Hypnobirthing - is it any good?

[Kobus79]

We're thinking about possibly doing a hypnobirthing course. Does anybody have any experience with this and would you recommend it, or not. We are a bit worried about the 'American' style of the concept. Did you find this, or was it not too bad? Also, how did midwives respond to it?

Particularly if you have any experience with hypnobirthing in the South Lakes, that would be great!

Watching with interest, have managed to get free hypnobirthing classes, and am keen to see what others think.

Yes. I would say that contra to popular belief it is actually BETTER for control freak types than hippy types.

An independent midwife I was considering for my home birth last time around (unfortunately, i gave birth prem in a hospital and too early for classes) was very enthusiastic about hypnobirthing. She said women are much better prepared to cope with labour and its demands on the body. The only thing she advised is to be very clear with my own healthcare providers (the hospitals in particular) that i am familiar with the technique as they tend to pay a lot less attention to women who are quiet as they judge them not in active labour.

I am booked on the course in late April for my birth in June despite having a consultant care this time.

Yep. Midwife was taken by surprise when the baby popped out as she didn't think I was in active labour yet and hadn't got anything with her or another midwife. She wasn't even anywhere near me so I just picked up my baby myself.

Hello, I'm a Certified HypnoBirthing Practitioner so hopefully I can answer some of these questions.

kobus79 Whilst HypnoBirthing comes from America, it is not American in style. It's not really cheesy if that is what you are getting at. It's really quite matter of fact and couples leave the classes confident that they will have a good birth experience.

I have found that midwives are very receptive to HypnoBirthing mums. I was recently at my local unit (Croydon University Hospital) and the midwives were very open to the philosophy of HypnoBirthing an ultimately it makes their job easier and quicker so they are all for it.

My own experience (I've had two HypnoBirths) is that I was initially very fearful of birth but the course allowed me to enjoy my pregnancy and look forward to the birth (as did my husband). I had planned a home HypnoBirth but for medical reasons that was not possible but HypnoBirthing allowed me to shape the experience so that I can look back and consider that I had 2 perfect births.

Bemybaby I too would probably be described as a control freak and HypnoBirthing gave me confidence that I could have an enjoyable birth. I would probably describe most of my female clients as wanting to have control and it works for them.

kobus79 I don't know who practices HypnoBirthing in the South Lakes area but if you check out the HypnoBirthing practitioner list you should find someone in your area: Practitioner List

If you want to know more about HypnoBirthing generally there is more info here and here

Starlight I do tell the parents I work with to ham it up a bit so that midwives realise how far along they are. I think almost every testimonial I've had has included a line like 'the midwife didn't believe I was so far along but when she examined me I was 8cm (or even fully) dilated.'

Perhaps that's a good idea as I don't consent to internals so was probably very lucky not to have been sent home.

Wow, that's all very positive! Thanks for all the quick replies. Now, more or less playing devils advocate, there must be some people who did not find it an incredibly good experience, or did not feel very enthusiastic about it. If so, what were your issues? (I know I am fishing for negativity here, but I'm trying to hear about both sides of the coin and people who had a so, so experience are in general less likely to respond I think. Mind you, if all is positive, it should be really blimming good :-).

I'm another one whos midwife didn't believe I was in active labour... Didn't get my longed-for water birth because they couldn't get the pool filled up quick enough

I would thoroughly recommend it.. I am a control freak and, whilst I would say my birth was pain free, I never felt like I wasn't coping, and it didn't occur to me to ask for an epidural. Abother big plus is that it gives the dad a useful job too. Good luck

Kobus, I used it for my second birth. My first has left me still suffering from PTSD. I am not some lucky thing with easy births and a high pain threshold and yet I could handle birth 2 and have fantasised longingly about doing it again.

I did it and it was great. Midwives don't believe you are in labour though- apparently they can tell over the phone just by listening to you I had a really quick birth and no pain relief. I would say go for it.

Hypnobirthing is brilliant!

I have PTSD from DD1's birth. However, I did hypno for my following two labours, both of which were painless despite one baby being brow presentation and my third being 2lb heavier than her sisters!

I did the Natal Hypnotherapy with DS3 and it was brilliant! SO much better than I expected actually, as I didn't really expect it to work .

I enjoyed the preparation for the birth as it meant I took the time to relax properly whilst listening to the CD which I probably wouldn't have done otherwise.

When we were driving into hospital DH said if he didn't know better he would have thought I had gone to sleep - all he could see was me sitting still and all he could hear was heavy breathing.

I kept the headphones on during the labour and birth and found it really worked - when she said 1 2 3 relax I saw my arm just drop to the side without me doing anything conscious to make it do that. I also found the bit about discomfort (the word pain is not used at all) and turning the 'discomfort dial' down if it got too much was simply awesome - I really didn't think it would work but it did!

I needed G&A about twice, once when I got to the hospital and got off the wheelchair straight onto my hands and knees pushing (Only 1hr55mins labour) and I needed to calm down to get back on track after transitioning in the lift on the way up!! and the other time when the afterbirth came out as I was on my back holding DS3 then and of course it hurts when you lie down.

I can absolutely recommend it. The midwife was amazed that it was so quick and quiet and the health visitor phoned me up after speaking about it in clinic to ask for the details as she wanted to recommend it to her neice!

Go the the classes, I 100% believe that they will give you the birth you want.
It is about control, both of emotions and also pain.
You need to do the whole programme, and practice too, it is a system to adopt so that when everything really starts happening it is automatic.

I delivered a 10lb DD, at home without gas and air, in water in 6 hours (from start of regular contractions, so true stage one) and had a really good time with my labour progressing naturally. The hypnobirthing techniques gave me a good understanding of what I can achieve

Forgot to say, I didn't do the classes as there weren't any nearby, this was just the CD and the book. I would have liked to go to classes with DH ideally though, although he was pretty good and did what he was told.

DH and I completed the hypnobirthing course last month and I am due in roughly one month (first baby). We are practising the techniques every day and it has, certainly for me, taken the panic out of the prospect of labour. As others have said, it really is a control thing. I just don't want to freak out and, in turn, stress my baby out. Of course, I don't know how my birth will go, but I am booked in for a water birth at the midwife led unit at my local hospital, and know that this particular maternity unit is pro-hypnobirthing.

I don't mind reporting back once it's all over and give you an honest assessment of how techniques did or didn't help, although, at the moment I am pretty confident that they will help me to cope with whatever is thrown at me. Fingers crossed. :)

Yes! I didn't do a course, just read a book and listened to the cd. DH read a bit of the book. It was our third time and expecting a big baby I was scared. I was so skeptical.

During labour I said my mantra when contractions got tough and during transition it was hard but they got me through. I had no drugs and the midwife basically say back and watched me labour just occasionally listening to baby.

Labour was 9 hrs and baby boy was 9lb 6oz.

I used the cd and whilst it was good, gas and air was better.

Ok, I'll be the voice of (some) dissent. I found the course helpful in that I wasn't apprehensive about going into labour but I actually felt a bot uncomfortable with some of the propaganda style info we were given about inductions and monitoring etc. Our instructor also implied that the reason I had morning sickness until abt 16 weeks was something I was doing wrong.
As it was i was induced at 37 weeks when a scan showed reduced fluid. The exercises were fine until my waters broke, and then completely useless and I asked for an epidural which actually meant I could progress the last few cm and did in fact enable me to avoid a cs.
I fully accept that this may have been more about the instructor than the actual techniques, but you did ask for a negative story :)

I am a massive hypnobirthing fan.

We did the classes in my first pregnancy. I loved the relaxation stuff during pregnancy, didn't feel apprehensive about impending birth. But I ended up being induced at 42 weeks (just for being 42 weeks) and things went pear shaped immediately and ended up with a crash section. But I still found the experience positive overall, and I credit the hypnobirthing with this. It gave me the coping tools I needed.

I gave birth to my second baby on Sunday - a vbac and an utterly different experience, in that I went into labour naturally and handled my surges brilliantly. Again, midwives shocked at my progress based on how calm I seemed! I used gas & air for a few mins during what I can now see was transition - my dd had passed mec, meaning transfer straight from birth centre to labour ward for cfm with me panicking that I'd need another crash section as ds also passed mec in the womb - it helped get my focus back on my breathing and I stopped once I didn't need it any more. Pushed her out myself, though doc was on standby with ventouse as her heart rate was dropping.

Your practitioner is definitely important - ours was lovely but had some suggestions we ignored (eg homeopathy). But the tools she taught us, which we practiced, and the confidence she inspired was invaluable. Practice is v v important. My dh is the opposite of hippy-dippy and was v skeptical. If anything, he's a bigger fan of it than I am now!

Hi ... Yes HypnoBirthing is amazing - I have used it twice and loved my births .. Here's my blog on how I had a pain-free birth ... Good Luck ... xxx

naturalchildbirthworld.com/secrets-to-pain-free-natural-childbirth/

It's probably all woo bollocks, but it does no harm so worth a go on the off-chance it might make a difference!

I did the cds for first pg and considering classes for the next one.

Love hypnobirthing. Didn't do the classes, had one-to-one treatment with a friend who does it and was very impressed. I had the Fear, badly - and the first session got rid of that so hurrah!

I can't say it completely got rid of my pain but then I got sick with contractions and I immediately become completely useless when sick, so couldn't concentrate on anything - but the sessions had obviously sunk into my unconscious somewhere (nightly playing of the CD helped) and I just let my bod get on with what it needed to do, so only had a half hour stage 2.

I was induced at 40+14 so the first part wasn't very natural but then everything else seemed to go ok (apart from the sickness of course) and I still think it was brilliant.

Another fan here, I gave birth 4 weeks ago after having read the book and practising the CD every day, we were delayed in starting our classes due to a delay in house move and baby came at 37 weeks so had only had one class! We were very lucky in that our hypnobirthing practitioner was a midwife at the hospital and was on duty! we had planned a home water birth but baby came at 36+6 and house was still a building site like it is now and instead had a water birth at e hospital but it was amazing, I enjoyed it! I was calm, smiling (!) and quiet throughout, our midwife was laughing that the other midwives 'couldn't understand what was going on in there, why was it so quiet and why didn't I just push the baby out already?' (I had a 1/2 hour first stage followed by a 7 hour second stage - I let the baby descend by himself rather than pushing him out)
I used gas and air one fully dilated to keep my breathing slow and steady, I found it really helpful and the water was wonderful. I can honestly say that I look forward to doing it again some day. Everyone who has met him has commented on how alert DS is and he is generally such a calm and contented baby (we're up at this hour for a feed!) good luck and enjoy it!

I had a water birth with just G&a

Honestly you will get mostly positive feedback because it IS so positive

I started it for my anxiety and phobias (needles and loss of control)
Best thing I ever did. Had a good and fast labour and 4 needles after the birth

I didn't even cry!!!
Amazing. Honestly just do itt