Gentle Birth Method - Have you tried it?

[ZoeyW]

Hello,

Have you followed the Gentle Birth Method or are you, like me, following it now?
Any tips / advice please!!

What is it exactly, ZoeyW? Sounds intriguing!

I was interested in it but she lost my confidence when I got to the bit where it claimed honey 'becomes toxic when heated' ...

I read the book and it's quite a challenge. No gluten, sugar, wheat from a certain point etc. I found its tone really irksome as it seems to assume you have limitless time to sit around meditating and limitless money to spend on treatments. I'm sure there's some truth in the idea that we don't need to eat quite as much chocolate as some of us (well me) do, but personally I think the sort of birth you get is preordained by the position, size etc of the baby and you.
I know two people who followed it religiously. One had fantastic tear-free water birth. The other horrific third-degree number.
Pol

Oh dear - not interested if there is talk of chocolate (or other delightful food) rationing!

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that bit got me too Pruni

unless you're stuffing crumpets up your fanjo I couldn't think of a single scientific reason why that should be so

I borrowed it from the library and also thought it was odd and unscientific, sorry if that's not a helpful response.
I thought Janet Balaskas/Sheila Kitzinger etc were more grounded and down to earth.
(Had two home births, the second in water, both were quite quick and went well).

(oh and I had a quick, easy waterbirth with no pain relief)

Although agre with some of itI've got it but must admit trying to follow the diet was too much (it made me feel ill ) so gave up . AGree with polly re the treatments.

have foudn zita west bit easier to follow -seems to adopt some of the bits of that but is somehow more a happy medium.

Ahh thanks for that ladies, shall get some more books and take bits from all.
Last time was just so blooming awful am totally desperate not to have same experience.

The recommendations for homeopathic remedies were fantastic from gentle birth method. Take the best bits from each book and abandon the rest.

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I started off trying to follow it- xmas didn't help,but the diet and cost of treatments means I haven't really done any of it, just feel a bit guilty now about most of the food I eat. When I remember!
When I first read it I liked the sound of it, but real life hasn't made it at all possible to do. Though, all the money I've not spent on treatments has been blown on Hypnotherapy -Mongon method- course, which the bit in gentle birth method on relaxation/visualisation persuaded me was worth learning to do properly (DH and I realised we wouldn't learn it properly from a book), and I'm really glad so far that we did- already worth the money. But there are already threads extolling the virtues!
mumofk

I started reading the book, or the edited highlights that I got free with something, and decided anything where I had heard of so little of what she wants you to eat/supplements she thinks you should take, wasn't for me.
I took some of it on board, like reducing wheat - it made me realise how much we were eating in various shapes so we know have a better range of carbs in our meals, but it was only a very diluted version f some of it that I used.
Had a fantastic drug and tear free home water birth so something must have been OK!

I'd agree that this book is very much idealistic rather than realistic. I particularly liked the bit about swimming being good exercise but "try and choose an oxygenated (not chlorinated) pool" (!)

Having said that reducing wheat (a bit) has helped with my digestion but more generally I find the idea of self diagnosing your ayurvedic type from a book and then cutting out lots of foods in response a bit worrying - you might end up not eating enough or having a really unbalanced diet. On the positive side though I've had fun getting my husband to try out the creative healing massage techniques - no idea if they work but any excuse for lots of strokes!!

Mmmmm
going for an ayurvedic consultation to help me out.
Must say I feel loads better from cutting out wheat and sugar.
Going for some reflexology as well, and listening to a relaxation cd.
I am determined to have as relexed a birth as possible after the hell that was my last one.
Birthing pools, home birth etc....
Found the hospital a totally uncalming situation, all those bloody machines and needles.