Article by Sussex Natural Childbirth
HypnoBirthing combines the powerful use of self hypnosis with childbirth education. This method of natural childbirth from the U.S. is now available in Sussex for the first time. This the original HypnoBirthing Programme and not the second Nature Programme. It is taught by qualified HypnoBirthing practitioners.
HypnoBirthing is as much a philosophy as it is a technique. The HypnoBirthing concept is not new, but rather a development of the philosophy of birthing as it existed thousands of years ago and as it still exists in many parts of the world today. Dr. Grantly Dick-Read, an English obstetrician, first forwarded the concept of natural birthing in the 1920s. The HypnoBirthing method, a modern progression of his work, teaches you that, in the absence of fear and tension, severe pain does not have to be an accompaniment of labour.
The HypnoBirthing method was developed by Marie Mongan, a hypnotherapist who first used the techniques for her own children's birth and in 1990 started the HypnoBirthing method in America. It has gained such popularity among women in the U.S. that she now runs the institute, which teaches the method, not only to pregnant women but also to hypnotherapists and midwives who run their own classes all over the world.
Is HypnoBirthing right for you?
With the HypnoBirthing method you will gain an understanding of how the body works during pregnancy & labour so that when you are sufficiently relaxed, the birthing muscles can work in perfect harmony as they were designed to. You will learn how to achieve this kind of relaxation free of the resistance that fear creates and you will learn to use your natural birthing instincts for a calm, serene and more comfortable birthing.
When you have your baby with HypnoBirthing, you will not be in a trance or asleep but you will experience deep relaxation similar to yoga or meditation. You will be fully conversant, totally relaxed but fully in control. Throughout, you will learn to relax into your body's surges (contractions) using specific breathing techniques and focused visualisations. In this calm state your body's natural anaesthesia, endorphins, replaces the stress hormones that cause pelvic muscles to constrict and cause pain.
With HypnoBirthing your partner or companion is also fully involved and is taught how to help you practice your relaxation techniques between classes and to help you maintain relaxation during labour. We encourage all pregnant women to bring their birthing companion to the classes, although this does not necessarily have to be the father it would usually be the person who will be present with the mother during labour.
Throughout the United States, France, Australia, Canada, Germany, Holland, New Zealand and the United Kingdom trained childbirth educators are successfully teaching women and their birthing companions relaxation techniques that eliminate the Fear-Tension-Pain Syndrome. The technique is designed to work equally well in a medical or home environment. It is complementary and is not meant to be an alternative to medical intervention when it is deemed necessary. However the technique should allow women to avoid unnecessary drugs and interventions which tend to be used routinely in many hospitals.
At Sussex Natural Childbirth www.naturalchildbirth.co.uk we have been teaching this method for many years and are now recommended by Midwives and women who have used the method.