Hypno-anything on a very short timeline?

[tiddle]

Hi everyone,

I've just discovered the literature for Hypnobirthing, and found Hypnobabies after searching for additional resources on the internets. The trouble for me is that I'm already past the 38-week mark - so, no time for classes and not much time to prepare or even order the materials for that matter! I already have a 2yo healthy DS delivered vaginally and without medication but with the usual pain and effort over many hours. He arrived pretty much on time so that's the guideline I'm going by for this one.

Can anyone offer any advice or direct me to online resources for self-hypnosis while in labour? Did anyone have success after stumbling upon it late like me?

Thanks in advance! 

[sosurreal09]

I would get hypnobabies and rush order it. Just double up th work on yourself or something. IDK I used the hypnobabies cds at home and it was amazing! It wasn't completely pain free for me or anything but I was calm and focused and could really relax my muscles and gave birth to my first (at 8lbs 6oz) in 11 hrs. The MW was really shocked b/c I was so young and being my first birth they estimated at least 24 hrs for my birth.

Mostly focus on the finger drop technique and that disc so you can fully relax each muscle.

Good luck!

[Smokering]

It might still be worth getting Hypnobabies, if you can find it fast (Freecycle, La Leche, Craigslist?). I'm two weeks into the course, and I already feel like my birth would go better than "baseline" if I went into labour now, even though I haven't finished the course. (Well, I'm only 25 weeks pregnant, so obviously going into labour now wouldn't be a good thing... but pretend I'm at term.) I've already learned a lot of relaxation stuff. It's possible you could "fast-track" the course to some degree - it's a 5-week course, and you alternate two tracks per werk. So maybe you could do two tracks a day, and halve the time it took to learn all the techniques? Bit of a time commitment, though...

It sucks when you discover something slightly too late, doesn't it?! I hope you figure out something that works for you. I have a friend who does hypnosis (not childbirth-related, just for relaxation and anti-depression), and she finds tracks online; so, Google! You might find something.

[tiddle]

Thanks for the responses! :)

I think I'll try to find some hypnosis tracks on google for this time. I'm in Canada so last minute shipping plus duty makes a rush order very expensive, and my local craigslist has been tapped out. I'll order Hypnobabies later if/when the next bub is on the way.

[sosurreal09]

aww too bad. Hopefully you can find something helpful! The biggest thing for me was telling myself with every single contraction "it's only tightening and pressure" It really did make them more bearable. Try and take yourself to a "safe place" in your mind where you and your baby are. Focus in the moment and remind yourself it is only temporary. Every contraction brings your baby closer to you.

I think the absolute main focus is to learn to fully relax your pelvic area. If you can do that and not give in to the desire to "fight" your labor it will be easy as pie!

Good luck! HTH

[tiddle]

Thanks for the additional tips. My instinct had come to the same conclusion about the relaxation of the pelvic area being paramount. It makes sense.

As it so happens, yesterday I managed to get my hands on a set of 6 Hypnobabies discs!! I got them loaded onto my iPod late last night but couldn't locate a set of earbuds to replace my big headphones (found the buds this morning). Also, there's no workbook or other written material. I Googled the fast-track suggested listening schedule and that's still 3 weeks of routines. Does anyone have any suggestions for, say, a 1-week-or-less crash course? Or any suggestions about missing the workbook? I'm off work now so I do have time to dedicate to this.

Of course I don't know for sure when baby will decide to arrive, but if I gauge by DS1 -- and yes, I know each babe is different and I can't really be assured of anything -- then I've got 7 days until Operation Impending Doom II. 

[sosurreal09]

well I think you will be ok without the work book. I forget which numbers are what for the cds. I would focus on the deep hypnosis one with the finger drop. I would only do the release your fears one once and maybe the special place one once. Try and to the later discs more since those are the ones you will want in labor, but don't do the birth one until you are in labor. That's what I would go for. I never even listened to the pushing one. I also found that I NEEDED my ear buds while giving birth, when I just had it playing on a cd player I couldn't focus and was running up and down the hall cussing lol HTH

[Smokering]

then I've got 7 days until Operation Impending Doom II.

[Scene: after birth]

BABY: I stopped the contractions...

YOU: You made them worse!

INA MAY GASKIN: Worse... or better?

Ahem. :p

I agree you can probably skip/minimise Your Special Place, and the Pregnancy Affirmations. I've read a LOT of women saying they used Deepening in labour, and it's very helpful for getting you very relaxed, so maybe do that one several times? I haven't finished the course myself yet, so can't comment on the later tracks. Don't worry too much about the reading - a lot of it's just general pregnancy care info - diet and "how your uterus works" and all that jazz - and some stuff about turning posterior babies which you can find on spinningbabies.com if you need it.

[sosurreal09]

yea deepening that was it!

[tiddle]

Awesome! Thanks, ladies!

I've been listening to CDs (one per night) when I head to bed. I seem to fall asleep pretty quick but a couple of times I've woken up after an hour or so, feeling a bit... different. Can't put my finger on it. I guess I'm processing this stuff but I hope I can actually tap into it when needed. I remember starting one track and thinking 'Finger drop? When was that mentioned??'. Maybe I should try to get some of these listenings in during the day when I'm more likely to stay conscious.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Smokering 

[Scene: after birth]

BABY: I stopped the contractions...

YOU: You made them worse!

INA MAY GASKIN: Worse... or better?

Ahem. :p

LOL. If my kid takes out half the hospital's power grid over the procurement of some breastmilk, I'd probably have to name them Zim or Tak! (Though I do hope my let-down isn't that difficult!)

[Smokering]

Yeah, I'm not convinced by the "you're not asleep, just in hypnotic anmesia, and your subconscious will remember everything important anyway" line. I fell asleep (and yes, I'm pretty sure it was real sleep!) the first few times I listened to my Creating Anaesthesia CD... and then yesterday I listened to it without falling asleep for the first time, and heard "I want you to practice this technique five times a day". I was like "Wha..? My subconscious didn't tell me that!". It doesn't matter so much for me, as I still have about 13 weeks to go... but for you, I think you'd probably get the most "bang for your buck" out of every session if you listened to them while properly awake. You could always listen while you're going to sleep as well, for a double whammy, though...

[mrsberman]

I'm not sold on the not asleep thing either, but then there have been several times where I think I'm asleep and I wake up to her during the eyes open technique. It amazes me every time.

Yes, you are supposed to practice the finger drop 5 times each day and try to have them be different lengths of time. Tell your self it's going to be X seconds/minutes. I don't practice 5 times a day, but I have noticed myself doing things to make myself relax without even thinking about it. I even find that when I wake up in the middle of the night I take deep breaths and force myself to relax and be calm and then I fall back asleep.

I just started Hypnotic Childbirth #1 and I find this one to be really good.

[tiddle]

Hi ladies, just wanted to update everyone and kind of close off this thread.

As it happened, my second labour was a whirlwind. I woke up at 5:30am on the 12th with back pain but no contractions per se. Within half an hour they were there, and they were strong. I had my iPod loaded with the tracks and fully charged but I didn't touch it at all... at 6:30 I hauled my bleary-eyed DH out of bed, informed him that it was go-time and told him to start calling the midwife, doula and my mother. The doula arrived by about 7:30 and as soon as my mom arrived around 9 to watch DS we booted it to the hospital with the doula imploring me not to push (and, I later found out, following us closely in her car rather than heading straight to the hospital, just in case we decided to pull over! ). I was dilated 9cm on arrival. My second son was born just shy of 11am. 

I don't know how much of the Hypnobabies courses I assimilated in that short time - I did end up only listening to the tracks before bed - but I do think they helped with the mental control part. Even though I knew what natural birth was like, I still had to talk myself through the fear of pain (at the first birth I had significant labial tears and the incursion of those hurt worse than anything else). I did have some tearing this time around, but far less and along an old scar line. I think the CDs also helped with the mental visualization of opening the birth canal and organizing the muscles to work effectively. While the birth certainly wasn't pain-free, it was quick and more importantly it was efficient. No pain meds whatsoever... but then my first birth had only nitrous (which did jack s--- besides distracting me).

So, the plan is to start listening to the CDs on the usual schedule next time around and see if I can combine speedy labour with innate pain control for a no-epi trifecta. Oh, and maybe produce a girl. LOL.