Hypnobirthing without the judgement

[CoolNoMore]

Hello! Can anybody recommend a hypnobirthing book/ audiobook/ source that's not utter hippy bollocks?! I have been told that I am really quite likely to be induced with syntocinon again and I'm ok with that, because it will be in order to save my baby's life. Although I found the epidural to be a magical, wonderful relief, it did make DS1 very sleepy (seemed great at the time but led to weight loss and he was re-admitted to hospital a few days after we had been discharged). So I'd like to do as much of it as I can on my own. Hypnobirthing seemed like a good idea.

The audiobook I'm currently slugging my way through keeps making shitty little comments that is putting me off the whole thing:

"She opted for an epidural, so of course it all went downhill from there."

"The birth was painless, because she didn't need to feel pain."

"So many women use pregnancy as an excuse to lie on the sofa..."

I'd rather have some sort of SAS torture resistance training, I think. Someone yelling at me that YES THIS IS INSANELY PAINFUL BUT YOU CAN DO IT or similar. Also if they threw in a 'medical intervention is not the end of the f*ing world' that'd be good. This woman keeps on talking about the cascade of intervention, and I'd rather not be constantly reminded that this birth is going to be far from my ideal. Any ideas?!

Oooh, I've read the free sample of the Milli Hill book and I'm loving it! Thanks for that. I thought I'd read enough bookson pregnancy for anyone... I was wrong.

@Gerdticker It's Kathryn Clarke's Hypnobirthing home course or something. I hate it. I found it on Audible, did no research and just thought all hypnobirthing was pretty much the same. Bleuch.

@madcatladyforever My memory of the 48 hours I was in labour is hazy, but there was pethadine involved as well so maybe it was that. I was on the Evil Drip of Despair for eight hours or so before they suggested the epidural, unable to breathe during contractions at all, wanting to die so it would all stop. I'm fairly sure I have experienced pain.

@Mucklowe Are you available for the birth, please? You sound more reassuring than my husband. You'll need to get to Melbourne... thanks in advance

@UrsulaSings YES. This. Although I went into my first birth full of confidence, with my Mum assuring me that both of her births and breastfeeding were a piece of piss, so my confidence was actually a little too high

@Twitchett22 That's the labour I was absolutely convinced I would have! CONVINCED.

@HildaSnibbs Ok, that's interesting. Gas and air made me throw up as well, but I couldn't get the timing right so it wasn't even helpful, but I kept at it, desperate for something to work. I just want to be able to breathe this time.

@MammytoElla I'd really like to be able to move around this time! I had done so much yoga, swimming, active birth classes etc it was such a massive disappointment when they said I had to lie down, hooked up to a machine. I think they were convinced I was going to end up with an EMCS, because they gave me a catheter right away and everything I had planned went out the window.

I don't know if I'm delusional, maybe I should just give up and go with a lovely epidural, and hope for the best.

I am the outlier - I HAAAATE Milli Hill's book with a burning passion. She manages to be both patronizing and terrifying. Her bit on pain during labour had me having a hysterical meltdown on my consultant. I was in such a state that she agreed to induce me with a simultaneous epidural so I wouldn't feel so much as a twinge.

I ended up having an ELCS, so I should never have bothered reading it in the first place .

@allfurcoatnoknickers Aw nooo! But I will absolutely challenge you to a condescend-off - try my crappy audiobook! She manages to sound so smug the whole time and quite openly mocks women for feeling pain. You don't need to feel pain, did nobody tell you?!

@CoolNoMore Milli Hill's Philosophy is that if you feel pain you're just not being positive enough. If you renamed your contractions surges, then they wouldn't hurt at all! She doesn't openly mock, but she's pretty disapproving.

But then she also says that in the first 8 hours of labour you'll spend 111 minutes in pain, which was what triggered my hysterical meltdown. I'm a wuss so 11 seconds of pain is a bit much for me. You're probably made of sterner stuff.

I had an awful birth with dc1 and figured that if hypnotherapy made made it even 1% better with dc2 then it was worth a shot.

I used Maggie Howells cd, listened to it a lot, and my birth was awesome. Pain free home birth, honestly it was awesome. I dont tend to mention it in real life cause I dont want to make enemies, but you did ask!

And I hate woo. But hypnosis is a long way off woo.

Another vote for positive birth book. I didn’t find it too hippy

@allfurcoatnoknickers ...right. Sigh.

@ifeellikeanidiot Pain-free homebirth sounds great to me! There's no way in hell I'd be allowed, but ungh, I'd have loved that.

I did a hypnobirthing course with baby number 1 and needed up 24 hours on the induction drip and definitely managed with the pain with no form of relief other than the breathing techniques

Positive birth company digital pack was great for me. The whole pain surge thing is annoying so I just ignore that irritating bit but the rest was great. My induced second birth was great, a world away from my first birth which was agonising! You can definitely have a great induced birth.

@CoolNoMore even when your hooked up to monitors and drips if you wanted to move your midwife should have helped. My community midwife told me women are not designed to birth on your back in bed (some women find that comfortable though, my sister did). Moved as much as the wires and drips let me, the bed moves in different positions and birthing balls. If you need further pain relief and epidurals go for it! You get no medals fo giving birth without pain relief. I just know that I would have been a mess if couldn't move.