Moms who have used hypnobirthing...

eleolin8

I would like to learn all about hypnobirthing.  I would like to use it for the birth of our son and do the best I can while in the hospital (ie no epidural).  I live in a very rural area and there are no in person classes.  Any recommendations for online courses or seminars regarding this topic?  Did this work well for you in labor?

footprint

*lurking*

I took hypnobirthing classes with my first. I didn't get to use it as I had an emergency c-section at 36w5d, but my husband actually uses the techniques when he goes to the dentist. I live in a large city and was able to take classes at a suburban hospital not too far away.  I am not sure if they offer the class online, but I would think that you could Skype the classes. I took a group class and I think it was 3 or 4 hours a week for four or five weeks. I know that my instructor offered private classes, so I bet some would be willing to do online instruction. I hope you find a solution. Feel free to pm or post any questions.

JCWhitey

I did two courses when I was pregnant with DS and plan to do those two as well as a third this time around since I can start earlier.  I am very grateful to have this "tool" with me when I went into labor (med free, intervention free).  I wasn't able to sustain hypnosis long during my labor since my contractions were back to back with no break in between and you kind of need that break to get in/out of it.  But for the hour or so I could I loved it!  And during my pregnancy it really help with sleeping, relaxing, and focusing.  The nurse at the hospital kept telling my mom that she couldn't believe I was a FTM because I was so calm and collected.  I wasn't, at all, I just learned to internalize everything.  

Anyway, the courses I did were Gentle Birth ($99 home study program) and Bliss Born ($250 home study program).  Gentle Birth is big on visualization and soothing thoughts and imagery to use during labor.  Think "floating in a cloud" and "walking on the beach".  The course itself has a booklet that has some studies on how state of mind can affect our bodies as well as some tips on massage and understanding the birth process.  Bliss Born focused more on mind over matter and overcoming fears.  There's some imagery in there, too, but most of the classes were about getting rid of fear and creating your own idea of birth in your mind.

In theory I liked Gentle Birth better since I didn't have much by way of fear going into my pregnancy.  I've attended a few births and am fortunate that I have a lot of family members who went med-free.  My aunt LOVES to tell her war story of delivering her 10 lb son with no meds.  So I don't think I had the typical fear of birth that a lot of people had.  But in the end Bliss Born's technique is the one I used more than anything else in labor.  Gentle Birth requires you to listen to the hypnosis CD to fully get use out of, and we were in such a rush to go and ill prepared due to being early that I forgot to bring my iPad with me to listen to it.  Bliss Born gave you skills you could use on your own.

Other courses to research are Hypnobabies (probably the most popular one), Bradley Method (no home study course that I know of, but they do have a book you could possibly use to guide yourself), Hypno4Birthing (a general hypnosis class that is great if you are on a budget), Birth Boot Camp (online), and Birthing From Within (you can do phone and Skype classes for this one!).  Just find the one that you feel best fits your needs and be sure you can dedicate the time needed to do it!  If you choose hypnosis you are supposed to be listening to a hypnosis session once a day on average and taking a different course weekly.  I got busy and barely finished mine courses even though I started at 24 weeks.

eleolin8

Great information, now to do some research!

jennypolkadots

I am pregnant with my first but have looked into hypnobirthing a lot. Mostly when I was still planning a hospital birth. The two things I can tell you that will be the most help is to buy the 5 week class and really keep at it. It would help if you start meditation daily until beginning the series (usually after 26 weeks of pregnancy). The second thing, is please consider getting a doula. She will help you labor at home for a while so you are hopefully in active labor once you get to the hospital. This is the best possible way to stay away from medical interventions and pressure from nurses. Once you are admitted, you are on their time clock... and many normal first labors can take up to 48 hours without any issue. 

Angeldcf

Thanks for the post/info.

I had a fairly uncomplicated vaginal delivery with my son but had an epidural.  I was admitted to the hospital at 5cm- was uncomfortable but no terrible pain.  I'd like to avoid an epidural this time as I still have some residual nerve pain, asked them to turn it off as I couldn't feel anything to push and hated not being able to move around.