Hypnobirthing's great. It teaches you to give birth without being scared. After all, birth is natural, animals do it without screaming and shouting. Fear causes your muscles to tense up, which means they don't work properly and things become painful.
I did Hypnobirthing and recommend the Marie Mongan version, there's a book and CD and courses across the country.
If your birth is straightforward, as most of them are, you should have a lovely, natural birth without having to take any drugs.
If things become more complicated, then you have a method of staying calm and in control. I had a 5 day early labour which the hypnobirthing breathing and relaxation really helped with. By day 5, I was getting tired and put on a TENS machine so I could get some sleep. I can honestly say, I felt nothing worse than period cramps at the start and increasing sensations of pressure once I was in proper labour and had no pain relief the whole time, other than the TENS machine. Yes, it was hard work, but I used breathing and relaxation to keep myself calm and focused. I'd do it again any day!
My baby was a bit distressed (we later found out the cord was round his neck) and I ended up transferring to hospital. The ambulance men couldn't believe I was in labour. The midwives kept commenting on how calm and quiet I was. I absolutely hate hospitals and was surprised myself by how I didn't seem bothered by it at the time.
Definitely give it a try, you can't lose anything