How Natal Hypnotherapy can help mothers overcome fear
Effective Birth Preparation
For so many women today, birth has become an event to be feared. All around us we read, see and hear one horror story after another - women you meet are desperate to tell you their story in such graphic detail and even the antenatal classes are filled with so much “what goes wrong” information. The media is full of terrible outcomes, scare tactics and risks which can fill a pregnant woman’s mind before her baby is even the size of a pea.
Essentially, a woman is a mammal and has all the same physical functions as other mammals. And yet other mammals give birth without any fuss – they find somewhere quite, dark, safe and private and simply let their bodies “get on with it”. So why has birth become so terrible for so many women?
The key difference between us and mammals is the amazing development of our brain, predominantly our communication and analysis skills. And it is here that we find the main difference when it comes to giving birth. The development of the brain has dramatically increased the ability of a woman to feel and enact fear.
So how does fear affect the birth?
Imagine a women labouring in the jungle. Suppose she saw or even thought she saw a tiger lurking in the nearby shadows. What do you think would happen? Would she have a conscious choice on what happens next? She may think she could control the situation, but her body would already have made the decision.
Simply believing there is danger in her birth space would instantly stimulate a healthy “fight or flight” mechanism. Labour contractions would slow down or stop and would not resume until she felt safe.
A woman’s body is so beautifully designed that if there is danger, fear or anxiety a series of chemical reactions take place to enable her to stop or slow down her labour to give her the time, strength and energy to deal with the danger of to run away.
This fear activates the nervous system to produce adrenalin (danger hormone), which gives her the “umph” or power to prepare to fight or to run away. Her cervix tightens (to prevent her baby from being born where it is not safe) and the increased level of adrenalin neutralises the Oxytocin (the hormone responsible for stimulating her uterus to contract) and endorphins (pain killing hormone), so that her body naturally slows down or even stops the birthing. Experiencing fear during labour leads to her heat rate increasing, her breathing becoming shallow and faster (so reducing the amount of Oxygen in her body and her baby), her heart pumping blood faster around her body so raising her blood pressure and blood being directed away from her Uterus (and her baby) to her limbs, essentially to prepare her for action.
All this “fight or flight” preparation uses a great deal of energy. As our bodies were only designed to be in this heightened sense of preparation to fight or flight for a few minutes at a time, you can imagine that staying in this state for prolonged periods of time will be extremely draining on a labouring women.
You may be asking, “So what does a woman giving birth in a jungle have to do with me?”. This is essentially about fear – fear of pain, fear of dying, fear of tearing, fear of loosing control. A woman’s nervous system does not know the difference between real or imagined danger or fear and so will respond in the same way to both - ever felt the rush of adrenalin and fear when watching a horror movie? Is the threat real or imagined?.
If she goes into the birth feeling and being frightened, her system will respond accordingly. This subsequently makes contractions far more painful, in the same way that if you tense up when you are in pain, the pain becomes far greater. All the while that there is fear or anxiety in childbirth, a woman’s birthing body will not be allowed to flow easily through the natural progression of labour. In addition, the minute you introduce artificial hormones from induction or augmentation, the body stops producing the right amount of natural hormones, including the wonderfully powerful endorphins or natural pain killers.
So how does being relaxed and calm make a difference?
By being relaxed during labour, a woman’s body responds in a very different way to the fear scenario described above. When she is relaxed, her breathing is even and rhythmical; ensuring a high level of oxygen is entering her body. This oxygen goes through to her baby, ensuring that her baby remains calm and stable. Increased oxygen stimulates the production of Oxytocin (hormone responsible for contraction) and endorphins. Her blood pressure remains at a healthy level, and as her body is soft and relaxed she conserves her energy, with all excess energy being channelled through to the muscles that are really working hard, namely her Uterus. As the Uterus has no resistance or tension from surrounding muscles, the contractions are more effective and more comfortable. As the labour progresses un hindered by artificial hormones, other natural hormones kick in including relaxin which allows the cells of the birth canal to relax, soften and stretch, so making the babies descent easier and more comfortable.
So how does Hypnosis work?
Hypnosis is a natural state, which we all experience many times a day. It is a time when your conscious, (analytical, rational mind) takes a step back and your subconscious (feelings, memories, emotions) comes more to the forefront. For example when you are day dreaming, reading a book and realising you have read the same thing over and over again, driving on a long journey and not remembering anything about the journey etc.
With intended Hypnosis, you purposefully take herself into a daydream like state using music, soothing images and guided visualisation. Once the critical and analytical part of her mind also relaxes, you become more receptive to positive suggestions and affirmations. As the mind does not know the difference between imagination and reality, the more times you give yourself positive suggestions, the more real they become.
Why should I go on a Natal Hypnotherapy Course?
You and your partner will learn far more than is simpy offered by the CD’s. The course gives you a chance to learn lots about hypnosis and birth and you will learn powerful techniques to help you during the birth. The course is individually tailored to each couple as you are asked to completea pre-course questionnaire to help in this process.
How do Natal Hypnotherapy CDs work?
Natal Hypnotherapy CDs guide you into a deeply relaxed state using breathing techniques, guided imagery and visualisation. Once you are in a deeply relaxing day dream like state, the CD continues with a detailed visualisation of giving birth from a physiological perspective. It is like you are going through a dress rehearsal of giving birth in a calm and instinctive way. This way you are practicing how you would like to feel and respond to the sensations and changes during labour. The CD also includes “triggers” such as “each new face you meet, reminds you of the confidence you have in her body… each contraction encourages you to relax… the sights and sounds of around you float past and allow you to remain wonderfully calm”. This way you are using the things which may otherwise have caused you some anxiety and turning them into something positive and useful.
By listening to the CD over and over again before labour your body and mind become more and more familiar with the processes of a calm, relaxed birth, so increasing your confidence and reducing a lot of the anxiety associated with birth. As your mind does not know the difference between imagination and reality, once you go into the labour for real, all the suggestions just kick in as the body recognises the sensations and triggers and says “Oh yes, we have done this before – this is a sign for me to relax, stay calm etc..”.
Does Hypnotherapy offer “Pain free” births
Is it possible to have a pain free birth? Yes, some women do say that their experience was pain free. However, Hypnotherapy does not suggest that a woman will have a “pain free” birth.
It would be incorrect and quite detrimental to lead women into believing that birth will be pain free – would you run a marathon not expecting to feel some pain in your legs? You should be prepared to feel really powerful sensations in your body and should prepare to “hand control” over to your birthing body. Preparing for these powerful sensations by building the trust in your bodies ability and by reducing the fear, tension and anxiety around birth, hypnotherapy helps you feel more in control and far more able to cope with and accept the sensations that they are feeling.
For more information go to www.natalhypnotherapy.co.uk or email me at maggie@natalhypnotherapy.co.uk
The Natal hypnotherapy range of CDs include:-
· Pregnancy relaxation
· Home birth preparation
· Hospital birth preparation
· VBAC preparation
· Prepare for a caesarean
· Fast post natal recovery