Hypnobirthing

[Mustang27]

I really want to try hypnobirthing for my 2nd birth but it’s so pricey. To do a course is 250 quid and with a toddler and baby on the way and only my partner working at the mo it’s just not viable.

What alternatives are there out there? Is there self taught stuff I can do? Any one with any experience that can help me out in any way I’d appreciate.

I just listened to a random cd someone lent me but it really helped! It's all about putting you into the right mindset.

I tried to have HB with DD1 but things stalled and I ended up having ventouse delivery at hospital. Did hypnobirth cd when preg 2 with DD2 and things went so fast there was almost no time to have got to hospital anyway! But really think the cd helped keep me in the zone and go with it. I listened to it every night for most of last few weeks. I usually fell asleep through it but I think it worked ;)

I hypno/home-birthed for DC2, and it was a brilliant experience. Utterly calm, peaceful and I genuinely enjoyed the birth. I felt so in control of everything.

My favourite technique was imagining that I was softly blowing a golden thread into the air...I know, but it worked!

I haven't read this whole thread so not sure if someone else has commented but my local hospital offers the hypnobirthing course for £50, just to cover the materials. Have you looked at the local hospitals to you?

Has anyone mentioned relaxedparenting dot co dot uk

It just popped up on my twitter I forgot I was following a nice midwifery academic.

If you subscribe to Apple Music, there are a few hypnobirthing things on there. I have listened to a few and not taken any classes, better than nothing at all I guess!

Maggie Howell's natal hypnotherapy CDs are amazing. I had a complicated birth and everyone (MW, doctors) were expecting me to be freaked out but I was completely calm throughout and after.

Only thing I did differently was play the actual hypnotherapy CD during the 3 day labour, rather than just the music, as I found the music wasn't enough to keep me focussed.

I second Sophie Fletcher's Mindful Hypnobirthing. I never went to classes but practising her techniques made a big difference to me (I came across it at 28 weeks too).

However, if I have a DC2, I will pay the money to go to hypnobirthing classes - a little practice at hypnobirthing was wonderful, but I'd definitely do more the next time.

I second Maggie Howells! I did a course, but all we did was sit around, eating cake and chatting. We vaguely followed the Maggie Howells book and I used the CDs at home. You can download all the breathing exercises on iTunes as well. Very interesting stuff and well worth doing.

I did Maggie Howells too. It was nice to do in the antenatal period tbh and I fell asleep to it on the sofa with earphones in plenty of times!

However (hope this is ok to say) it only helped up to a point in labour and in retrospect I wished I'd had an epidural but I went past the point of being able to ask for one. Had an epidural for 3 of my deliveries, just not this one - this was the only one where I wasnt induced.

However I'd do the hypotherapy CDs again (if I had time) in future as overall it was a pleasant thing to do and really no harm was done!

I listened to Maggie Howells podcasts (think it's called Essential Birth Skills) and read the book. I definitely think it helped me to remain calm, at home until 6cm and to cope with labour without medication. I of course realise there's a lot of luck involved and you get the labour you get etc but hypnobirthing got me over my fear of childbirth and feeling calm and in control of the whole situation.

I had the natal hypnotherapy cd's with ds2 and dd3.

Both times I nearly gave birth without a midwife in the room they didn't believe me when I said I was about to have a baby! I had to actually make a 'I am having a baby' noise to get midwife back for DD3 after she'd given me a withering look, and wandered off.

DS2 I had a very fast birth with contractions piling on top of each other with very little break (like seconds) and I coped with it. I don't think I would have without the cd's. I think they were the best £20 (for 2 cd's) that I ever spent! I can't see how a course could have improved my experience.

I would be very cautious of a home birth. I had the most uneventful pregnancy ever with DS2, no signs of risk for the baby. Every appointment everything was perfect.

However he was born with a rare condition that is almost impossible to detect antenatally. He struggled breathing and needed emergency surgery to save his life. He's absolutely fine now but I dread to think what could have happened with a home birth - we had NICU and specialist doctors just down the corridor at the hospital. I know statistically the chances of this happening are very low but I wouldn't take any chances with a home birth.

Of course it oks to say @RideOn this is my second labour so I know how hard it can be and my advice e to anyone asking about labour is take the pain meds’ you feel you need as no one comes round telling you how amazing you were for not doing it afterwards lol. Damn swines.
I did ask for some pain meds too late as well and I kind of lost it a little but they wouldn’t let me birth in the position I wanted (all fours kind of) and kept telling me not to push even though I was fully dilated but they thought I wasn’t  but this was all in the last hour or two of a 19hr labour so I can’t complain.

I’m loving all the suggestions and actually listened to a few options now it’s been fantastic and I’ve found it relatively easy to do and not fell asleep yet lol.

Love your stories of birth @dangermouseisace why do so many say the midwife didn’t believe them, it seems bad to me glad you thought the cds helped. I’m listened to a few bits and half way through the first book I downloaded already and I don’t think a person teaching me would make a massive difference.

Wow Rock I’m so glad that ended well, that must have been very stressful at the time though. I’m glad you were in the right place. I’m not dead set against hospital I just wanted to genuinely consider other options seriously and be sure I’m doing what’s right for us all.

Hypnobirthing did absolutely fuck all for me and I did two courses, one for each DC. It did leave me with an abject sense of failure when I ended with an EMCS for DD, so that was nice. Turns out I am not very suggestible....

I had epidurals which transformed my labour into enjoyable experiences. Keeping an open mind also might involve thinking about alternatives. There are quite a few people around who did not have good experiences with hypnobirthing, but they tend to get a bit drowned out on threads like these.

@VeryPunny that’s crap I’m sorry it went so badly for you. I accept the fact that obviously it can’t help you in the event of things like emcs.

I managed during a 19hr back to back labour just on gas and air so I’m doing hypnobirthing and aromatherapy this time in hope that I can manage but il be more than happy to accept if I need more pain relief.

I don’t fancy an epidural at all.

Thank you Hypnobirthinghome I’m no where near West Norwood I feel pretty well organised but we shall see.