Hypnobirthing?

[kylewilliamsmom]

Is anyone else thinking about using hypnobirthing this time around or has previously used it as a way to relax during labor? Any info you have would be great.

[twilight girl]

Would love to tell you about hypnobirthing. Took a class in the Rockville area for DDs delivery in 2002. Don't have time to write right now, but feel free to pm me or e-mail me. When I get a chance I'll try to remember to come back and post!

Judi

[twilight girl]

Okay, my experience was this: Turns out I am not susceptible to hypnosis in the first place! So, the hypnobirthing really did very little for me in my personal experience. Had it been my husband delivering the baby, it probably would have worked like a charm!

It would be worthwhile to first find out if you are even able to be hypnotized. I was never able to get to "that place". My labor went one for, oh, 36 hours or so. Ended up transferring from the birth center to the hospital for epidural, IV fluids and even the dreaded pitocin. thankfully, my midwife had priviledges at the hospital and she remained in control of the birth, and kept it as close to what I wanted as she could. No epi for pushing, got out of bed, used gravity to push the baby down, three pushes she was out, and no episiotomy, only a minute tear.

In all honesty, the jacuzzi at the birth center did more for me than the hypnobirthing. Again, it DOES work for some women. You should find out first if you are one of those women before you commit to it as a birthing method.

Good luck!
Judi

[gardenpoetry]

I used hypnobirthing in my last 2 births. The Marie Mongan Method. I took the class, had the book and tapes. It was awesome. I could feel everything, but no pain. It was a wonderful experience.

I am easily subjected to hypnosis, so it worked well for me. You MUST get rid of any and all fear. That does the trick!

[Drewsmom]

The interesting thing is that most people are able to enter a state of hypnosis, we actually all do it every day in one form or another. Have you ever driven home while thinking intently about a conversation you just had or something else and suddenly realized, "Whoa, was that light red or green?" or "I have no recollection of actually driving, but here I am at my house." This is actually a natural state of hypnosis. Also when we watch a two-dimensional image on T.V. and we realize cognitively that it is just fiction however we find ourselves crying or laughing or any number of emotions. This is also a state of hypnosis.

I took another method of hypnosis for my first pregnancy and birth and had a somewhat similar experience. It definitely helped but I felt like I started to loose it in transition and fortunately had a good team set up to help me through it.

However, I then found out about Hypnobabies for my second pregnancy and it was everything I felt like was missing from the other course namely all of the important consumer information that helps you set yourself up for a better birth and not fall down that domino effect road of one intervention after another. Also, how to use hypnosis while being mobile to help promote the baby's descent.

Also the most important thing is that all of the instructors are either Hypnotherapists or have at least 50 hours of hypno training so they are able to help you reach a deeper state of hypnosis as well as all of the CDs that you can take home to use and just plain better scripts. I too felt like I never really reached a state of hypnosis with the first method I used and I didn't realize that everyone experiences hypnosis differently depending on what type of senses you are more prone to use (kinesthetic, imaginative, visual, auditory, etc). Hypnobabies makes sure to cover each of these modalities to help all of the moms.

I had a *wonderful* birth with my second baby and felt that it was 90-95% pain-free. I walked into the hospital at 8.5 cms, 100% effaced, 0 station and the nurse didn't believe I was in labor. I had my baby 1 1/2 hrs later and recovered SO quickly which I needed to help take care of my very active toddler at the time.

Good luck with your decision.