Congratulations to Tiffany and Stefan, and welcome to the world Mackenzie! Tiffany, a Texas-born expat living in Germany, recently gave birth to her first child without drugs using the HypnoBabies method of self-hypnosis. She writes a nice summary and review of the Hypnobabies program, which worked very well for her, on her site No Ordinary Homestead.
I think hypno-birthing can work for some people, so if you are interested, you should really go read her post. I don’t know anything about the HypnoBabies program, but while pregnant with Oliver, I read a copy of HypnoBirthing: The Mongan Method
I think self-hypnosis can probably help in most births, but I think saying it will always work is setting moms up to blame themselves as failures if they have a difficult birth like I did. My water broke without me going into labor, so I had to be induced, requiring an epidural. The cord was wrapped twice around Oliver’s neck, so he’d move down with a contraction, then the cord would pull him back up. 20 hours after induction, 30 hours after my water broke, he was born. I’m a pretty relaxed person (several people commented that I was the most relaxed pregnant woman they’d ever met), and I’d read The Good Earth
Do you have a hypno-birthing experience? How did you like it? What program did you use (or not use)?
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Thanks so much for the hearty welcome to Mackenzie!
There are a few programs out there but HypnoBabies seemed to have the best self-study series which was important to me living over in Germany. They have tons of places that offer courses in the US though. They have a fairly active Yahoo group also if you have questions or problems.
I’m actually planning to write a more detailed description of my entire birth…if I can just find the time to get it all written out.
Congratulations Tiffany! I’m glad you found something that worked well for you and that you had a positive birth experience.
I have to say that I am with Christina on keeping perspective on birthing methods. I was fortunate to have a relatively easy birth (I can say that now, three months later). As a result, the methods I used were enough to support me without using pain medication. I used strategies developed through my yoga practice, and some included some self hypnosis methods. But honestly, I feel like I cannot take credit for or be ‘proud’ of the natural birth. It was such an intense experience that I am certain it had less to do with me and a lot to do with good luck on the position of the baby, the way the labor progressed, etc. I went into the experience with a good attitude and some important tools for maintaining mental clarity, but nature did the rest and let me off easy.
I did both the Mongan Method and Hypnobabies. I got the Hypnobabies as a supplement when I felt that the MM was not really enough. Well, the best laid plans…my water broke very early, and very slowly, and my dd (now 15 months) was in a posterior position. I was in agony as with every contraction her head pressed against my lower spine. I had an epidural, then labor slowed, did not progress past station o after 12 or more hours, including three hours of pushing. I have to say, though, that I used the hypnosis training and breathing even though I had an epidural, and that, after 3 hours of pushing, when the doc came in and recommended a c/s, I was dumbfounded. I told her I wasn’t even tired…I ended up with a c/s anyway, but that’s another story. Self-hypnosis did not help/prepare me for that…
Kelly, it sounds like you had some very big challenges during the birth. I hope the recovery went/is going well. Part of my birth preparation included coming to terms with the possibility of a c/s, and since my baby was breech, I knew it could be a very real possibility. A c/s was something I really did fear, so in the last trimester, I worked to find some peace of mind and acceptance of the procedure should it be needed. I was fortunate enough not to have to put the preparation to the test, but I wonder if one can ever be prepared for that.
I also wonder if some of the natural birthing methods out there help women mentally prepare for c/s. Like you, I bet most women are shocked at the notion when it arises, and some of the natural childbirth methods could still be helpful for keeping one in a god state of mind going into the surgery.