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Minnesota Babies
KateTC
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Hypno-babies
KateTC
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Is anyone doing Hypno-babies with this pregnany or done it previously? I am very interested in trying it and would love to hear anyone's experience with it.
TIA!
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Re: Hypno-babies
Mind you, I'm biased, I'm a clinical hypnotherapist by training (not practicing)... That said, both of my kiddos were happy and content to stay inside, so I had inductions (i.e. just write off the first 12 hours, start the evening/night before so you can sleep through most of them to store up energy). My first delivery I tried to white knuckle the whole "going natural" thing, I didn't want this, that, the next thing, "drugs are evil" that was drilled into us from the person teaching the birthing class at Regions.. I ended up needing so many more medications by the time all was said and done after 36 hours of L&D along with blood loss issues I could have cared less that DD was finally here at that moment because I was so exhausted from the pain than if I'd have just gone into L&D with an open mind of going with the flow and being my own advocate. Above all else, remember that the ultimate result is having a happy healthy baby, learning to relax your mind and work with your body is awesomely important and useful during L&D as is educating yourself on the purpose and use of the different medications available such that they do not become a source of stress. Absolutely go to the class but keep an open mind that when L&D time comes, that you're going to listen to your body and reinforce that the contractions/surges/cramps are part of the process and just breathe through them in the way that works best for your body and if you need something small to help your body relax so that it can do its job better, so be it, stressing out about it isn't going to help you labor faster!
With my second, I went in there with an open mind of "Drugs, lots of them, STAT! but if I can hold off that'd be great". The funny part is, by not caring if I went natural or took meds, I ended up having a far more enjoyable experience, it took half the time (18 hours from start of the induction to DS saying hello!), and ended up not needing nearly as much medication not only during L&D but PP as well (making it through PP without pain control is a bigger accomplishment!). I used a lot more hypnosis to just relax and let my body do its job and just kept rolling with it and relied on my L&D nurse to keep me informed. I also was able to push through an epidural (and even managed to walk to the bathroom and back afterwards while still completely numb) because even with the medications I still was in full control of my body at all times. I enjoyed my delivery so much with DS because I was focused on meeting my little guy instead of how he was going to arrive and any challenges during delivery I just rolled with..
Ultimately you have to decide what works best for you during your L&D. It's not your DH/SO, L&D Nurse, Midwife, OB, etc. delivering this baby, it's you. At the end of the day, it's only about you and LO. Using hypnosis is going to be an asset not only for L&D but for a lot of other things you'll be experiencing as a parent (i.e. "Peace and calm" as you learn to cope with your new roommate's personality) and I'd highly recommend taking a class whether it'd be HypnoBabies, HypnoBirthing, Self-Hypnosis, private sessions, etc. at any of the hypnosis schools in the area (if you opt for private sessions, I'd highly recommend Devin & Rachel Hastings from Mind Body Hypnosis).
My husband and I did the hypnobabies home study course. Although I didn't follow everything exactly as practiced on the big day, I was able to remain calm and relaxed throughout my 23 hour labor. I stalled during my labor because the cord was around DS's neck so I ended up needing a small amount of pitocin to get things going again. Despite the long, stalled labor, I was still able to tolerate everything and give birth without any pain medications. I really liked the program and would recommend it for anyone who wants to go pain-med free. DH like the hypnosis CDs so much that he still struggles to find some hypnosis CDs to use for relaxation/meditation now that we're done with Hypnobabies. I really liked the daily affirmations and listened to it in my car on the way home from work everyday.
My advice is that if your goal is to give birth without pain meds, you need to prepare your mind and body and it helps to have a good, supportive partner who knows the plan and can advocate for you when you are in labor. If you go into it with the mentality that you will "try" to do it without meds if you can, chances are you won't be prepared enough to handle it. Hypnobabies, for us, really helped get us in the mindset needed to do it. I would also like to add that I was not against epidurals or pain meds...I'm a nurse and I believe that drugs are wonderful!...You need to go into it with an open mind and know that plans can change so don't have a very rigid plan or you will most likely end up disappointed in the end because no matter how hard you try, you can't completely control the situation. We viewed it as similar to running a marathon...you have to train your body and mind before you run it. Once it starts, you just take it one mile (or contraction) at a time, trust your body, and know that the end is in sight eventually.
Good luck, whatever you decide to do!