Hypnobirthing course - worth it?

[faelavie]

At my booking appointment my midwife gave me some info about a hypnobirthing course they are running at the MLU. It used to be free but now they are charging £100 for it. She said it's really popular and if I want to do it to let her know on my next appointment with her, which is next week.

Have any of you ladies done a hypnobirthing course and was it worth it for you?

Tbh I am a little bit skeptical and my birth plan so far just consists of "all the drugs please" and "get the baby out of me no matter what".

I'm trying to save money so I can have more time off with my baby when he/she arrives, so I'm not sure I want to put down £100 right now for something I'm not totally sure will benefit me. £100 is a lot of money for me right now!

Any thoughts?

I would ask for the course content to see what you get for £100. I've never done a physical hypnobirthing course, so not sure what private classes cost/cover in comparison. For birth prep I read some hypnobirthing principals about breathing, visualisations, positive affirmations, not referring to trigger words like contractions and pain etc and personally found it really helpful. Yes, birth hurts like hell, but I def got into the zone both times and only had gas & air. I trusted my body and think I got that confidence from what I'd read.

However, I would highly recommend following The Positive Birth Company on Instagram/FB. The lady who runs it gives brilliant hypnobirthing advice and they have a digital pack for £35 (I follow the Unmumsy Mum and she had an offer to purchase for £12, which I did). The pack is excellent. Lots of short videos talking all things hypnobirthing, explaining physically what happens to our bodies, what hormones we want and don't want (I.e. oxytocin not adrenalin), how important your mind is to have a successful labour and how to get your mind and body working together, how to approach things when they don't go to plan and then specific techniques to get you through etc. She has the most calming voice! You also get MP3's, a PDF of notes to download and access to an app and private FB group. I don't work for them I promise, just think that for the money it is a wealth of info you can work through at your own pace.

I know someone who did a course and found it useless when in labour. I know someone else who did a course and was so calm throughout labour, the midwives were shocked she was 9cm. I’ve bought a book that has great reviews. There are free downloads I can listen to as well. This will be my second birth, so I’m well aware of the pain! I’m just hoping to be able to approach things positively and I hope that it will make a difference. I’m also getting a tens machine.

100% look into the positive birth company's online digital pack, it's £35 and me and my husband loved it.

You get a the full online course, a really good booklet and birth plan template. I was debating whether to do it or not but so so glad I did in the end :)