visit my website www.EnvisageHypnoBirthing.co.nz. If you would like to book classes or talk in person contact me on [email protected], or by phone 021 244 9971. I teach classes in Auckland, and am also available to teach via Skype when no local practitioner is available.
