Hypnobabies and birth partners

valzee

Last night DH and I tried going through some of the Hypnobabies cues together and needless to say it didn't go very well. Once we stopped giggling I just couldn't figure out when to tell him to do what. Does anyone have any advice on this? I plan to be listening to my headphones for quite a bit of labor, but when does DH come into the picture? Will I need him more during transition? Should he work as a "replacement" so to speak if I'm not listening to my headphones?

I felt a little helpless, I didn't know what to tell him. 

TIA!

 

Lotzodotz

Sorry no advice, but I know where you are coming from!  The first time I read the bubble of peace script, just the thought of my DH reading it to me made me giggle.  I am waiting for a few more weeks to get him involved.  Maybe the closer we are the more serious we will take it.  

kerryholmes

I didn't mind having DH near me during the birth, I wasn't so keen on him touching/massaging me but it's something he felt he needed to do.. so whatever. But I did not want him speaking. I had relaxing music playing and preferred silence, where I could just revert into myself, almost a trance like state. I learned the breathing techniques when I was pregnant but knew that when the time came I would do what came naturally. I never learned the hypnobirthing techniques but when I talk to others about my birthing experience they say it sounds like I had a hypnobirth. My best advice is not to stress about it, be prepared but don't overload yourself, go into it with a powerful, peaceful state of mind. 

bluerevolution9

The first time we practiced the "bubble of peace" i could tell that DH was having a hard time taking it seriously.  But now we do the "mini script" every other night, and its going really well for us.  Its also a nice bonding time that we get together every night to prepare for birth as a couple which feels really special, like its not just for me, its for him to, and he feels more involved through it.  We do it in bed, we put on some soothing music, and I get comfortable (or at least as much as I can) and then he reads the script to me.  If you set the mood for being relaxed and calm I think it really helps.   

ESaub

We're taking the classes and they have helped so much! I don't think we could have just read the book and done it ourselves. My DH is great about just being supportive and reminding me to practice my breathing. Sometimes he'll help by counting out loud for me. We're just now getting to practicing the scripts and I'm not sure if we'll use those during the birth but the more we do it the easier it gets. That's one of the reasons we started on it so early. This is our first so I'm not sure what exactly I'll like/dislike during the birth but it is nice to know that DH will be there to insure that the doctors and nurses aren't bothering me (or my family for that matter) or asking me if I want drugs. Having gone through the classes, I think DH has a much better idea of what to expect and how to help me.

 Good luck!

kaeti_su

My birthing time was too quick for DH to be able to do much, and I turned in to myself so much that honestly, for most of it, he was doing things like setting up the iPod, getting me Powerade, calling family, etc. I do remember at least once that he used the Relax cue with his hand on my forehead, which was nice.

You could practice positions together. We did this in my hospital childbirth class, and it was a good way to figure out which things I might like and dislike. 

One thing I did in preparation that you might want to do was that I made a binder with copies of the relevant pages from the coursebook and the birth partner's reference book so that he could flip through them to find ways to help me.