Hypnobirthing thoughts

[Happyfeet45]

Sorry if this isn't in the right place.

I wondered if anyone has any experience with hypnobirthing? I am due in the next few weeks and have been reading up on this throughout my pregnancy. The breathing techniques and scientific parts make a lot of sense to me. The positive mantras and visualisations....not so much.

Has anyone tried it and did it genuinely help you in labour?

The idea of creating a safe, spa-like environment to give birth does sound nice but is it really going to help?

Would love to hear other peoples experiences of what worked and what was clap trap!

I had private hybnobirthing sessions with DS1 and in the end I didn't find them very helpful.

One of the exercises I did involved visualising how the whole birth would go - so I imagined bouncing on a ball, watching funny films to get the oxytocin going, then getting into hospital and using the tens machine and aromatherapy and the pool and finding a comfy position to gently breathe DS out etc. Well in the end labour only took 4 hours from start to finish so I didn't have time for most of what I had planned/visualised. DS got stuck during the second phase with his heart rate dropping, so midwife had to coach my pushing during an exam on my back, and if DS hadn't been born on the push he was, they were going to call the duty obstetrician. I don't know how any amount of visualisation could have changed that.

Also (possibly because my labour was so fast) it seriously bloody hurt. It hurt MUCH more than I was expecting from hypnobirthing! I have pretty high pain tolerance and have definitely kept myself calm by breathing or meditating through pain before. With childbirth I really found that stuff didn't touch the sides. I honestly didn't feel like I ever got a break between contractions, didn't feel a noticeable "transition" after which I got more of an urge to push, it was just 4 hours of intense pain.

I felt kind of guilty afterwards that it hadn't really "worked", which was a bit ridiculous - as in fact, I had handled the pain, DS was fine, and I was just left with a 2nd degree tear which also healed up no problem. But that was how the hypnobirthing left me.

I should say I've had hypnotherapy before, for driving test nerves and weight loss, and similar techniques worked really well for both of those. I think the difference is that lots of elements of my birth were surprising or outside my control anyway.

I'm 32 weeks pregnant again now and while I have revised some of the breathing and visualisation techniques I learned last time, that's as far as I'm going!

The breathing techniques are great. Not a fan of twee language like "surges" though. There's a medical term for them - contractions.

I just did a few sessions on Spotify, but I found it helped quite a lot by giving me some breathing techniques to concentrate on. It won't help you with any medical interventions in my view (I still needed an episiotomy) but I was calmer than I would have otherwise been during a precipitate labour.

I hypnobirthed my way through both labours. I found it incredibly helpful.

First labour was a drip induction, second was a straightforward water birth with no intervention. I also used a TENS machine for both. The technique was immensely useful both times.

It helped me, mainly the breathing and one of the recordings on repeat, the kind telling you how strong a woman you are etc. It might be hard to listen to now but during childbirth you need someone telling you how great you are!! This was a consultant led birth with two midwifes always present and monitored all the time so relaxing it wasn’t however the recording and breathing with gas and air was all I needed to keep calm and keep going till baby arrived!

@MoonCowbag

I hypnobirthed my way through both labours. I found it incredibly helpful.

First labour was a drip induction, second was a straightforward water birth with no intervention. I also used a TENS machine for both. The technique was immensely useful both times.

Oh yes, good point. I used a TENS alongside the deep breathing, which was brilliant, then moved to gas and air at the end. Mine was rented from eBay.

I couldn't get on with gas and air at all, so I am very glad I had that TENS machine!!

I found it helped me with my anxiety in the run up, but in reality, during my traumatic and lengthy labour and mid birth emergency hospital transfer, I found it of limited use.

It helped me stay calm and at home for as long as possible when I was in labour with my second.

It didn't help at all with the actual birth because I had acute placental abruption / bradycardia and needed a category 1 C/section under GA and a lot of blood and fluids.

It will not determine the sort of birthday you have but it might to help keep you calm if you can breathe throughout your contractions, as well as understanding what is happening physically and avoiding a panic response (which can hinder oxytocin).

Birthday = birth

Not hypnobirthing as in a cd with visualisation techniques etc, but I did pregnancy yoga and they focused a lot on breathing techniques and positions. It was a HUGE help. I had a very fast labour and got sent hole from the hospital initially as I was only 2cm (only to turn back up less than 3 hrs later, fully dialated). Had non stop contractions and DD was back to back. In short it was pretty intense.
As I wasn't in hospital I had zero pain relief available (I'm allergic to paracetamol) apart from a heat bag and the yoga breathing techniques. I genuinely think the breathing techniques were the only reason I stayed calm and could cope with the pain.
That said I was pretty pragmatic, I had read up on c sections etc, my birth plan included that I was open to an epuridal etc. So don't go in expecting zero pain and that all will be serene.

Hole - home

I think any Hypnobirthing course that is worth its salt, includes births that involve scenarios that do occur, induction, forceps and venteuse deliveries, unplanned and planned Caesaerians. This is when the technique s you ve learned are most helpful, where remaining calm, allowing you to make informed decisions. Just because your birth is not moonbeams and rainbows, does not mean Hypnobirthing has failed, If you have pain relief, or an instrumental delivery, YOU have not failed. As long YOU feel that it was the best birth for you, that could be a Gentle Caesaerian! I cannot believe people were not invited to postnatal meet ups , its appalling!! I had 2 Hypnobirths, 1 great just with gas and air, 2 nd used it for Venteuse delivery, x

I did the PBC course and even just learning the science of labour helped! Made my partner watch with me who was fab at reminding me to breathe during contractions.

Ended up with an EMCS but a good hypnobirthing course doesn’t strive for intervention-free, it helps you to cope with whatever happens on the day. That said, dim lights, spa music and a lot of gas and air made for a lovely environment for me! All the drs etc who ended up coming in also commented on how nice it was in there

So I would recommend! It can’t hurt, and like PP I still use the breathing techniques for pain management now.

The problem with something like hypnobirthing is those who have a good birth will attribute it to the hypnobirthing. See also those who had a bad first birth - did hypnobirthing - great second birth such as @MoreHairyThanScary Whereas in reality all births are different. My SIL never did any kind of hypnobirthing - 1st birth prolonged and awful, 2nd birth wonderful calm and easy, 3rd birth emergency and stressful.

It helps to manage fear. Not sure it helps with actual labour.

It wouldn't have helped with my first labour which had a long period with contractions that ran into each other. My second labour it helped until transition.

I think it can help with labours that aren't textbook 'natural', if you can stay calm and feel engaged with decisions etc then it helps.

For my first pregnancy I'd used hypnobirthing books and did an online course.
I also read a fantastic book by Milli Hill about positive birth, which explores every possibility and your rights and choices.

What I took from this was an understanding of what was happening to my body and being able to recognise each stage. I also used the positive affirmations over and over to keep my mind focused.

Did I do it all to the letter? No. Was my labour extensively long? Yes. But I used those same mantras and breathing techniques for my internal examinations, injections and other things that I didn't like, as well as my labour and in each situation it really helped.

No hypnobirthing isn't some magical wonder but it can really help give some control in situations when you could easily go into an anxious to panicked state.

I'm using the same approach with this pregnancy, whatever my birth my end up like.

It helped me undoubtedly.

I have heard some women be quite negative about it because they didn't have the whole Homebirth with no drugs birth etc but that's not the point of it, it's about a state of mind but also educating yourself so you can make informed decisions. After your child's birth ideally you want to look back and think if it as a good experience.

Have you heard of birth-ed? They have a phenomenal course, online or in person if you are in south London

They also have a Instagram page you can follow if you do insta. Lucyflow is brilliant too she has some free online yoga classes.

I hadn't heard of them with my first, I did the course with the positive birthing company. It did help me. But there were lots of factors which helped me.