Many of you have seen these posts and expressed interest in finding out more about Hypnobirthing. You can find all the posts I've written about it here:
My Discovery of Hypnobirthing:
The Hypnobabies Lessons I've blogged through:
And also be sure visit the Hypnobabies website, www.hypnobabies.com, for more great information. (Some of the Hypnobabies links embedded in my posts may be outdated since Hypnobabies has updated their website). If you have any questions or want more details, please feel free to send me a message and ask away!
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I knew that I wanted to deliver her naturally for all the right reasons: a quicker birthing, a more alert baby with no medication in her system after the birth, and fewer chances of complications that could lead to further intervention. What I was not expecting was the indescribable agony of bringing my daughter into the world. Yes, I had prepared myself for the fact that it would hurt. A lot, even. But I was not prepared for it to feel like that. Like most mothers, I would submit (even moments afterward) that every single second was worth it as I beheld our beautiful baby girl. Yet I was surprised that I was almost willing to give into pain meds, and developed a sudden loathing for Eve and her carelessness that bestowed the 'pains of childbirth' on womankind.
Which brought me to the struggle of what to do the next time around. My daughter was worth it--but she was already in existence, a flesh-and-blood miracle in my very arms. How could I resign myself to the fact that by cooperating with God's will and opening ourselves to possibly create more children, I would intentionally be putting myself through this again? I thought of all the women with two, three, ten children. How did they do it?!
Of course, we could not have imagined that I would indeed be putting myself through it all again a mere year and change later. Five-month old Marie gurgled happily on her playmat while I sat bewildered in the bathroom, the word 'pregnant' blinking clear as day on the test (I made Peter go out and get the 'kind with words' when I didn't believe the first one with lines). With Peter packing the last of his things for his year-long departure to Afghanistan in a few short days, I was beyond overwhelmed. Not only would I be going through it again so soon, but this time there was a chance that Peter might not even be there in time!
Thus began my immediate quest for the secret to surviving natural childbirth, since I 'knew' what to expect based on my first birthing experience. The series of classes (if you could call them that0 that we took before Marie was born were no help whatsoever; the instructors dangled the carrot of natural childbirth briefly as we practiced breathing techniques and swaying back and forth, but then told us all about all pain management we should request as soon as it started to hurt. Right.
So I consulted my ever-reliable source of wisdom and promptly Googled 'natural childbirth.' I read about Lamaze, then about the Bradley method. And then something at the bottom of the page caught my eye: Hypnobirthing.
Hypno-what?!
Highly skeptical, I clicked on the link. It had to be some weird new-age-y thing. Granted, I'd heard of hypnosis to treat traumatic stress disorders, or quit smoking, or lose weight. But being hypnotized while giving birth? That was way out there!
But the site seemed less alarming than I imagined. It talked about the many times daily when people experience a state of hypnosis--watching TV, getting lost in a book, zoning out while driving--and that hypnosis is just an altered state of mind that everyone has experienced. It didn't take a hypnotist swinging a pendulum in front of your eyes. Sounded normal enough. I was intrigued...so I kept reading. Apparently women could learn the techniques to reach this relaxed state (i.e. hypnosis) on their own. Using it for childbirth was simply a way for women to learn how to relax enough to work with their muscles to facilitate the birthing process (instead of tensing up out of fear and tension, which creates pain).
After some additional research, my skepticism was all but conquered. I found comments from women all over the internet saying they had experienced minimal pain, or even NO pain, during the birth of their child by using self-hypnosis. Even women whose said it didn't completely work (they ended up resorting to medication) said they wouldn't trade learning the techniques and using them during labor for anything. I even saw some unbelievable videos on You Tube of women using hypnosis during childbirth. All the feedback seemed positive...it almost seemed too good to be true.
I then stumbled upon Hypnobabies, a program offering a six-week home study course
What really convinced me was a sample Hypnobabies relaxation track online [ www.enjoybirth.com/music/Hypnobabies-Relax-Me-Script.mp3 ]
By the time the kit arrived I was surprisingly excited, and started reading and listening to the CDs right away. The information seemed pretty straightforward, without any strange subliminal religious or new age philosophies mixed in. I found that there was even plenty of room for me to add in my own favorite prayers as I practiced my relaxation techniques. I found it completely compatible with the expression of my Catholic faith. Of course, my commitment to practicing leaves something to be desired. Between working full time and chasing Marie around, I've been a C+ student at best. Most of the time I just fall asleep listening to the CDs...but I figure for what it's worth, at least I've gotten some fantastic nights of sleep out of the program (which can be a miracle in itself during 3rd trimester)! Granted, the real test will be when baby #2 decides to initiate his or her arrival, but I must say that I have been extremely happy with the entire experience thus far!
Of course I'll be posting about the experience, so we'll find out soon how well it all works. 3 weeks and counting till the final exam!
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