Fear free and confident with hypnobirthing
“Giving birth should be your greatest achievement, not your greatest fear” – Jane Weideman
Women like to talk about their birth experiences.
Unfortunately, most of them involve pain and 72-hour labours. We’ve all heard stories that have been embellished just a little! But how does the telling of these stories affect the culture of childbirth? Does it strengthen and empower pregnant women or does it create fear and apprehension?
Women who are pregnant are often surrounded by negative connotations about birth e.g. comments about how painful birth is, films and tv often depict birth as a painful experience with women wailing in pain and agony. Even idle comments from well-meaning friends and family can leave a pregnant mum with feelings of dread and fear of childbirth from the outset. Is it any wonder that life’s most natural event is something many of us come to fear deeply?
A large amount of fear relating to childbirth can come from the unknown. Fear can hold us back in all aspects of our lives and childbirth is no different. If you expect a difficult birth, you’re much more likely to get one. If you are positive and have the right tools to help you cope, you’re much more likely to have a good experience. A major part of the success of hypnobirthing is the creation of confidence and therefore the removal of fear. A large component of this is removing yourself from tales of negativity and instead making sure you are surrounded with positive birth stories and people who actively support your wishes.
HOW FEAR IMPACTS THE BIRTHING HORMONES
Fear is the enemy of the birthing room as it slows down labour and makes it considerably more painful for the birthing Mum. Fear stops the birthing muscles working in harmony and creates resistance between a Mum’s birthing muscles
To have a calm and gentle labour a birthing mum needs to be relaxed, feel safe and harmonious so that her body can produce oxytocin which makes birth efficient and endorphins (nature’s own pain killers) which make birth comfortable. These hormones help to relax the muscles and sensations are comfortable. This allows the muscles of the uterus to work properly and for labour to progress smoothly.
It is only when there is a change from the natural birthing process, such as an induction or an emotional block from things such as fear, tension, or anxiety that the natural release of oxytocin and endorphins is disrupted, making the birthing process more painful, longer and uncomfortable. Instead, the hormones adrenaline and catecholamine are produced. These hormones cause the muscles to tense and this can lead to pain and in turn slows the whole birth process down.
BENEFITS OF HYPNOBIRTHING
Hypnobirthing has been proven to be the most effective method in reducing pain during childbirth. Hypnobirthing reduces the anxiety and worries associated with childbirth as now you will understand that fear has a very negative effect to the process of giving birth.
It’s possible to look forward to labour and birth with calm and confidence, which is why it’s important to prepare yourself by undergoing hypnobirthing techniques and lessons that will help you channel positive thoughts and calm emotions that will affect your hormones in the way nature intends when giving birth. The relaxation, breathing and visualisation techniques will aid you in reducing stress caused by fear and anxiety so that your body will allow the endorphins and oxytocin to flow through your body normally and naturally so that you can have a calm and confident birth. So, for a change you can share an inspiring positive birth story to your friends and family instead of the normal horror stories typically associated with childbirth!