Has anyone used hypnobabies before or is anyone planning on using it? - Page 2

[natalieadw]

Another quick question, when should I start? I found this website and it was helpful, but I still prefer personal opinions. I would like to spend two weeks on each section, and not have to be in maintenance for too too long....but I really don't know how long is too long!

Thanks!

[nerdymom]

Originally Posted by natalieadw

Ok, please don't flame me for asking these questions....I'm going to be blunt and honest. [...]

-I am the type of person who "calls a spade a spade". All of this alternative language has really made me nervous about the whole program. There's no way I can buy into it. I will always call things what i've always called them. And I don't think I could get my DH, doula, and mw to always say the right words as well. I just can't see myself having a BH ctx, and saying "oh boy, that one doozy of a fake pressure wave"

-I'm nervous about having to constantly listen to or have someone reading me the "scripts" during labor (ahem....I meant 'birthing time').

I am taking Hypnobirthing, which I really like a lot. I agree with you on many of your points. There are some things in the classes that DH and I feel a bit foolish and out-of-character doing. However I do appreciate the reasons behind many of their methods, like calling contractions "surges" or "tightenings". There is such a culture of fear surrounding birth that I think for some women who have these strong associations with certain birthing terms these techniques can be quite helpful. For me they seem silly and unnecessary, and DH and I are just letting those things go. The scripts also seem a bit unneccesary to me. I'd much rather turn on some music and go into hypnosis.

I think the point is to practice breathing deep, going inside yourself and not allowing your mind and your fear interrupt your body's birthing process. The materials you use are merely to enable you to do that. The class can also be quite good for your partner, to help him feel involved. I don't know about hypnobabies, but hypnobirthing teaches the partner some massage techniques (far more practical adn fun to practice than scripts I think, lol) as well as how to prompt the mother into going deeper.

Originally Posted by MamaChicken

*snip!*!

:

[nerdymom]

Originally Posted by natalieadw

Another quick question, when should I start? I found this website and it was helpful, but I still prefer personal opinions. I would like to spend two weeks on each section, and not have to be in maintenance for too too long....but I really don't know how long is too long!

Thanks!

I've heard the sooner the better, because the more you practice the relaxation techniques, the more you will be able to own them and adapt them to feel comfortable to you.

[emc03]

thank you so much, mama c. that completely answered my questions! i was just speaking with a coworker about this and remembered i posted those issues.

i think i'll pop for the home study. besides, i think dh really needs a structure to build off of so he feels prepared for the birth too and what his role is/my expectations are. this should help open up the discussion.

thanks!!

[emc03]

i actually went back and read through instead of skimming.

1) i'm the same: analytical, practical, call it as i see it. natalie, i see you're outside chicago, that's where i'm from. wonder if it's a midwestern thing?
but i would approach the same way, so it's good to hear someone who used it say it works even if you go ahead and separate the wheat from the chaff, what's usable from what's not.

2) i totally agree with using this to help dh too. i think he needs this as much as i. we were just talking last night and he said he might just step back and defer to my sister and midwife if i get "stuck" or stubborn about giving up. NOOOOOO!!!! we SO need to talk about what exactly his role is!

3) like the comment about perception and the words used in the scripts. i don't mind labor, b/c it reminds me my job is to birth the child. that requires a commitment to that responsibility and i always do my job well. but it's a good point that sometimes the way we talk about things reveals more about our belief than we know....

wow, this turned out to be one hell of a good thread!! thanks everyone!!

[natalieadw]

Originally Posted by emc03

i actually went back and read through instead of skimming.

1) i'm the same: analytical, practical, call it as i see it. natalie, i see you're outside chicago, that's where i'm from. wonder if it's a midwestern thing?
but i would approach the same way, so it's good to hear someone who used it say it works even if you go ahead and separate the wheat from the chaff, what's usable from what's not.

2) i totally agree with using this to help dh too. i think he needs this as much as i. we were just talking last night and he said he might just step back and defer to my sister and midwife if i get "stuck" or stubborn about giving up. NOOOOOO!!!! we SO need to talk about what exactly his role is!

3) like the comment about perception and the words used in the scripts. i don't mind labor, b/c it reminds me my job is to birth the child. that requires a commitment to that responsibility and i always do my job well. but it's a good point that sometimes the way we talk about things reveals more about our belief than we know....

wow, this turned out to be one hell of a good thread!! thanks everyone!!

Right on mama!

[mochimama]

This thread is the first I've heard of hypnobabies, but it sounds like something I need. I'm a bit high stress (as well as analytical like the rest of you all) and wonder if I am capable of a pain-free controlled birth. This sounds like heaven to me. A couple of additional questions:
1. Do you think it's worth the $139? I saw a couple on ebay, but it looks like the bidding will go almost that high.
2. Do you think the techniques might be usable outside of the birth process? I'd definitely like to use it during birth, but I could use some stress reduction overall in my life.
Thanks!

[MamaChicken]

Originally Posted by natalieadw

Another quick question, when should I start? I found this website and it was helpful, but I still prefer personal opinions. I would like to spend two weeks on each section, and not have to be in maintenance for too too long....but I really don't know how long is too long!

Thanks!

Some people do experience burnout, so you might not want to start too early. It is a 5 week program, or 10 weeks if you do it 2 weeks per lesson. If you do the 2-week/lesson version, I would start no later than 28 weeks, but probably no earlier than 24 weeks. If you want to see some of the benefits before starting the whole program you could try a few of the other discs (like the sleep NOW disc):

http://www.hypnobabies.com/page/stor...ectant-mothers

Since I have done this before, I am debating when to start. I am listening to the Birthing Your Twins Naturally disc every night and the Sleep Now disc as needed. I won't start the regular program until at least 24 weeks, but probably 28 weeks.

ETA: If you want more than just my opinion, I would strongly suggest joining the Yahoo group. There are some wonderful women there including some of the instructors/doulas. There are also some common "issues" that come up that almost everyone experiences, like an intense restless feeling a week or two into the practice. IF you aren't expecting it, you might be really worried.

[MamaChicken]

Originally Posted by mochimama

This thread is the first I've heard of hypnobabies, but it sounds like something I need. I'm a bit high stress (as well as analytical like the rest of you all) and wonder if I am capable of a pain-free controlled birth. This sounds like heaven to me. A couple of additional questions:
1. Do you think it's worth the $139? I saw a couple on ebay, but it looks like the bidding will go almost that high.
2. Do you think the techniques might be usable outside of the birth process? I'd definitely like to use it during birth, but I could use some stress reduction overall in my life.
Thanks!

1 - I think it is totally worth the $$. If you have financial issues, they do sell used courses at a reduced rate. I would be careful with the Ebay versions. I am a member of the Yahoo group and there were 4-5 ladies there last year who bought the course off Ebay and then found out it was missing vital pieces, like most of the workbook or missing CDs.

2- I used the finger drop technique to relax and go to sleep for months after DD was born. They have a Sleep CD that is for everyone. Another option might be some guided imagery tracks, like they sell at Health Journeys:

http://www.healthjourneys.com/Catego...id=18&catid=43

A few of their titles are available from Kaiser Permanente:

https://members.kaiserpermanente.org/redirects/listen/

I have not tried these yet, but I suggested the sleep track to one of the guys at work and he seriously raves about it. He was getting 4-5 hours per night and feeling tired. Now he get 7-8 hours and wakes up feeling rested.

[natalieadw]

Thanks for the advice! I love the sleep now cd's (and I could really really use it) but I just can't see spending that much on a CD after forking over the full price for the system. Too bad something like that isn't included.

[Katielady]

I got my hypnobabies course in the mail over the weekend. I like it so far, although the book is written poorly IMO. It has a lot of ALL CAPS and bolding and underlining, which makes it look very amateurish and just hard to read. (I used to be a writer/editor in the corporate world so I'm sensitive to that kind of thing!) But the CDs seem great, I like her voice and look forward to the daily relaxation time.

It's weird though- two of the doulas in my group contacted me to express concerns about Hypnobabies, since I'd mentioned I'm using it. Made me nervous! But once they explained their concerns I'm not worried- one of them is the whole "don't combine it with other courses," which makes it seem cultish, and I understand that. But when you read the explanation outlined in the book it does make sense. If the whole point is giving yourself only positive, calm images of birth, seeing a noisy Bradley birth on tape might send a mixed message to your subconscious. I'm not planning on going "whole hog" with HB, and just mainly want to use it for relaxing, not necessarily to put myself in a state of complete hypnosis or to have a pain-free birth. But I can see how if you were going all out, you would want to avoid exposure to the more typical scenes of childbirth. Their other concern is that it sets up the expectation of a painless birth, and can be disappointing if that doesn't work out. One doula had a client who had a long, difficult labor, and eventually asked for a fairly early epidural. After getting the epi, she said to her doula, "They said it wasn't supposed to hurt!" When she experienced pain, she thought it meant something was wrong, or that she was doing something wrong, and she got very discouraged and gave up. That sucks! So I can definitely see that being a problem, esp. for a first-time mom. But again, not a problem for me. I know labor can hurt, and I'm not expecting this one to be pain-free.

I suspect that some doulas might also have misgivings about it because it's so internal, and perhaps creates less of a role for the doula. It will be interesting to see how I will mesh the HB stuff with my own doula. I think it'll work, but I'll have to see when I see!

[natalieadw]

Ok.....lastnight I listened to the very first CD ( I had read section 1 over the weekend). I'm discouraged that maybe this isn't right for me

1. I simply could not get comfy, and I was readjusting every few minutes. My shoulders were not sinking and my body was not responding to the deep breathing. Actually, it felt so UNNATURAL to have my tongue behind my upper teeth and breath out that way, that I ignored that repeated suggestion and just breathed in/out through my nose. If I breath in through my nose and out through my mouth, I have to focus to do it, which brings my attention away from the script. Also I started to get nauseous?!

2. I stopped then restarted later in my own bed. Same thing, nauseousness that started only after I began the CD, readjusting, struggling to breath as requested.

I didn't get through more than 14 minutes both times and had to turn it off.

Ugh....please tell me this is a commmon experience for the first time listening to a script! I'm just discouraged now. Hypnobabies is so far from anything I have ever tried before. I'm honestly just not the type of person who can sit still very long without figeting with something.....so sitting completely still for 39 minutes is going to be nearly impossible.

[Patchfire]

I ignore the specific breathing suggestions and just concentrate on breathing deeply and slowly. I think there was a similar question on the Hypnobabies yahoogroup and basically that was the consensus - if you have an 'alternate' method of breathing and relaxing, and it works for you, use it.

[natalieadw]

Originally Posted by Patchfire

I ignore the specific breathing suggestions and just concentrate on breathing deeply and slowly. I think there was a similar question on the Hypnobabies yahoogroup and basically that was the consensus - if you have an 'alternate' method of breathing and relaxing, and it works for you, use it.

Oh thanks about the breathing suggestion! Makes things easier! I have avoided posting on that board because I'm so intimidated, and that I might be flamed for saying the things I just did. I feel safer posting it here

[Katielady]

natalie, I didn't have that experience with the first couple CDs, but I'm on to week 2 now and I did get very anxious and uncomfortable during the "learning self-hypnosis" one where they teach you the lightswitch technique. As soon as they told me I couldn't move my body I felt very claustrophobic and wanted very much to fidget and move, which wasn't true when I was relaxed (in the same position) doing the other CDs. They talk about this phenomenon in the workbook and say it's totally normal. Your mind is resisting this new way of working.

Definitely stop if it continues bothering you to this extent, I would say. But I suspect it will get better. I also figure it's a lot like yoga- yoga is hardest at first for people who (like me) have very stiff muscles, but then we are also the ones who can benefit the most from it. Does that make sense?

[nerdymom]

Another vote for breathing the way you're comfortable. I took the hypnobirthing class and I just breathed in a comfortable manner for me. Of course, she also told us to exhale through our nose, which is what I prefer, so that made it easier.

I hope it gets easier!

[Katielady]

How's everyone doing with their HB stuff?

I'm having trouble not overriding the lightswitch. I'll turn it to off and get very relaxed etc., but then I'll hear a nose or my foot will start to fall asleep and I'll move before remembering to turn it back on. I think I just don't like being "off" very much...I imagine in labor I'll use center switch more. I figure all I can do is keep trying.

But here's a cool story...last night I burned my wrist getting something out of the toaster oven. (I have been SO clumsy this pregnancy and keep hurting myself!) It was fairly painful and the only thing that made it feel better was keeping ice on it. So an hour or so later I went to put DS to bed, and lately he has needed me to sit on the end of his bed until he falls asleep. I had my ipod all ready to listen to an HB script, but once I settled in I realized I had forgotten my ice, and my burn was really throbbing and painful. I thought about going to get the ice and then was like, "Hey wait! Maybe I can use it as hypnosis practice!" And the script I was listening to had a lot about directing anesthesia to whatever place needs it. So I did that. At first I didn't notice much change, but then my arm started to feel hot and heavy but no longer painful. After a little while it just tingled, and then didn't hurt at all any more. I was so psyched! It really gives me increased faith that these techniques will work for me.

[natalieadw]

That's awesome mama! I keep trying every night to send anesthsia to my freaking nipples when Bella is nursing, but it just hasn't worked yet Makes me nervous that I can't get it to work!

I hate being in "off" and often accidentally override my lightswitch as well! The deepening script has now become torture! Now that I have just started my third week and learned about the center switch, I pretty much stay in center throughout the whole deepening script. Hopefully thats ok to do, because that is the only way I am able to get through it without feeling like a failure!

[MamaChicken]

The deepening script is quite well-known to drive people batty! Sometime they find it very relaxing at first, but the third or fourth time they listen to it it is impossible to sit still. For me, it lasted until birthing day. Once my pressure waves started, I craved that track. I listened to it once and then was ready for the birthing day track.

This time I am only on week two, but no problems with it yet...but I'm ready if it happens. Just know that many others have the same problem - there is something about letting go and going that deep into hypnosis that our minds tend to resist.

[natalieadw]

Oh, I should clarify! I am only crazy fidgety while I'm awake during that script. I listen to all of my scripts at bedtime because I've had this problem with other scripts as well I fall asleep or go into hypnotic amnesia (not really sure which) within like 5-10 minutes, so its only really bad when I'm awake. However, I notice that I do come "up" a bit a few times before the end, and then move, and thats when I'm really bad about overriding my switch: