hypnobirthing file1 care for your birthing year hypnobirthing amy neuhedel ms ed., dip hb, cd(dona)...

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Care for your birthing year www.amyneuhedel.com

Hypnobirthing

Amy Neuhedel MS Ed., Dip HB, CD(DONA)

Member of The Hypnobirthing Association

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Teddy’s Birth Story Lars Teodor was born September 6th at 9.58 pm. I studied Hypnobabies for this birth so I have used Hypnobabies terminology in this story and I refer to Hypnobabies sound tracks. Key: DH- dear husband DD- dear daughter HB MW- homebirth midwife PN MW- pre natal midwife DDC- due date club Sunday September 5th we awoke to a summery morning and decided to drive the hour into Stockholm to the aquarium, thinking ”baby won't come if we stay around the house”. We found parking and started the rather long but beautiful walk from the car to the aquarium. My birthing waves started immediately but did not inhibit my walking. I said to my husband that both we and Helena (HB MW) have hour drives so it will time perfectly if this is it, but that I hoped we didn't have to pay admission just to turn around again. The waves were mild but it felt good to sit in front of the big tank, relax and just watch the fish go by. We ate lunch at the aquarium's cafe overlooking Stockholm, watching boats go by. I felt so happy and peaceful. The waves stopped all together and I enjoyed a great slice of Pecan Cheesecake. During the car ride home I listened to my Pregnancy Affirmations and had two waves that hour. They picked up once we were home and we started timing them at 6.20 pm. They were 2 to 20 minutes apart and 40 seconds to 2 minutes long. There was no pattern but this was a lot of action for me. Our daughter went down to sleep and I sent a message to my midwives to say, ”tonight is not impossible”. As I got into the shower that evening I looked at my belly and thought, ”this is it”. An immense sadness washed over me. The beginning of my pregnancy was difficult. The ”why am I doing this?” kind of difficult, but these last three weeks - feeling good, home from work, connecting to the baby in my belly, having time for me, energy for my daughter and my husband (despite the mood swings) – it had been luxurious and it was coming to an end. The future was unknown. Another wave came and I thought about how saying ”good-bye” to my belly meant saying ”hello” to my baby. I quickly indulged in my right to to be sad that something nice was ending, smiled toward the future and got happily in under the calming hot water. At about 11 pm I went to bed. I listened to the Confidence building track and then to my Affirmations. I must have fallen asleep towards the end of the affirmations. Monday September 6th I woke up to a wave at 1.30 am after about an hours sleep. I called Helena (my HB MW) just to let her know what was going on. She said it sounded like things were progressing. I said, yes, but that they were mild, I felt good, that I was eating some cereal and was going to try to rest. She thought this sounded good and I was to keep her posted. Mattias heard me on the phone and came down to check on me. We went back to bed, I listened to a relaxation and fell asleep after that. I woke up to waves a few times between 6 and 8.30, Mattias called in to work and when our daughter woke up we went down for breakfast.

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At 9.50 am I go to the bathroom and yell, ”yeh!” when I spot some blood. We go for a walk at 11 am to a beautiful lake near our house. My waves have been 15-20 minutes apart and I update my MWs. Mattias puts our daughter down for a nap around 12.30 pm, I warm some leftovers, and Helena calls to check on me. Between 1 and 2 pm I rest and listen to my Affirmations and between 2 and 3 pm my waves are 2 to 7 minutes apart and about 45 seconds long. Mattias makes a yummy Greek salad. I notice my Mucous Plug is loosening at 3 pm and it's mixed with blood. Carina (PN MW) calls to check on me. My MIL picks up Ruby, who kisses my belly and says ”see you later”. I'm not sure if she's talking to me or the baby, but my heart warms. I listen to my Affirmations while I shower. I feel calm and excited. At 5.50 pm my waves are 3 in 10 minutes. Helena, who lives an hour away is on full alert, but I don't feel I need my MWs just yet. At 6.50 pm I call Carina (who lives 20 minutes away) to say ”not yet but soon”. I'm feeling good and the waves seem very effective and I enjoy them from my birth ball listening to Billy Holiday. Mattias comes by now and then to put a hand on my shoulder and give me the ”Relax” cue, which really works to send a wave of relaxation through my body and brings a smile to my face. I put on a relaxation and ”Pop!”, gush. I hop off the newly prepared sofa bed and yell, ”My water, time to call the MW's”. I dry myself off and Mattias lights lanterns in the garden for MW's. I wait out another wave leaning on my birthing ball, amazed at how much water continues to gush. I'm enjoying some pasta when Carina comes in. Carina listens to the baby. I ask her to use a doppler so I can hear too. Baby is calm. Mommy is too. I move back to my ball to enjoy some more waves. DH moves the dogs to the basement and meets the HB MW, Helena, on his way back up. He helps her carry the scale and things. He tells me the night is starry and beautiful. The milky way is visible and the big dipper is right outside our door. Carina and Helena sit on the floor, we chat and laugh, I close my eyes and enjoy my waves saying ”Peace” to release anethesia into my body. I feel relaxed and happy. DH gives me the relax cue. Billy Holiday's ”Solitude” comes on and I inform everyone that it's my favorite. I need to pee and Helena wants to listen to baby. He or she is still calm. The waves get way stronger when I'm standing. DH whispers to me ”open, open, open.” There's no more water gushing now, the baby's head must be wedged down the birth canal. I lean on the media center for support and Helena massages my back. This feels so good, I just want to stay there but I feel it's time to listen to Easy First Stage. I want to turn my switch off and then get it back to center. DH puts the track on the speakers and I sit in a chair and listen. I go way down and then quickly count up to 2 so I can be active and talk while still under hypnosis. My MW's are new to hypnobabies and very curious so I explain to them while DH massages my feet with lavender oil. I feel warm and cozy. The waves are really strong now. ”Open, open, open,” I tell myself. The track reminds to be ”limp and loose” and I remind myself that it's just pressure and tightness, that it is I who chooses how to meet these waves. I glance at my birthing bead bracelet and feel the power of all the mamas in our DDC, all the mamas through out time birthing our daughters and sons. I pull up whatever foot DH is not massaging to the other knee and kind of flap my leg up and down like a bird. This feels perfect and after each wave, which are very tight together now, I find myself looking at DH, smiling and my eyes are watering. I'm SO happy! Those moments there with DH are indelibly written in my mind. I am so comfortable in the chair but I know and say out loud that it's time to stand up. I love how intuned I am with my body. Noone tells me what to do, I just know what needs to be done. Standing up launches things forward. I feel DH's hand on my shoulder, ”relax”. Carina sets a ring of acupuncture needles around my abdomen and back. The waves come hard. The pressure is incredibly powerful, it's hard to stay on my feet. I fall into DH's arms, breathing and focusing on the tightness which is moving my baby down and out. ”Peace”, I breath anesthesia into all the birthing muscles. DH whispers ”open, open, open”. Helena grips and massages my feet, keeping me grounded. The hypnobabies track ends and DH asks me what I want to hear. ”Music, you chose”. Johnny

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Cash, ”Hurt” comes on. I love this song and I want to say that but the words can't get out. Helena listens to baby again and smiles, saying nothing is stressing out this baby. I smile and fall to all fours gripped by a wave. ”Eisenhower Moon” by Jesse Sykes plays. I smile to myself. I feel the baby moving down and out. We are so close. I tell myself to breath. ”Rainbow Connection” covered by Willie Nelson. I want to explain that this is DD's namegiving song but the time for small talk is far past. I'm just talking to myself, breathing anethesia to my cervix, down my birth canal. There's plenty of room for welcoming my baby to the world. All of sudden words come to me. ”My red raspberry leaf tea!!! I need it!” I know I'm way past needing RRL tea but it's the last desperate cry of a woman about to let herself lose control. I'm about to give myself over to something far more powerful. ”2 cups of water! 30 minutes!” ”Oh that's a lifetime right now,” I manage to say sarcasticly. Helena laughs, DH runs to the kitchen. DH admits later he put in 4 cups of water. I sense this because I insist between waves, ”How much water did you put in?!”. He assures me from the kitchen that the tea is fine and I can insist no more. ”Put on the pushing track!” I yell. DH runs back, hits play, gets down in front of me and I hold on for dear life. I'm growling our baby out. I hear the track telling me there's plenty of room. I growl again. I listen to track, go to ”my special place” where I am always safe and can be with my baby. I let go of my baby's hand, telling her/him I welcome her/him. It is time is for us to meet out in the world. This visualization is so beautiful and powerful to me. Carina and DH change positions. DH is going to catch our baby. There's no time to rest between waves. A sip of juice, growl, a sip of juice, growl. I know there is only one direction to go...towards my baby. I feel a small burning sensation and tell myself, ”peace”, sending anesthesia out in front of the baby's head. He's crowning, the wave ends and he slides back up. ”Come on!” I yell and prepare for the next wave. Growl! Out comes his head. ”What does the baby look like?” I ask. ”Like DD but with less hair” answers DH and I can hear he's smiling. Helena tells me I'm going to push the baby out next time and I know it. I get up on my knees and hold Carina around the shoulders. GROWL! 9.58 pm, three hours after my water broke, out comes baby into DH's arms. ”It's a boy”, he tells me. I smile, fall forward, breathing heavily and try to glance backwards. Helena untangles him from his cord which was caught tightly around his neck but luckily is long. This is why she told me to push him out on that last contraction. It was time. He had really twisted himself up in it. Carina helps me turn and gets me propped up against DH. Lars Teodor comes to rest on my chest. He's gorgeous and very content. Carina brings me a cup of RRL tea. Helena laughs and says that's the first time she's heard anyone give instructions for brewing tea during the second stage of birthing. It hasn't brewed for quite the instructed 30 minutes, but it's very tasty anyway. Lars Teodor was 8 lbs 9 oz, 21 inches long. I required 2 small stitches. Carina and Helena hugged us and wished us a good night. We celebrated with non-alcoholic champagne and cheese sandwiches. DH lit a fire and the three of us cozied down to sleep. DD came home when Teddy was 12 hours old and it was love at first sight.

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Most Usual Position Ready For Birth

My baby is in the best position for a calm and natural birth

Just notice this picture every time you pass it.

My body and my baby’s body work together in unison

Copyright Katharine Graves 2010

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Perineal Massage

A large study looked at the research that has been undertaken in perineal massage and found that

massaging your perineum (the area between the vagina and the anus) in the antenatal period and

during at least the last four weeks of pregnancy before your baby is likely to arrive, reduces the

likelihood of tearing, and in particular, the need to be cut (episiotomy) and makes the tissue more

flexible and elastic

.

Wash your hands thoroughly.

Sit or lie in a private, warm and comfortable place.

Apply a lubricant such as olive oil, baby oil or sweet almond oil (the base oil for aromatherapy) to your hands and the perineal area.

Place both thumbs around 3cm/1½ inches (around half the length of your thumb) into the vagina.

Massage the area by gently rubbing the perineal tissues between your thumbs and fingers.

Press downwards and to the sides, gently stretching until you feel a tingling sensation, this feeling lessens after a few moments.

Once this sensation is felt, hold the stretch for around one minute until the feeling subsides and begin massaging the lower part of the vagina by moving your thumbs back and forth. While massaging also hook your thumbs on the sides of the vagina and gently pull these tissues forward, as the baby’s head does when it is being born.

Continue to gently rub as you stretch for around three to four minutes.

By massaging the perineum like this once a day, you will notice the area becoming more flexible and

you will become more accustomed to the stretching sensations which occur during birth.

Thank you to Teri Gavin-Jones for allowing me to use these instructions.

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Head and Face Relaxation

Just allow your breathing to slow down and deepen; so comfortable and so serene. As I speak, let your eyes close gently and easily, so that you start to relax, serenely and confidently. Breathe comfortably, slowly and deeply.

Now let the relaxation in your eyelids spread outwards to your forehead so that it too relaxes and becomes smooth and comfortable. Enjoy the feeling of comfort and wellbeing.

Just pause for a short time, and now allow the relaxation to spread naturally from your forehead, flow in and around your eyes, and on downwards through your cheeks, to your jaw, and your neck, everything relaxing as the soothing comfort gently spreads.

Now allow your mouth to relax as well, so that it is entirely soft and relaxed, with your lips and your eyes gently smiling.

Feel your tongue relaxing completely naturally in your mouth, so that now your whole face and head are totally and gently relaxed. Enjoy the feeling of comfort and wellbeing.

Finally, allow your shoulders to relax and sink to their natural level, so that your whole body is calm, limp and relaxed, and your breathing is soft and slow.

And now rest in the sure knowledge that this wonderful calm relaxation is there for you when you give birth to our baby so gently and naturally, filled with serenity and confidence.


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Stroking Relaxation Gently and easily allow your eyes to close….. so that you can better focus on my voice. ….. Just allow

your breathing to slow down and deepen ….. so comfortable and so serene. …..Now feel the weight

of your feet on the floor (or on the bed), ….. As you focus on your feet, ….. feel all your stress and

tension flow irresistibly down out of your body through your feet …..down into the ground ….. to be

replaced by a wave of relaxation and serenity ….. so you feel relief and comfort ….. as a feeling of

warmth and wellbeing permeates your whole being. Your breath becomes slower and deeper, …..

slower and deeper. ….. Comfort and wellbeing. Start stroking her right hand and arm, speaking slowly and calmly.

As I speak, I’ll begin to stroke your hand very gently and softly. Just allow yourself to enjoy the

pleasant sensation in your hand, ….. the soothing, relaxing touch. Your hand feels as though it is

safely enveloped in a silk or velvet glove. ….. Endorphins spreading throughout your body …..So soft

….. so warm ….. so safe ….so comfortable.

Now you notice that all feeling begins to fade away from your hand. ….. You can feel my touch, …..

but all you are aware of in your hand is warmth and comfort, ….. a slight tingling, ….. and your hand

becomes increasingly numb, ….. it rests relaxed, loose and senseless. ….. As I keep stroking, ….. so

the feeling in your hand becomes less and less. …... and you feel so relaxed, ….. because you know

your hand is completely safe and comfortable ….. your hand becomes completely free from sensation

….. now you feel nothing at all in your hand

Now you can apply this warm, comfortable numbness wherever you wish to in your body. ….. All you

have to do is just bring to mind the part of your body that will be free from sensation, ….. and all

feeling gradually fades gently away, ….. fades gently away. ….. Enjoy this sensation ….. Comfort and

wellbeing. As you are now very relaxed, just spend a little time to:

1. Allow a feeling of well being and empowerment to permeate your body, and fill you with

confidence at the birth of your baby.

2. Appreciate the power of your maternal intuition, that guides and protects you and your baby

through labour and birth.

3. Grow in confidence that your body has been made to give birth efficiently and calmly.

4. Allow your body to loosen and relax, as you do during your labour and your baby’s natural

birth.

5. Allow your mind and body to grow in harmony for a swift and gently labour and birth.

(Pause.) When enough time has passed, stop stroking, and bring her back to normality, talking in a normal voice at a normal volume.

This has been a very special time as you become so relaxed and happy in the knowledge of the

fulfilment that is before you in the birth of our baby. You now know that you are able to affect your

body as you wish. But in a minute it will be time to come back to me in this room, bringing the calm

confidence with you, wonderfully relaxed, refreshed and empowered, confident that our baby’s

birth will be relaxed and healthy, calm and quick. Knowing that, next time we do this you will relax

even more deeply, your confidence will be even more profound, and you will quickly become even

more free of all sensation ….. and now, in your own time, open your eyes – wide awake and alert.

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Calming Touch

(Gently rest your hand on the wrist of her right hand)

As my hand rests on your wrist, so your eyes close, and your eyelids rest just as lightly, just as gently

on your cheeks, as your breathing slows and deepens ….. slows and deepens. Let your attention rest

on your eyes, relaxed and calm, on your shoulders, relaxed and calm, on your feet, relaxed and calm,

on your jaw, relaxed and calm, on your stomach, relaxed and calm, on another part of your body

relaxed and calm, on another part of your body, wherever you choose, relaxed and calm. Your whole

body sinks into deep and comfortable relaxation, deeper and deeper, so comfortable, so easy; a

wonderful feeling of wellbeing. Every organ and cell within you functioning healthily, easily, restfully.

Calm and serenity flowing throughout your body and filling your mind with confidence and trust.

And every time I place my hand on your shoulder, you will immediately go twice as deeply into

relaxation.

Now observe that your breathing has slowed ….. and deepened. Breathing in ….. and breathing out

…….. , breathing in …. and breathing out …… Deeper and deeper ….. so comfortable, so relaxed.

Now I shall gently raise your arm a little. Let me take all the weight. (raise arm). Notice how heavy it

feels. It feels very, very good just to allow me to lift your arm, knowing that, in a minute, when I

gently let go, your relaxation will deepen more and more (let go of arm).

Now again, just notice your arm rising easily as I raise it (raise arm). And when I drop it your

relaxation will be very, very deep (let go of arm). So deeply relaxed. Deeper and deeper.

And again, now, I’m gently raising your arm (raise arm). As I let go, you go many times deeper (let go

of arm). Deeper and deeper. More and more relaxed. So comfortable. So profound.

Enjoy this unique comfort and depth of relaxation that you have created in your body and mind.

Deeper and deeper. Know now that this easy, deep relaxation is there for you as you, your body, and

your baby share the empowering experience of labour and birth, serenely, confidently, calmly.

Allow this feeling of intuitive confidence and calm to remain with you as you gradually become aware

of your surroundings again and, in your own time, open your eyes, calm and aware, awake and

confident, both now and when you gently and naturally give birth to our baby.


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Your Breathing

Upward Breathing: With body relaxed, slowly breathe in through your nose and then release it

equally slowly through your mouth.

To start with, do this as you count to 15 in and 20 out, and this will increase as you practice. Use this

breath in the Upward Stage (First Stage) of labour during every surge to enable you to remain relaxed

and calm.

You may like to imagine the sun rising as you breathe in and, as you breathe out, the sun climbs to

the highest point in the sky, so that your mind is thinking ‘up’ as your body is drawing up. Or you can

imagine blowing bubbles as you breathe in and, as you breathe out the bubbles float lightly upwards.

With this breathing and upwards visualisations, mind and body are working together which is a

powerful combination, so that you are working with your body, and each surge is most efficient and

comfortable.

Practice this breathing for a few minutes twice a day with your husband / partner supporting you in

the visualisations.

Downward Breathing: Take a big quick breath in through your nose and, as you slowly and gently

release it through your nose, focus your attention downward towards your pelvic floor.

Use this breath in the Downward Stage (Second Stage) of labour.

You will know when your body wants to breathe the baby down. As your muscles are now helping

your baby to ease downward, so your mind focuses downward to work with your body and your

baby.

Any soft, open, fluid downward visualisation is helpful, for example, a beautiful full blown rose,

ripples going out on a pond, an entrancing little waterfall in a mountain stream.

This breathing is effective and conserves energy. Practice it, with the visualisations, on the loo in the

last six weeks of pregnancy. Also do some practice with your husband partner reminding you of the

prompts.


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Support During Surges

These may be helpful during the Upward Breathing in the Up Stage of Labour

Watch the sun rise, the beautiful pink appearing on the horizon

Breathe up with the sun as it rises higher in the sky

As the sun rises, so your body draws gently upwards

See yourself blowing bubbles, and see them get bigger and bigger

Watch the bubbles float upwards into the sky, upwards into the sky

Drawing upwards with each relaxing breath.

Breathe slowly, and very comfortably

With each soothing breath your body becomes more relaxed and calm

Breathe up as your mind and body work together in unison

You’re doing really well; that’s very good

So calm, so serene, so at peace

For use during Downward Breathing in the Down Stage of Labour

See a beautiful full blown rose, so open and so soft

Watch the ripples flowing out and out on a pond. So soft a calm.

Your body eases your baby gently down with each breath

Imagine an entrancing waterfall, with the water flowing gently downwards

Trust the gentle downward movement of your body and your baby

Your baby moves easily downward

With each breath, your baby is coming to you

Focus your attention down towards your baby

You will soon be holding your baby in your arms


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Statements for an Empowering Birth

I move gently forward through my pregnancy and labour with confidence and trust.

I see my baby's birth as natural, healthy, swift and easy.

I am practicing so that I am relaxed and calm during labour.

I trust the instinctive process of birth which flows naturally through my body.

My mind leads where my body follows. As my mind is so relaxed, confident and calm, so my

body is comfortable, relaxed, soft and open, as my baby passes gently, healthily and swiftly

into the world.

As I feel my baby moving inside me, my love and connection grows ever deeper.

Birthing is a natural process of my body, my mind, and my spirit, working in unison with my

baby.

I acknowledge and trust the innate wisdom of my body and my intuition to guide me through

pregnancy, labour, and the birth of my baby.

I approach my baby's birth with optimism and confidence.

I practice profound relaxation, and I deepen my confidence and trust.

I am secure in the knowledge that I am fully prepared for a natural, easy and swift birth.

I have confidence that a natural birth is safe for me, and safe for my baby.

I choose the best possible caregivers during my pregnancy and the birth of my baby.

I choose the best place for my baby to be born naturally and calmly.

I enjoy the feeling of natural calm, relaxation and softness that permeates my body.

As I gently progress through labour and birth, I go deeper into relaxation and calmness.

Each breath is slow, long, deep and relaxed.

With each surge I breathe deeply, focus upwards, and work with my body.

With each breath out, I breathe out tension and stress.

With each breath in, I breathe in relaxation and comfort, peace and trust.

I feel positive, confident and optimistic, and I look forward to my baby's birth.

Throughout my labour I go deeper and deeper within to my innate wisdom and intuition.

I flow with the natural rhythms of my body which gently and swiftly ease my baby into the

world.

I trust that my body and my baby are healthy, relaxed and calm.

My baby naturally moves into the best position for an easy birth.

I trust the natural process of birth working gently through my body and my baby.

Each surge of my body reminds me that I will soon be holding my baby in my arms.

I serenely accept my birthing as just right for me, and for my baby.

I relax more and more deeply as my labour advances and my baby moves closer and closer to

birth.

I feel calm, relaxed and at ease.

With each surge my breath is slow and deep, my body is relaxed, and my mind is calm.

I trust my body, my instinct, and nature to lead me and my baby gently through labour and

birth.

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As labour develops, my relaxation deepens and my body softens and opens, wider and wider.

After my baby is born, gently, calmly and healthily, the placenta follows easily and naturally.

My baby moves smoothly into the world, the placenta follows, and my blood vessels close

naturally and healthily.

I eat healthily and take care of my body for me and for my baby.

My body and my baby's body are created the right size to birth naturally.

My baby is in the best possible position for a natural, swift and gentle birth.

My baby is born at the right time for a natural, swift and gentle birth.

I have plenty of milk for my baby, and I feed my baby easily and comfortably.

My baby feeds well from me and thrives.

My body is designed to give birth efficiently and easily.

I have chosen to be relaxed, calm and confident during labour.

My baby is born healthy, alert and serene.

I welcome my baby with love and delight.

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Colour and Calmness

It's so simple to let your breathing be completely natural, and notice just how easily and gently you

are relaxing, breathing in and breathing out .....breathing in and breathing out ...deeply, slowly,

comfortably.

As you relax more deeply, you notice that your eyelids feel heavier, and very naturally start closing

..... slowly and easily ..... slowly and easily ..... until now they are completely closed.

Now give yourself permission to imagine a warm, unstoppable wave of complete relaxation starting

at the very top of your head, and beginning to wash comfortably down through your body. As it

flows through every part of your body, so that part becomes completely limp and relaxed. Feel it

now flowing from the top of your head down ..... your forehead becomes completely smooth as it

totally relaxes ..... now you feel the muscles around your eyes soften and release. Now your cheeks

relax ..... now your lips ..... and even inside your mouth your tongue relaxes. Now the muscles of

your jaw soften and let go ..... comfortably ..... easily ..... as you go down and further down ..... enjoy

the release.

The wave flows on through your neck, relaxing it and enveloping your shoulders, and now that

feeling of warmth and ease washes down your arms, relaxing every point as it flows from your

shoulders, through your upper arms, past your elbows, and down into your lower arms, and on into

your hands, the back of your hands and your palms, all the way down to the ends of your fingers,

allowing everything to become relaxed and comfortable. Now the wave surges gently on through

your chest, relaxing everything, through your stomach, gently soothing, and the muscles of your

pelvic area relax, just as they will as you give birth to your baby, and on into your legs, down your

thighs, and into your lower legs, then down into your feet, where, like the surging sea, it laps at the

very tips of your toes, making both your legs completely relaxed. And now you realise that you are

very, very relaxed. This feeling of wellbeing allows you to go deeper, down and further down, and

each time you go more quickly, more deeply, easily and gently into ultimate relaxation. Down and

further down. More and more profound.

Now you become even more deeply relaxed, as you imagine yourself in a warm and crystal clear sea,

and you find that you can breathe just as easily underwater as on the surface, and so you let yourself

gently and safely sink down and further down into the warm, comfortable water, observing all the

beautiful coral and fish of every colour and hue, shape and size, and as you sink deeper, you become

more and more profoundly relaxed, until you find yourself on the bottom, lying gently on the soft

sand, surrounded by all these beautiful colours, and completely, completely, relaxed and calm.

As you lie comfortably, calmly and relaxed on the warm, soft sand, breathing easily, deeply, slowly,

happily and calmly, you notice that, as the different shoals of fish come and go, twist and turn,

change shape and intermingle, they create the most beautiful patterns and colours, and these

colours affect your own emotions with their beauty, and your body and mind absorb their calmness

and fluidity, allowing you to sink down and further down, into gentle peace.

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And now you notice that, almost miraculously, the different coloured fish have separated into bands

of colour, so that, like light through a prism, every colour of the spectrum can be seen before you,

gently pulsating to the rhythm of your body, as the fish themselves gently twist and turn. How

relaxing this is; so calming and so peaceful.

Now the fish swirl silently, separate and move away out of sight, until, like a soft cloud, you see

coming towards you the most beautiful purple shoal of gentle, dainty fish, ranging in colour from a

soft red to a calming blue. And as the fish pass around each other, you experience the energy of the

colour purple, flowing softly around and through you, bringing you confidence and trust. This has a

wonderful effect on your mind, filling you with relaxation, and happiness, and serenity, bringing you

the peace of mind that will be with you throughout your pregnancy, and your baby's birth. So you

feel calm and confident, and these wonderful feelings allow you to trust your inner wisdom, and drift

down and further down, safer and safer.

See before you now the red fish separating and leaving as a body, off into the distance, and almost

miraculously the colour surrounding and permeating you becomes the wonderful blue of the shoal

that remains, clear and serene like the azure blueness of a summer's day, and this blue flows softly

round and through the upper part of your body, bringing a lightness and beauty to your world, and

with it a gentle and soft happiness. A feeling of calmness, peace and wellbeing envelopes and

soothes you, down and further down. You notice that your breathing becomes even more gentle

and easy, and this wonderful blue is in complete harmony with the area of your neck, your shoulders,

and your throat, as they relax more and more, and become softer and softer. You use gentle and

positive words, in your inner conversations and when you speak to your baby, and you feel as though

all your muscles have completely softened. You feel relaxed and weightless ..... a profound feeling of

wellbeing and trust.

Now a group of yellow fish silently join the blue fish, which turn the colour around you to the gentle

green of spring, the time of new beginnings, just as your body is so naturally and healthily vibrant

with new life, and this mingling of the yellow and blue fish, each vanishing as separate colours,

permeates you with the energy of green, a green that gladdens and relaxes your heart itself, where

you feel such joy and love now, and deepens even further your calmness and relaxation. Joy and

love for your baby envelop you, and you experience a deeper connection with this new small being.

With the new, gentle green you feel so close to nature as she caresses and enfolds you. You are

wholly enveloped with that wonderful feeling of calmness and relaxation which nature brings to all

she touches, down and further down.

Notice now that the blue fish are drifting away, all together, and only the yellow fish remain, like a

shimmering meadow of yellow flowers, which brings peace and calm throughout the centre of your

body. You feel the fish swimming gently around you, never touching, but the faint tremor of the

water as they move caresses the centre of your body, and seems to flow right through you, drawing

you into a state of yet deeper relaxation and harmony, down and further down, as your breathing

becomes even more effortless and gentle, your muscles loose, and your body at ease.

And then you notice that the shoal is turning almost imperceptibly but smoothly into a soft orange,

like the flesh of a melon, as a new shoal of red fish arrive and intermingle with the yellow ones,

changing the colour from yellow to orange as their numbers increase. You feel this colour change

16


particularly affect your abdomen, which softens even further, and relaxes, as every element within it

calms and softens, and you become even more closely connected to the baby you feel growing

within you. This effect soothes and softens your body throughout the area of your abdomen, and so

you become more and more relaxed ready for the birth of your baby, as your mind and body move

closer and closer together in serenity and peace. Down and further down.

But now the colours of the fish change yet again as the shoal of yellow fish swim away, so that all

becomes a deep, rich, red, bringing great calmness and relaxation which permeates your pelvic area

and the lower part of your body. You are full of confidence and trust. You are calm, and peaceful,

and happy, and you feel that the future holds good things for you, so you trust in nature, in your

intuition, and in the natural process of pregnancy, labour and birth. You know that your body is

designed to give birth naturally, and work with your baby during its smooth passage into the world.

Of course these wonderful feelings allow you to drift down and further down, safer and safer,

encompassing your entire body, mind and spirit.

Now something wonderful happens. The red fish in their shimmering haze quietly move away from

you out of sight, and you notice that the dappled light, filtering through the ripples of the water, has

changed the sand you are lying on to a soft bed of purest white, as if all the colours that have passed

around you have left behind their very essence, and produced their natural combination of white

light, on which you now rest, so gently that you can hardly feel it at all, so gently that you feel the

softness saturating your very being. This feeling of peacefulness, relaxation, and confident and

instinctive happiness, reminds you that the happiness and joy of a natural, swift, healthy and calm

birth, for you and for your baby, is just as natural as all the colours of the beautiful, gentle fish that

have swirled around you, and enveloped you with their fluid softness, and is equally a part of nature.

So now you know that all is well; all is very well. You know that your labour and birth are a

completely natural process in the way that nature intended ..... and you carry within you the memory

of this wonderful experience of the colours and calmness.

This has been so pleasant, and there is no need for anything more in this session, so it is completely

natural for you to pass from this experience to a deep and happy sleep, waking at the right time,

joyful, refreshed, and relaxed, and looking forward with confidence and trust to your baby arriving so

naturally, gently and calmly. If that is how you would like this session to end, just slip off to sleep

now.

If you would like to come back to a state of alertness, then follow my instructions, and the energy will

easily and naturally flow back into you. I will start counting now:

1. starting to become aware of my count

2. slowly taking control of your muscles again

3. feel the energy begin to flow back into your body

4. noticing the sounds around you

5. and finally your eyes gently open, and you feel happy, refreshed and very calm.

Filled with confidence and trust in your body and in the natural process of birth.


17


Inducing Labour More Naturally

Lovemaking

Nipple and clitoral stimulation

Laughter

Visualizing an opening rosebud

Hypnotherapy

Acupuncture

Massage

Sp 6 – four fingers above back of inside ankle bone

Walk

Bath

Hot and spicy foods

Raspberry leaf tea

Aloe vera juice

Pineapple

Evening Primrose Oil (vaginally)

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Things to Remember

Daily:

Upward breathing – with visualisation of Sun Rising in the sky etc

Statements for a gentle birth

Colour and Calmness CD

Looking at birth picture

Pelvic floor exercises

Perineal massage (from week 34)

Downward breathing (on loo) from week 34 - with visualisations of Open Rose /

Waterfall / Ripples in Water

Menu:

Gentle touch

Head and face relaxation script

Calming touch script

Stroking relaxation script

Colour and calmness script

Laughter

Hugs

Also: Squatting, sitting cross legged etc., sitting upright, funny and light hearted DVDs.

Focus your attention on where you want to be.

On the day itself:

Take your time. Enjoy the day and gently keep doing what you were doing and, at some

point, start timing your surges.

Watch a light hearted or amusing DVD.

When you feel the surges are getting more effective, start using your up breathing and

possibly some visualisations for yourself. After a while you may find some prompts helpful.

Call the midwife or go to the birth centre / hospital when the surges are about five minutes

apart and one minute long.

Throughout the birth:

Mother: Up breathing, Up Visualisations, moving to Down Breathing, Down and Open Visualisations.

Father: Protecting your space, Gentle Prompts, Gentle Touch, Arm Stroking, Shoulder Stroking, CD.

Enjoy your pregnancy. Remain calm and confident. Allow your birthing body to birth your baby.

Enjoy your birth. Birthing and caring for your baby is a natural process of being. Whatever you do is

right.

19


Note to Midwife

We have been practicing Hypnobirthing and our focus is on a calm and natural

birth.

We would very much appreciate your support in this by helping us to create a

calm and quiet environment at all times with no interventions unless absolutely

necessary for the health of mother and baby.

If you have any questions, please ask me _______________ in the first

instance, and not the mother.

Thank you so much for your help.

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Birth Plan Notes You are focused on a calm and natural hypnobirthing birth, so it is very much in your best interest to carefully consider the following:

Membrane sweep

Induction (after ‘due date’ / after release of membranes)

Safe and calm place for birth

Vaginal examinations (also after membrane release)

An atmosphere of peace and quiet in labour

Soft lighting during labour and birth

Relaxing music

Use of the word ‘pain’ during labour

Augmentation of labour

Delay cord cutting until after pulsation has stopped

Skin to skin contact immediately after birth

Injection of artificial oxytocin

Vitamin K required: intravenously / orally / not at all

Breast feeding

Hold my baby undisturbed for at least one hour after birth

Bathing baby

Father to remain with me after birth

21


Birth Companion’s Questions

I wonder if you can help me?

Could you explain that to me?

We’d like to have a little time to think about what you’ve just told us.

We would rather not rush this birth unless something is wrong. Is something wrong?

What is the medical reason for this?

What harm is there if we were to wait an hour or so? We’d like to do that if possible.

What’s happening? Is my wife in danger? Is the baby in danger? If not, we’d like to

leave it for a little while.

What other options are there that we could consider first?

How would what you’re suggesting affect my wife’s labour?

What effect could that have on the baby?

Why do you feel that this is necessary at this point?

What do you see that tells you we should do this?

What is your clinical rationale?

Is this a medical emergency?

Is it likely in this case?

What will happen if we don’t do this?

Are you suggesting this because it’s hospital protocol or, in your personal opinion, is

it best for me? And, if so, why?

Can you be sure that it will do more good than harm in my case?

Would you put that in writing please.

B Benefits

R Risks

A Alternatives

I Instinct

N Nothing

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Giving Birth: The Endocrinology of Ecstasy

By Dr Sarah J Buckley, M.B., Ch.B.Dip.Obst

Giving birth in ecstasy: This is our birth right and our body’s intent. Mother Nature, in her wisdom,

prescribes birthing hormones that take us outside (ec) our usual state (stasis), so that we can be

transformed on every level as we enter motherhood.

This exquisite hormonal orchestration unfolds, optimally when birth is undisturbed, enhancing safety

for both mother and baby. Science is also increasingly discovering what we realise as mothers – that

our way of birth affects us life-long, both mother and baby, and that an ecstatic birth, a birth that

takes us beyond our Self, is the gift of a life-time.

Four major hormonal systems are active during labour and birth. These involve oxytocin, the

hormone of love; endorphins, hormones of pleasure and transcendence; epinephrine and

norepinephrine, hormones of excitement; and prolactin, the mothering hormone. These systems are

common to all mammals and originate in our mammalian or middle brain, also known as the limbic

system.

For birth to proceed optimally, this part of the brain must take precedence over the neocortex, or

rational brain. This shift can be helped by an atmosphere of quiet and privacy, with, for example,

dim lighting and little conversation, and no expectation of rationality from the labouring woman.

Under such conditions a woman intuitively will choose the movements, sounds, breathing, and

positions that will birth her baby most easily. This is her generic hormonal blueprint.

All of these systems are adversely affected by current birth practices. Hospital environments and

routines are not conducive to the shift in consciousness that giving birth naturally requires. A

woman’s hormonal physiology is further disturbed by practices such as induction, the use of pain

killers and epidurals, caesarean surgery, and separation of mother and baby after birth.

23


CHOOSE to use your hypnosis during your birthing!

Why Hypnosis for Childbirth "Works" for Some and Not For Others

I found choice to be one of the most important aspects of using Hypnobabies for the births of my children and

I try to emphasize it to those using hypnosis.

I had what most OBs would consider to be complications during my first birth and less so, but still a bit with

my second. (I consider it to be just the normal way I birth.) I had back labour and “failure to progress” past 4

cm for many hours during my first birth, and had the added frustration and distraction of being in a tiny

cubicle in the triage area that whole time because the maternity ward was so full.

With both births I had periods of a few hours with no break between pressure waves. It was just constant,

intense pressure, especially in my back that would ease up slightly for a few seconds every couple of minutes,

but never release completely. After my first birth, one of the nurses told me that when she saw the readout

from the monitor, she assumed I was in agony and would be having a caesarean birth before the night was

over, due to my “failure to progress”, and what she assumed would be the utter exhaustion brought on by

the unending

intensity of the waves. Then she actually saw me and thought I had been given sedatives to make me sleep (I

didn't have anything in my system except sips of juice and water)! She couldn't believe that the totally

relaxed, comfortable woman on the bed was the same one hooked up to the monitor showing crazy,

unending pressure waves.

But I remember that the whole time that things were really intense, I felt very clearly that I was CHOOSING to

remain relaxed and in complete control. There were several times that I acknowledged to myself that I had

good reason to feel frustrated or scared or tense or fed up with the length of time my progress was “stalled”

or even feel pain. But each time, it was like I mentally held those negative emotions up and took a good look

at them, like I was choosing a piece of fruit at the farmer's market. Then I decided they weren't going to help

me

in any way and chose to push them away and remain focused, calm and comfortable.

I chose to change my way of thinking to realize that after many, many months of waiting to meet this child, a

few more hours were just a drop in the bucket and not even worth thinking about.

Since that experience, I try to explain to women using hypnosis for childbirth that they are giving themselves

an excellent tool for a comfortable birth and they simply need to use it. And for most people, it will simply be

there for them, keeping them calm and comfortable, mentally and physically. But if things go a bit differently

than they imagined, and their confidence gets shaken a bit, they need to realize that they CHOOSE whether or

not to continue to use hypnosis and to allow it to work for them. The tools they've "installed" in their mind

will be there, no matter what the circumstances. It's up to each woman to decide how she will use them and

if she will allow them to work for her.

-Susan

Hypnomom to Luke and Steven

24


Building Confidence Exercise

To allow yourself to move freely forward, and your body to give birth naturally, calmly and gently,

use this opportunity to write down any fears, tensions or worries that could inhibit the natural and

gentle birth that you are focussing on. It could be anything to do with labour, health, what someone

has said, your relationship, finances … anything at all.

If something comes to mind that doesn’t seem directly related, right it down anyway. If it comes to

mind now, it might also come to mind when you are in labour.

Include anything from small worries to major concerns.

This is your own process. Allow it to mature so it is of maximum benefit to you.

When you feel the list is complete, share and discuss it with your partner. Nobody else need see

these lists, so you can be entirely honest. We will talk about them if you want to and empower you

to free yourself from them in the next class.

When we have completed the release work, never look at the list again, and please destroy it

completely.

You can make your list on the back of this sheet of paper.

25


Building Confidence Exercise

To allow yourself to move freely forward, and your body to give birth naturally, calmly and gently,

use this opportunity to write down any fears, tensions or worries that could inhibit the natural and

gentle birth that you are focussing on. It could be anything to do with labour, health, what someone

has said, your relationship, finances … anything at all.

If something comes to mind that doesn’t seem directly related, right it down anyway. If it comes to

mind now, it might also come to mind when you are in labour.

Include anything from small worries to major concerns.

This is your own process. Allow it to mature so it is of maximum benefit to you.

When you feel the list is complete, share and discuss it with your partner. Nobody else need see

these lists, so you can be entirely honest. We will talk about them if you want to and empower you

to free yourself from them in the next class.

When we have completed the release work, never look at the list again, and please destroy it

completely.

You can make your list on the back of this sheet of paper.

26


My baby and I would

love to hear your

empowering birth

experiences

hypnobirthing file1 care for your birthing year hypnobirthing amy neuhedel ms ed., dip hb, cd(dona)...

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