How early do I need to start Hypnobabies?

[Maela]

OK, I decided that I'm definitely going to get the hypnobabies homestudy course. I called a few days ago to see if they had any used copies (I heard they sell them for $80 as opposed to $140 new?), and they took my name and phone number and said it could be just a few days or a few weeks before they call me with an available used one.

I'm almost 20 weeks. How long should I wait before I should just buy a new one?

I'm really excited to start it now, so I'm tempted to just buy new; but I also don't want to waste our money.

[Black Orchid]

Hi there! Not in your DDC, but I'm a Hypnobabies instructor and I saw your post and thought I'd offer help

It is totally up to your how soon you want to start it. Many moms I work with, start it later in their pregnancies when they know they will be able to do the practice every day (about 45-60 minutes of practice and reading). Others think it is really nice to benefit from the deep, daily relaxation sessions everyday starting early on in their pregnancy.

So its truly up to you. If you are comfortable with waiting for a few weeks to save some money, it is fine- as long as you get started by the time you are about 31-32 weeks so you have the full five weeks to practice before your baby could arrive.

All the best to you!

[treehugginmama]

Last pregnancy I started aroudn 20 wks. That's a bit on the early side but I wanted the relaxation time.

[Pandme]

Oh, good. I'll be 20 weeks on Saturday and I want to do this too. I was going to order it today.

[kawa kamuri]

i just looked this up on the site and cannot remember what they said but it's there if you wanna check it out. i used hypnobabies last time and will probably start up again at 20w....which is sunday for me. oh my gosh! half way!

[BraydenParkermommy]

I started early (12 weeks I think), but I felt so unprepared with my first when I had a long labor that I had interventions that lead to a C-Section (started at 32 weeks). I am now almost 19 weeks and am practicing everyday faithfully. I had also missed being able to relax that I couldn't wait any longer! A bit unconventional, but since I am adding the VBAC Script, I thought doing a few weeks per class couldn't hurt.
Megan

[threadbey]

I started two weeks ago because I wanted the relaxing time. It's a little upsetting to HAVE to take the time every day (I'm getting lots less done since now I'm pretty much out of commission when DS is napping) but it is very nice to relax and I think I am feeling better and sleeping better, so it's worth it. Plus, sometimes I sleep through the script by accident and I don't worry about it because I know I have lots of extra time to listen again later.

[Maela]

Thanks for the replies. I think I'll order a new one in a week if I don't get a call back about a used one. That way I should be able to start by 25 weeks.

[tayndrewsmama]

I am so glad you posted this! It reminded me to order it.

[TortelliniMama]

Originally Posted by threadbey

Plus, sometimes I sleep through the script by accident and I don't worry about it because I know I have lots of extra time to listen again later.

You don't have to worry about it anyway. I slept through more than 90% of my Hypnobabies practice time (I would guess I never heard the end of more than 2 or 3 scripts), and it worked wonderfully for me.

[threadbey]

Originally Posted by TortelliniMama

You don't have to worry about it anyway. I slept through more than 90% of my Hypnobabies practice time (I would guess I never heard the end of more than 2 or 3 scripts), and it worked wonderfully for me.

That's interesting to hear. They do say it's ok to sleep through it, but I was getting kind of frustrated when a later script would say, "Now go to your special place..." and I'd be like, what special place? I slept through every single one of those last week! I did finally pick a time I really wasn't tired and tried to stay awake for it and got to listen to it and I'm glad I got it on a more conscious level

[TortelliniMama]

Originally Posted by threadbey

That's interesting to hear. They do say it's ok to sleep through it, but I was getting kind of frustrated when a later script would say, "Now go to your special place..." and I'd be like, what special place? I slept through every single one of those last week! I did finally pick a time I really wasn't tired and tried to stay awake for it and got to listen to it and I'm glad I got it on a more conscious level

I remember hearing at least enough of the special place script to do it consciously, but the whole special place thing ended up being pretty silly for me. The place I picked was our living room, because it just seemed very safe and comfortable for me. Violet was born in...our living room. So the whole idea of going to my special place mentally during birth was pretty funny, since I was there!

[tayndrewsmama]

Mine arrived today and I read a bunch and listened to the first track. I must say, that was rather interesting. I don't know what the heck I really did. I don't remember much of it at all, but I don't think I was actually sleeping. When I sleep during the day I wake up feeling like crap even have to lie there for a bit to get moving again. With this, I opened my eyes not long after the track ended and just hopped right up. So odd. I guess I'll have to listen to that again at a different time of day to make sure I hear the whole thing.

[annettemarie]

I'm going to move this to Birth and Beyond, since it's a general sort of question. Feel free to start an October '09 Hypnobabies thread if you want a thread that's more for general support in your DDC rather than specific questions.

[Veritaserum]

Originally Posted by threadbey

That's interesting to hear. They do say it's ok to sleep through it, but I was getting kind of frustrated when a later script would say, "Now go to your special place..." and I'd be like, what special place? I slept through every single one of those last week! I did finally pick a time I really wasn't tired and tried to stay awake for it and got to listen to it and I'm glad I got it on a more conscious level

Lol, I slept through most of them, too. For Special Place, I make sure to listen at least once at a time I won't fall asleep (tub, for example) so that I know where my special place is.

Here's a chart on when to start:

http://www.birthnaturally.org/Hypnob...classchart.htm

[lthw]

If you're wanting to save some $$, you can order the full home study kit on amazon.com and then sell it back to Hypnobabies for a portion of the full price when you're through with it, or at least that's what I was told when I initially called them (I didn't want to wait to see if a used copy became available). You may want to call and confirm that this is an option.

Good luck!

[tayndrewsmama]

Originally Posted by Veritaserum

Lol, I slept through most of them, too. For Special Place, I make sure to listen at least once at a time I won't fall asleep (tub, for example) so that I know where my special place is.

Here's a chart on when to start:

http://www.birthnaturally.org/Hypnob...classchart.htm

In the bath! I am afraid I might drown. I seriously don't know what happened today. I wasn't actually sleeping, but I wasn't listening at all either after a bit. Then suddenly I was up and ready to go!

[kltroy]

I started mine around 30 weeks and that was actually plenty of time. I think I slept through almost all of mine too! At least, it certainly seemed that way.

...and at the end of the day I didn't end up using it much in labor, but I think that's because I just found something else that worked for me. (turns out I wanted to talk more than meditate while in labor). Had I not had my awesome mom there as labor support I probably would have relied on it more.

[Sudonk]

I started it around week 24 the first time I did Hypnobabies, and enjoyed it so much that I started around week 14 the second time. I purposely did my practice when I got into bed, (a few "finger-drops", then push the play button) so I did the program in my sleep. But I did put each new script on at least once and fast forward through the relaxation bit at the beginning so I could hear what it was teaching me without going into hypnosis. The I would putter around, fold clothes, etc. while listening to make sure I didn't zone out and miss it again. Once I knew what I was learning, I just slept through it the rest of the time! It worked amazingly well! I loved being able to chat and wander around while totally comfortable and relaxed and deeply in hypnosis. No one could even tell I was using it until I chose to go really deep a couple hours after I had reached full dilation.

[Sudonk]

Originally Posted by kltroy

... (turns out I wanted to talk more than meditate while in labor). Had I not had my awesome mom there as labor support I probably would have relied on it more.

I'm glad you found something that worked great, but I'm not entirely sure what you mean by this. Were you using Hypnobabies or another program? Because Hypnobabies includes Eyes Open Childbirth Hypnosis, so you can talk normally while using your hypnosis, if you want. Heck, I did our taxes, eating fresh chocolate chip cookies and calling out the start of each birthing wave to my husband while using Hypnobabies in active labor! It's definitely not a technique that requires "meditation" if that isn't how mom wants to use it.