Babies are great gifts, and everyone looks forward to having them. But to women, giving birth doesn’t come easy. It involves several hours of labour pain, anxiety, and fear. 

The good news is that there’s now an effective method where women can manage the pain and stress that comes with the birthing process. This method is known as hypnobirthing. 

Read this article to learn more about hypnobirthing and why you should consider it.

What Is Hypnobirthing?

Hypnobirthing is a natural pain management technique that women in early labour can use to reduce the pain of contractions. It is based on several tenets about how our minds affect our bodies. It involves visualisation, relaxation, and deep breathing techniques.

Hypnobirthing is usually associated with natural births. The techniques can be used for home births, those at birthing centers, and those at hospitals.

Methods and Techniques Used in Hypnobirthing

The hypnobirthing process is based on the power of suggestions, visualisation, and positive affirmation. Using these techniques, the laboring woman guides her thoughts, body, and breathing. Here are those techniques in detail:

Controlled Breathing

The controlled use of breathing is the most important component of hypnobirthing. Different techniques include long deep breathing, slow blabbing, belly breathing, diaphragmatic or yogic breathing, and meditation. 

Deep breathing, which involves inhaling through the nose and exhaling through the mouth, can help you stay calm and reduce discomfort in labour.

Hypnosis Visualisation

Your hypnotherapist will teach you suggestions that relate specifically to the birthing process, which you can then use to help ease discomfort or pain during labour. 

These suggestions are usually in the form of visualizing oneself at rest. This is where you can imagine the birth of your baby and what you want to happen.

It can be something specific or more general, like a feeling you want to have. For instance, you could picture what it will feel like to hold your baby skin to skin after they’ve been born. It’s like a rehearsal in your mind to help you feel more prepared and positive.

Deep Relaxation or Meditation

This can be done with or without mental imagery. Meditation may help you concentrate on your body and baby during labour while ignoring extra noise or things going on around you.

Why Should You Consider Hypnobirthing? Does It Work?

According to Dr. Dick-Read, hypnosis helps reduce laboring women to break the ‘Fear Tension Pain Syndrome.’ According to him, the fear of tension pain syndrome makes labour more difficult.

He believed that the syndrome caused blood to flow away from the nonessential organs such as the uterus to large muscle groups in the legs. His theory stated that relaxation that women achieve in hypnosis would stop the syndrome from occurring

With hypnosis, the body goes into a state of deep relaxation in which the muscles can work the way they’re meant to during childbirth. People who have used this technique have also reported a relaxed feel, calm, awareness, and control.

Hypnobirthing Classes

Learning deep relaxation and visualisation that aids hypnobirthing takes several weeks or months. That’s why pregnant moms and their partners need to attend weekly hypnobirthing classes to practice the techniques. 

After the classes, you also have to practice the techniques at home every day leading up to the due dates. 

There is also much more to learn during the classes, including proper pregnancy nutrition and other tips on having a minimal or no intervention birth.