Celebrity HypnoBirthers

I recently met with a new couple embarking upon their HypnoBirthing journey, and asked what it was that had inspired them to look into it. The Mother replied that she had seen all the positive press around Fearne Cotton's HypnoBirth, and it had made her wonder about it. That got me wondering, just how many celeb's out there are endorsing HypnoBirthing? And the list that I have compiled is pretty long! Have a look: 

Tom and Giovanna Fletcher 

Jessica Alba 

Kate Middleton (so rumour has it!)

Fearne Cotton

TOWIE's Billie Faiers

Miranda Kerr

Stephen & Tabitha King (reportedly)

Cindy Crawford

Jade Jagger

Rikki Lake

I am thrilled that the list is this long, and probably even longer than I have found. As HypnoBirthing practitioners we work hard to spread the word, and any parents who have used these techniques also shout from the rooftops about how amazing it is. But if people like Kate Middleton & Fearne Cotton who are held dear in all girls' hearts in our country are shouting about it, then that word is getting spread even further and wider! 

Why can't I just teach myself HypnoBirthing at home?

This seems to be a question I am hearing or reading more and more. And it's a fair question, and I respect that it's always good to challenge things - so I thought I would try to answer it as well as I can from my perspective as a HypnoBirthing Practitioner and experienced Midwife.

It is possible in this wonderful age of technology now to buy and listen to the course CD, download lots of birthing affirmations and watch lots of positive HypnoBirths on YouTube. So what else do you need right? Surely if you're doing all of these things then you've got it covered?

Well, yes - there will be some women for whom this is enough. But in all honesty, these women are pretty few and far between (and please comment if you are one such lucky lady!)

So what else are you getting from a course that you can't teach yourself? And why should you shell out all that money?

Well, the first, and to my mind the most important, thing is the support. Firstly the support for you as the woman who will be birthing the baby; it is so important to have the positive reinforcement of why HypnoBirthing works and how. The course practitioners are of varying backgrounds, but most (if not all) have birthed their own babies and many are Midwives or Doulas who have been with many women at the births of their babies. These practitioners are all passionate about one thing: HypnoBirthing. They all exude such confidence and passion on the subject that it is contagious. It is quite frankly impossible to attend the sessions and not to feel empowered, informed and supported in your personal journey. They won't just meet you in class and that be it, most will be available to you by phone or email before, during and after the birth of your baby to offer support and advice. That is something that you just can't get that from a CD or a book!! 

That support is equally important for your birth partner. The course is designed to teach the birth partner to understand exactly how important their role is (and man, is it important!) - and exactly what it is they can do for you during your pregnancy and birth to really help and support you. This cannot be overemphasised - you and your birth partner are a team, and you need to learn and be treated as such.

The practical elements of the course are very difficult to learn by reading or watching clips. I see many questions from women who are self-teaching asking forums if they are doing the breathing correctly, how perineal massage works and so on. In the classes we lead you into many wonderful relaxations to guide you in how it should be, including the fantastic Fear Release script which is very powerful and cannot be self taught. The light touch massage is another very powerful tool for the birth partner to use, we demonstrate this in class so that they really get it (and Mum gets a lovely treat as we practice on her!)

The cost is a common question - and again a fair one. However these classes are not just a few hours in a classroom with some lady talking about breathing. Your teacher will invest in you and your story, in your pregnancy and your birth. She will be there for you, tailor her care to you and become a part of your journey. It isn't really the 'cost' of the course, it's an investment in your life.

So, I hope that I've summed it up ok. I genuinely feel that my couples leave my classes floating on a cloud of relaxation and empowerment, and this gives them the tools to go ahead and have the wonderful HypnoBirth that they are capable of. And I just don't think you can read that in a book..

HypnoBirthing Mum's story

I have stumbled across a really lovely video today, showing a Mum talking about her HypnoBirth and what made her choose it. She explains so beautifully what it's all about and how it worked for her - if you're thinking about taking the course then this is definitely one to watch! See the video here. x

Positive Press for HypnoBirthing!

A lovely positive article about HypnoBirthing was written in the Guardian this week. It's fantastic to see the positivity about it in the mainstream media, I feel that it really helps to shed the Hippy Dippy image that HypnoBirthing currently has. 

I'm also pleased that this was a testimonial from a second time Mum, as I feel that HypnoBirthing is a wonderful gift for anyone who has had a bad experience with birth in the past. 

I hope that if more people are reading these articles in respected papers such as the Guardian, they might start to believe in how wonderful it really is and try it for themselves!

See the full article here

Competition Time!

I am offering a FREE Mongan Method HypnoBirthing course, worth £375! Simply follow me on Twitter here, and tweet 'I want to win with #calmbirths' to be in with your chance to win! The winner will be chosen at random & notified via Twitter.

This offer is valid for Berkshire residents only, and the classes are to be held in the winners home as a set of five 2 1/2 hour classes. The course will include the book 'HypnoBirthing - The Mongan Method', and the accompanying CD to the course 'Rainbow Relaxation'. 

Offer finishes September 1st 2015

Good luck! xx

A beautiful HypnoBirth™ from New Zealand!

Wow. Just wow.

This, my lovelies, is why HypnoBirthing is so amazing. If you're pregnant and even remotely anxious about birth - perhaps you've heard horror stories, or perhaps you've had a bad experience with your own previous birth - then please, I implore you, grab yourself a (decaff!) cuppa and watch this clip. 

It shows the birth of Oliver, born to Mummy Claire in New Zealand who used no pain relief other than the water and breathes him out calmly, gently and serenely. THIS is what HypnoBirthing™ is all about, and THIS is why you should do the course. 

If you live in Berkshire or Hampshire then please call or email for more information, I want to help YOU achieve this birth.

So grab some tissues, sit back, relax and enjoy xx

One Born Every Minute's Natal Hypnotherapy Birth

Now, it must be said that I'm not always the biggest fan of OBEM, and most of my Midwife or Doula friends would say the same. Over the years working as a Midwife I would often meet women coming in to the hospital to have their babies, who were just plain terrified about childbirth and what was happening to them. And it was our jobs as Midwives to reassure them that it's a normal process and try to empower them to have a calm birthing experience.

However since OBEM appeared on our screens it must be said that there were suddenly a lot more of these very frightened women - and something that I heard all too often was that they'd been watching the series avidly whilst pregnant. 

Part of the HypnoBirthing ethos is that a woman should not have to listen to other's (usually grossly exaggerated) birth horror stories, in fact we often give women badges to wear saying 'Positive Birth Stories Only Please! My baby is listening'. A woman should be surrounded by positivity and reassurance that birth is natural, normal and wonderful.

Anyway this post was not intended to rant about the programme, but to commend them for showing the beautiful Natal Hypnobirth of Nadine and her husband - the most supportive birth partner in the world! It proved that HypnoBirthing really is an amazing tool for a woman who has had a less than ideal time with her first baby. It shows how a woman can empower herself to have the calm, gentle and beautiful birth just like Nadine, despite having been terrified to begin with. 

So bravo OBEM, you're finally showing what birth really should and CAN be like!

Evidence for the benefits of Perineal Massage

As HypnoBirthing™ becomes more widely practised and recognized as a beneficial aid to pregnancy and labour, so some really great evidence and reviews are being produced. Here are some really interesting results:

Benefits of Perineal Massage - A Cochrane Review

Within the HypnoBirthing™ Mongan Method course, we teach women and their birth partners (where relevant) how to practice perineal massage, and the amazing benefits this has. A Cochrane Review has been published which has clear results to endorse this. A Cochrane Review is where all relevant, important clinical trial results are collated and reviewed. In this instance, four trials were reviewed to include a total of 2497 women.  The results conclude that there is a definite link to perineal massage in the last weeks of pregnancy and reduction of episiotomy or perineal trauma during birth. This further proves what we are teaching, that such a simple exercise can make such a huge difference to your birth story. 

The review conclusion states:

“Perineal massage during the last month of pregnancy has been suggested as a possible way of enabling the perineal tissue to expand more easily during birth. The review of four trials (2497 women) showed that perineal massage, undertaken by the woman or her partner (for as little as once or twice a week from 35 weeks), reduced the likelihood of perineal trauma (mainly episiotomies) and ongoing perineal pain. The impact was clear for women who had not given birth vaginally before, but was less clear for women who had. Women should be informed about the benefits of digital antenatal perineal massage.”

If you are interested in reading the full facts and figures involved in the review, you can read it here. If you would like to learn more about the HypnoBirthing course and what we teach, contact me at hannah@calmbirths.uk

HypnoBirthing - dispelling the myths!

On my journey to becoming a HypnoBirthing™ Practitioner, I have discovered that there are many misconceptions and urban myths around the subject. I thought it might be useful to try and dispel some of these myths! These are what I hear & what I say:

"It all sounds a bit weird and hippy doesn't it?"

I totally get that it might sound like that until you find out about it. But trust me, I am as 'normal' as they come, no floaty skirt, lentil eating hippy here I'm afraid. But over the years I have been so amazed to see women using these techniques that I can't not rave about them. All it is, is empowering you to believe that your body is simply designed to birth, and helping you teach your own mind to relax through the process. I don't think that's so weird?

"Isn't HypnoBirthing just for people who only want a normal vaginal delivery & have no special circumstances?" 

The answer? No. HypnoBirthing is designed to eliminate any existing fears of labour and birth, and give you the skills to equip you to relax and allow your body to do what it is designed to do. This does not mean that you are not 'allowed' pain relief, nor does it mean that it is not relevant for those with special circumstances who might need surgical assistance. In fact, there are many testimonials available from women who have had birth by caesarean who used HypnoBirthing and found it helped them enormously.

"HypnoBirthing is just for first time parents"

Again, no. HypnoBirthing™ can actually be very beneficial for those who have had births that left them feeling anxious about being pregnant again. The programme is designed to help you work through any of those fears and anxieties that you might have, and put them aside to embrace this next birth experience with enthusiasm and positivity.

"I'm scared of being hypnotised and having my mind controlled by someone."

Have you ever driven to a destination, and once you've arrived wondered how you got there? Have you ever become so completely immersed in a tv programme or book that you don't hear someone call your name straight away? Believe it or not, that's self-hypnosis. What the HypnoBirthing course teaches you is how to achieve that deeply relaxed state whenever and wherever you choose. HypnoBirthing is actually empowering you to have more control over your body and mind, and therefore in the birth of your baby.

"If it's this good, then why can't I get it for free on the NHS?"

A fair question, and many NHS Trusts are actually sending many of their Midwives on courses to become HypnoBirthing Practitioners as they recognise the value of it for labour and birth. It's worth checking with your local Midwives to see if any of them practice this. 

HynoBirthing in the news!

Patti Good, a HypnoBirthing Practitioner in South Africa, speaks to E-News about the course. She gives a great explanation of what it's about.