What is hypnobirthing?

The Calm Births Course is a birth education programme designed to help you achieve a calm, gentle and safe birth - no matter who you are or what turns your birthing might take.  Our classes are informal and relaxed, and tailored to you and your needs. Join in with a group or individual classes in the privacy of your own home or online with your local teacher.

The Calm Birth Preparation Course is a course of three sessions of roughly 1 and half hours each, and lots of relaxation practice at home for you & your chosen birth partner. There is also an optional 4th session for first time parents in which we cover the immediate postnatal period and how to cope, with lots of practical baby care advice.

You will learn how to take yourself away into a deep space of relaxation whenever and wherever you wish, whilst remaining alert & in control.

You will learn how and why birthing doesn't need to be painful, about the physiology and hormones involved and what you can do to be in control of your birth. These tools, along with other techniques for birthing, will empower you to have the safe, calm and gentle birth you deserve. This course is designed to work for you regardless of the way your baby comes into the world, whether it be a vaginal birth or a Caesarean.

We will also cover:

• How to release any fears or negative feelings you may have around birth

• How to naturally start your labour when baby is ready

• Breathing techniques for labour and to birth your baby

• A simple massage technique to avoid the chances of episiotomy

• How to stay calm and in control of your baby's birth

• How to reduce the need for medication.

Who is hypnobirthing for?

At Calm Births we believe that understand that families don’t all look the same, and support and celebrate you no matter what your journey to pregnancy.

There is no ideal time to start the course, but it’s usually best after 20 weeks. It is for any kind of birth in any kind of setting. In fact some of HypnoBirthing's greatest advocates are those who, for varying reasons, had births that didn’t go the way they were intended or were surgical births. The techniques that they had learned in class equipped them with the tools they needed to relax and remain calm.

What are the benefits of hypnobirthing?

The benefits to a woman, her baby and her birth partner are many, primarily these are:

• Fewer instrumental or surgical births

• Shorter labours

• High success rate in turning breech babies

• Less pain perceived in labour

• Lessens fatigue during labour

• Less need for episiotomy

• Birth partners are an integral part of the process & know what to do - they’re not a helpless bystander

• HypnoBirthing babies are calmer, better sleepers and generally have higher Apgar scores at birth

Does Hypnobirthing really work?

Well, yes! We have been running our classes since 2015 and have resoundingly positive birth stories reported by our clients. This doesn’t always mean they had the birth they planned for, but they had the skills to roll with the punches and still remain feeling calm, positive and in control. Don’t just take our word for it - check out a selection of our client’s stories here!

What does hypnobirthing involve?

If you want to truly hypnobirth, it’s best to take a full course with an accredited teacher. You will need to listen to our selection of Mp3’s each night as you go to sleep, which is training your mind to reach a certain level of relaxation. Then during class, we will teach you and your birth partner both techniques that will enable you to reach that state of relaxation whenever you need to. Simple really and nothing scary!

How do I find a hypnobirthing class near me?

To find your nearest hypnobirthing teacher simply click on the link below! Being that we are all teaching via Zoom for the foreseeable future, you have more choice on which teacher you select - but do bear in mind that you might meet other parents from your local area if you choose a local teacher.

Karma places - a number of our teachers offer ‘Karma courses’ - if you are a family who would love to use these skills but are currently facing adversity or are just unable to pay for a course, please get in touch with any teacher with ‘Karma places available’ on their profile. No judgement.