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Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

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Original poster

Gentle Birth Method - any opinions?

42 replies

soundbites · 27/02/2006 13:32

I found an article about the Gentle Birth Method in one of the Sunday papers and browsed their website - have a look \link{http://www.jeyarani.com/\here}. It sounds almost too good to be true - that the whole 'Western' approach to childbirth brings unnecessary fear, stress and pain to the experience both for the mother and the child and this can be fixed by diet, yoga and focussing the mind. Has anyone tried this out?

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suzywong · 27/02/2006 13:37

Good luck to you if you decide to go that way, no harm in trying
But on the big day only one thing is for certain; the baby is going to come out somehow and if it doesn't happen the way you envisaged you may be in for a bit of a downer. I mean IME it is best to keep an open mind about labour and birth and don't follow one path too strictly.

Cristina7 · 27/02/2006 13:41

Sorry, I haven't checked the website you linked to. I thought childbirth had always been painful. I doubt that in traditional socities women really had the knowledge to obsess over their diet and sit on their back going "ohmmmm".

bubblepop · 27/02/2006 13:55

well, ive never heard of this gentle birthing method, or tried it.just having a quick read through though, i can't help thinking "how much is this going to cost me!"
there is a lot to be said though for keeping calm in labour and having faith in your body's ability to give birth.i think a lot of people are only too quick to tell you their horror birth story, which is awful to hear if your a first-timer especially, you never seem to hear about the good experiences of birth.yes, it hurts, but it can also be a truly amazing,uplifting experience.somehow, you have to find the power wihin yourself to give birth without fear,and acknoledge that the pain that goes with it is a positive thing.if this 'birthing method' can help you focus to do that, then thats gotta be a good thing.

Piffle · 27/02/2006 14:14

I think I had two gentle births. Both quick, relatively pain free (nothing like what I hear other people describe) adn I felt fabulous and energised afterwards
I was psychologically very focussed on calm and natural birthing. I knew if I lost it mentally I'd end up with the full intervention and I was not wanting that all all.
Thankfully I pulled it off.... I do think I talked myself into it, I had no fear at all...

lorre · 27/02/2006 15:16

I would say keep an open mind as things do not always go to plan. I ended up having an emergency caeserean as my baby went into distress but while I was in labour before this I used yoga breathing techniques and this was all I needed to control the pain - so may be worth a try.

kayzed · 27/02/2006 15:25

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Jackstini · 27/02/2006 15:49

Sounds a bit like Hypnobirthing.

I think the principle behind it is that fear makes you tense and tense muscles cause pain in childbirth. (Similar to going for a smear test when the nurse says "it won't hurt, as long as you relax" so you immediately tense up and it does!)
Because we now know so much/see so many births on tv our minds are conditioned that 'it is going to hurt' - so it does.
When you see women birthing who do not have the benefit(?!) of this knowledge, they seem much calmer and tend to have easier births.
Don't know if it works as my first is not due for another 3 weeks but hey, anything's worth a shot.....!

Cristina7 · 27/02/2006 16:23

Birthing? Has this become an active verb, in-keeping with the idea of active birth? Awful.

TuttiFrutti · 27/02/2006 19:01

Soundbites, if it sounds too good to be true, that's probably because it is.

I don't know anything about the Gentle Birth Method and can't comment on it as a birthing method, but the idea that women in traditional societies don't feel pain in childbirth because they haven't been indoctrinated by our evil Western approach is a load of cobblers. The Bible is full of stories of women in pain in childbirth, and Eve is cursed for eating the apple and is told "You will bring forth your children in sorrow". One of Jacob's wives names one of her sons "Pain" after the pain she felt when in labour.

I've seen documentaries of women in African villages screaming in agony during childbirth. But then, maybe they didn't have a gluten-free diet and didn't get to go to yoga classes.

Pruni · 27/02/2006 19:25

I read this book, out of interest rather than because I'm about to give birth. I admit I skimmed quite a bit - a lot of it is scripts for hypnosis. She is/was an obstetrician, though she says a lot of things that fly in the face of modern medicine. I would have to see some peer-reviewed evidence of some of her claims, eg that eating gluten towards the end of pregnancy causes 'cervical congestion' leading to the baby getting stuck (I've never ever heard of that, have you?). It is rather didactic (not my style) and tbh I doubt the truth of some of her assertions, simply because 'this will happen if you do x' is such a silly, disingenuous thing to say in a book about what will be a very deeply emotive experience for any mother.
OTOH, if you are into hypnosis, if you are happy with a restrictive diet, and if you have a lot of money and above all time to spend on the therapies she encourages, it could be for you. But as suzywong says, you can be prepared up to the hilt and still be surprised/shocked/traumatised by the result. This isn't something I'd follow simply because I don't think that following any didactic and essentially unsubstantiated book is the way to go.

MuminBrum · 27/02/2006 19:29

This sounds like a real con - and there's no mention of Dr Jeyarani having had any kids of her own!

Sallie · 27/02/2006 21:19

I have a friend who followed this method for both her babies and both had very small birth weights - probably the product of her eating no sugar or wheat during pregnancy....

Mosschops30 · 27/02/2006 21:23

muminbrum just what I was thinking. Love these people who preach quiet births/picking your child up when they cry/giving in to sleeping with your child when they demand it.
Just love Philip Schofields face when these people go on This Morning, he's clearly in my camp

spidermama · 27/02/2006 21:33

soundbites I think it's well worth a try. If you're interested in this sort of thing you may well find Ina May Gaskin's book about childbirth interesting too. There are plenty of positive birth stories in there.

I really believe this sort of thing can make an enormous different to ones approach and to ones births. I'm amazed by the attitude that one oughtn't to have great ideals about birth in case one feels bad when they don't come off.

There really are people out their who find birth relatively easy. I've had two easy and two tough ones, all at home and drug free. I cherish the memories of each one. I was never scared and I believe that really helps.

No two people have the same experienced but don't be knocked by other womens' horror stories. It doesn't have to be that bad.

suzywong · 27/02/2006 23:59

don't be amazed spidermama, be flexible. It really does make one feel like S(it and as we all know there is enough of that to deal with in the first 12 weeks

MI has written a couple of fabulous articles on this.

spidermama · 28/02/2006 09:28

It depends whether you favour the optimist's approach which I do (aim high and you might get at least some way up) or the pessimist's approach like my mum (aim low and you won't be disspointed.)

suzywong · 28/02/2006 09:47

I was optomistic to the tune of 400 notes handed over to Janet Balaskas and equally crestfallen when it ended up as am EM C

As I say, MI has done a couple of wonderful articles on this which she may be kind enough to quote if she ever comes back

Jackstini · 28/02/2006 10:53

I think the best idea is to be optomistic and relaxed without handing any money over! Meditation doesn't cost but being relaxed about birth has logically got to help. Your muscles have to relax to let the baby out so it is an obvious conclusion that tensing those muscles is going to make birth more difficult...

Pinchypants · 28/02/2006 11:33

I haven't come across this book in particular but I am a fan of yoga, breathing and hypnotherapy, and it seems pretty logical to me that anything that helps the mother cope with the pain and experience of birth has to be a good thing.

Personally I will use these holistic techniques to prepare me and hopefully help me give birth, but the only thing that really matters is a healthy baba. I hope that practising yoga, meditation and visualisation will help me avoid a c-section or too much intervention, but if it can't, so be it.

If our muscles tense up and we hold our breath when we are scared and anxious, that can't possibly help the baby's route out. Perhaps these kind of techniques can help some women 'relax' through the pain and help baba's progress. We shall see - it's obviously going to be different for everyone.

I think you just have to keep an open mind about these things - I think I'd rather think I had tools at my disposal to help me, than feeling totally at the whim of hospital shifts and other external stuff. But without being so wedded to them that I feel disappointed or unprepared for a difficult birth.

Pinchy xxx
17+4

Original poster

soundbites · 28/02/2006 11:51

Thank you, ladies, for your comments. I agree that it does cost a fortune - about £250 for the course, £14.99 for the book, and of course you need the audio version too for £10-£12 and her special herbal teas, tablets and massage oil ... oh, and £20 for e-mail advice! Apparently celebrity mums are hooked but they can afford to be. I might buy the book (or at least see if I can take a quick peek in a book shop - I am unlikely to like it if it is didactic as Pruni says). Weirdly enough an article on hypnobirthing turned up in today's Argus lite and I agree, Jackstini, that it has similarities. I'm not even pregnant yet, though ttc after Easter, but I must admit being fearful of giving birth. My mum managed four of us though naturally and with no problems so lets hope it is genetic! I think it must be an amazing experience and keep telling myself that loads of other women have done it so why can't I!

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RosiePosie · 28/02/2006 11:59

I'm not familiar with the Gentle Birth Method, but have read and am a fan or "Birthing from Within". Apart from the art therapy stuff, which I by-passed, it makes a lot of sense to me, although I'm not sure whether it would have helped as a first time mother (heading into the complete unknown). With the experience of birth behind me twice now, I read "Birthing from Within" and thought - yes that makes complete sense. Basically the gist of it is - relax and breathe and do nothing else. You body is designed to give birth and the majority of times, it will do all by itself with no complications. Childbirth is hard work, it is painful, and you CAN do it. That, as far as I'm concerned is all I need to know.

Pruni · 28/02/2006 17:18

RP my midwife recommended Birthing From Within, and I agree, it is wonderful. (I too bypassed the art therapy stuff.) The difference in her approach is that she is in no way prescriptive (unlike Gentle Birth woman) and speaks a lot of sense about the emotional side of it. I would heartily recommend this one, though I read it after giving birth, and did think as I was reading it that had I not had the experience, I might feel it was a load of poppycock.
I think it's an absolutely lovely book, written with real feeling, rather than a clear desire to make money.

MissChief · 28/02/2006 17:31

agree with Jackstini shouldn't ideally have to fork out for a natural birth..I think alternative practitioners can take advantage of a woman's vulnerability and willingness to do anything for their baby.. I was lucky enough though to have a midwife (NHS) who used acu-pressure & relaxation techniques on me for my home-birth, not standard though! yoga in pregnancy also a great help...

dinosaur · 28/02/2006 17:33

I wouldn't describe any of mine as "gentle".

However I do agree with RosiePosie and that's more or less what I managed to do with my third one too. Except he came out with his arm up and got a bit stuck!

I still say that having a doula is £300 well spent.

RosiePosie · 28/02/2006 17:58

Childbirth IS hard work, it IS painful, I COULD do it - but the gas and air sure did make it easier

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