~Hypnobirthing~

[Pearl327]

I am listening to hypnobirthing by GentleBirth(the Irish one, I know there is a UK one too) programme for a successful VBAC. After an emergency c-section with DD after 3 days of labour I am really looking at what can help make my birth experience positive this time around.

[Wanting-a-girl]

I was looking up this yesterday... I am interested in it all three of my labours were super intense and the thought of this labour is terrifying me... I've had an epidural twice and my second son was natural only cause he was my 30 min labour which was my most painful labour...

[rainbowflower]

I've hypnobirthed both times and really recommend it.

DS1s was a silent labour then a hospital bed birth using Marie Mongan Hypnobirthing. Story here: http://genderdreaming.com/forum/birt...tions-all.html

DS2 was a birth centre water birth, again reaching 6cm without feeling a twinge and using a mix of Hypnobirthing and Natal Hypnotherapy (which I preferred). Story here: http://genderdreaming.com/forum/birt...rth-story.html

[Elements]

Wow! I was not expecting this much response to this thread! The usual response is "Good luck with that, I wish i could do it but I need every drug under the sun because I have difficult labours." Which is the exact attitude we have all had embedded into us our whole lives and I'm hoping to make woman aware that this attitude is not how it needs to be at all!

Rainbow flower - what was the main differences between the two styles? I'm abit concered if I use any other style then what worked for me with DD2, I may muck myself up and not be able to be focused.

Cinss - Yay for buying to book, I cant wait to hear you feed back on it and if you need any additional resources I know where you can source them for a good price (it cannot be given away do to copyright laws)

[Pearl327]

My mum and my overweight smoker sister had natural drug free births with all theirs. My MIL only used the gas &air with her 7. So i was aiming for a natural intervention & drug free birth with DD. so when that didn't happen I felt like a complete failure. It was the medicated birth that was the foreign concept for me.

[ELP]

Whats silent birthing?? I like to got to the hospital on my own and just rock away with the gas and air, I looove gas and air lol and then i buzz the midwife to see the head out. Is that like silent birthing??

[Wanting-a-girl]

When I was shadowing my OB there was a woman in full blown labour and had a smile on her face the entire time no pain at all it was amazing and I always wondered how do I do that?! Lol I am going to def be looking more into it

[Elements]

My mum and my overweight smoker sister had natural drug free births with all theirs. My MIL only used the gas &air with her 7. So i was aiming for a natural intervention & drug free birth with DD. so when that didn't happen I felt like a complete failure. It was the medicated birth that was the foreign concept for me.

Thats a very common feeling.

The problem these days, is we are taught all about what could could go wrong and what the process are when that happens. It become the main focus of our labours. If more time was spent teaching woman how to Breath and relax and enjoy their labours then THAT would became the main focus.

How do you think woman laboured back in the day? the elder woman taught them how to do it. No one teaches us anymore. We just have the "SURPRISE - now figure it out" system going. And because we dont know how to figure it out, we instinctivly reach for the drugs and the medical team because that is what we have been taught so that is were we seek comfort.

[Elements]

Whats silent birthing?? I like to got to the hospital on my own and just rock away with the gas and air, I looove gas and air lol and then i buzz the midwife to see the head out. Is that like silent birthing??

Some cultures believe that the room must be silent when a baby is born. No talking at all. not even noise from the birthing mother.

[rainbowflower]

Rainbow flower - what was the main differences between the two styles? I'm abit concered if I use any other style then what worked for me with DD2, I may muck myself up and not be able to be focused.

I found that aspects of them complemented each other well. Hypnobirthing is more prescribed in that you do specific breathing exercises for relaxation/contractions/birth breathing, and other complementary things such as visualisations/light touch massage. The birth affirmations from the Hypnobirthing CD were fab and really helped me.

Natal seemed a lot more "follow your instincts" and just keep breathing calmly no matter what. The lady on the CD has a nicer voice IMO, I liked the self hypnosis track on the CD as it also contained reference to the pain dial within it so I'd pinch myself during it and use the technique to practise numbing the feeling. There was a more simple breathing exercise so easier to practise and easier to follow during the birth.

They both teach a variety of tools and suggestions for coping with pain and making your birth easier/faster that you can optionally learn (visualisation/pain dial/numbing hand/distraction such as counting/massage/movements), both emphasise relaxation and breathing as the key thing. I'd perhaps say that the Natal one also has more of the techniques in it. Hypnobirthing only advocates light touch massage, for example, but Natal even says that a rough pelvic massage can help with tension and also can be used to reduce stress hormones when in transition or when you lose it a bit so you can refocus and even though I hadn't known about this the first time we had instinctively done it and it had helped a lot.

They both include birth stories of women who have tried the techniques successfully so it's good for outweighing any negative stories you're told. They also both go into a lot of detail about the physiology of birth so you can learn how to make it work for you and can even tell dilation without actually being examined in active labour.

I used the breathing exercises and relaxation CDs of Natal, the visualisation of Hypnobirthing (in the early stages), and the affirmations of Hypnobirthing. Also used movement and the back massage that Natal promote.

Whats silent birthing?? I like to got to the hospital on my own and just rock away with the gas and air, I looove gas and air lol and then i buzz the midwife to see the head out. Is that like silent birthing??

From a medical perspective, a silent labour is when you are contracting and dilating but unable to feel it and unaware that you are in labour because of that. I reached 7cm without a single twinge with DS1 and had no idea I was contracting/in labour, and only knew because we DTD and it made me bleed so we went to hospital to get it checked out and they examined me to find a cause for the bleeding. I actually reached 6cm without a twinge with DS2 but didn't progress further than that until I had a sweep to kickstart active labour (and felt that then!)

Apparently it's very unusual, but I know a few women who have experienced the same thing and most of them were also hypnobirthers oddly enough.

Some cultures believe that the room must be silent when a baby is born. No talking at all. not even noise from the birthing mother.

That's not quite the same thing as silent labour, see above!
Although a silent room can definitely help the mother go within to her natural birthing mind easier (with a less active brain/stimulation).