Hypnobirthing
Certified KGHypnobirthing Instructor DipHB(KGH)
There is a direct causal relationship between fear, tension and pain during childbirth. When a person is afraid, they trigger their ‘fight, flight or freeze’ response – the sympathetic nervous system kicks in when under perceived threat. The body is then flooded with adrenaline and cortisol. This state is very useful when wrestling a sabre-toothed tiger, but absolutely disastrous when trying to give birth.
No cavewoman wants to give birth in a dangerous place and to ensure this doesn’t happen, the hormones associated with fear, adrenaline and cortisol, actively impair the birthing process – effectively shutting things down so you can run to safety. That’s all very well and good when being chased by a woolly mammoth, but not much use if you’re trying to have a baby. The result: protracted and painful labours leading ultimately to a cascade of medical interventions.
On the other hand, when you are relaxed and feeling safe and in control, your sympathetic nervous system kicks in. Your body is flooded with natural painkillers (endorphins) and your own love drug (oxytocin). The latter plays a massive part in the birthing process as it helps the uterus contract, the cervix thin and also dilate. Oxytocin is also responsible for that rush of love that you feel for your baby when you first see them. That moment of bonding between mother and child should not be missed. So then, your experience of birth physically and psychologically largely comes down to your state of mind. Hypnobirthing is a series of techniques that can be used to maintain a useful state of mind that will create the physiological state best suited to birthing your baby.
Our society often shows birth as a scary and painful experience. Certainly not a beautiful one to which you might look forward. But when you see hypnobirthing mothers deliver, you will realise that childbirth need not be a source of anxiety, but instead may be a source of excitement and anticipation.
The reality is that the female body has been designed to deliver a child without intervention. Women have been doing it since the beginnings of humankind. Your body is no different. Your body has everything it needs to bring your baby into the world safely for you and for them.
Hypnobirthing cannot guarantee that your labour will be pain-free or go exactly to plan - but what it can do is help you stay calm whatever happens and it certainly increases your chances of a positive experience of childbirth.
Hypnobirthing will help you remember this truth, even during each contraction. You can do this. You are doing this. Just concentrate on your breathing. One breath at a time. Each surge is bringing your baby closer to you. Soon, you will be holding your baby in your arms.
““It’s a whole other level of surrendering and trusting your body totally, and we spent months focusing on letting go of fear, learning everything we could about birth, so that we felt as educated and informed about every step of the process and every decision along the way.””
Book your hypnobirthing workshop here.
Price above is per couple not per individual.
Workshop takes place in The Glenview Hotel, Co. Wicklow (just 5 minutes from Bray on the N11)
Contact for dates for next workshop.
Pricing
One-to-one with you and your birth partner. Can be done over a weekend with two full days or over 4 separate evening sessions.
Hypnobirthing book provided
Complimentary Audio CD/MP3
Classes are held in a comfortable and relaxed setting in Co. Wicklow. just off the N11.
Tea & Coffee is provided.
€300 per couple for a full course of workshops (group setting - up to six couples)
€450 per couple for a full private course (one-to-one with just you and your birth partner)
Please enquire for details of availability for upcoming courses.
For more information or to book a session contact dublinhomebirth@gmail.com
