Our Hypnobirthing experience- Week 1

This week we started a hypnobirthing class! After starting to read Marie Mongan’s book on hypnobirthing, I was so inspired by her perspective on childbirth. Having a positive birth experience is so important to me, and I know I need to prepare for the experience if it is going to be so.

It seems that natural childbirth is slowly having a revival. Still, the majority of women opt for an epidural. It seems there is little knowledge out there about the options for a natural childbirth. So I thought I’d share our experience as we learn more about hypnobirthing and the body’s ability to give birth. Hopefully this can inspire some other mamas out there and dispel some of the fear of childbirth that is so prominent in our culture.

So what is hypnobirthing? Before balking at the idea of hypnosis, realize that hypnosis is really just a deep state of relaxation. Basically, hypnobirthing uses relaxation training and works to overcome fear in order to decrease the pain and discomfort associated with the birthing process.

Who am I to talk? I haven’t given birth yet. Yet I already find myself testifying to others of the remarkable effects of hypnobirthing. I have been so inspired by the videos of women giving birth naturally with the help of hypnobirthing training. It is remarkable how different these childbirth experiences are from those I have heard described to me my whole life, or seen in movies.

What I love is that the mother is alert. She is aware and able to move around as her body needs to facilitate childbirth. She is alert, but she is relaxed. You don’t see the typically yelling and screaming you see in the movies. The mother is calm, breathing steadily and rhythmically throughout the entire process. The father is involved. He, too, having received training to help his wife relax. He reminds her to breathe, he comforts her with his touch, and he supports her physically when necessary. Some are shocked to find that the baby is suddenly crowning and they had no idea they had progressed that far. It appears a miracle. The most beautiful experience as a baby is brought into the world.

This is what birth should be. I have heard so many tell me that labor is terrible. That nothing about it is lovely or special. I have heard horror stories. On the other hand, my sweet mother has always testified of the beauty of a natural childbirth, though still admitting that it is the most painful thing you will ever experience. Each of us has likely heard childbirth and kidney stones referred to as the two most painful things. Yet many hypnobirthing mothers report that they didn’t even feel pain, only pressure, while delivering their babies.

Childbirth is a natural process. When we learn to relax and breathe, the blood flows where it is meant to flow. Instead of activating our “fight or flight” response, our body is able to relax and focus its energy where it is needed. Our reproductive system is able to work as it should, naturally and gently guiding the baby out into the world. Our bodies have an innate knowledge about childbirth. They know how to deliver an infant just as they know to eat, sleep, etc.

Somehow in the recent centuries, paralyzing fear has been introduced into this completely natural process. Just the other night I was talking with my younger sister on the phone. She was shocked that I would have my first baby naturally, as the birth experience itself is a “scary” thing.

But why would I not start my journey as a mother in the way it was intended? No doubt I am grateful for the security of modern day technology, for the monitoring systems and medical procedures that make childbirth much safer and successful. I am grateful I am not afraid of me or my child dying in the labor process, as modern medicine has greatly reduced that occurrence. But sometimes I fear that modern medicine has gone too far, forgetting the innate power of our bodies and our mind. I have complete confidence that my body knows what it needs to do when it is time for my baby to come into the world. Even if I was passed out in a coma, my body would be able to deliver my baby if the time was right!

So I will face my baby’s birth with anticipation and calm. Sure, I’m still nervous about becoming a mother and giving my baby all he needs! But for the day of his birth, I know that my body knows what to do. If I relax and let my body take control, it will all come together as a beautiful experience. 🙂

Interested in Hypnobirthing or natural childbirth? Join my mailing list for updates on our experience with pregnancy, childbirth, and whatever lies ahead!