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I would say a majority of women who are pregnant anticipating birth think relaxation is for the birds-meaning is doesn’t work  for a woman in labor experiencing “labor pains”.  This is actually a matter of perception and expectation.  If you believe your labor is going to be painful, it will be.

But what if you took a second look at relaxation and saw its ability to alter not only your physiology during labor, but your mindset, as well as your “pain” level?

What if you’ve bought into an incorrect mindset – that labor is horribly painful and scary. A mindet that has passed from generation to generation, right up to you. What if, in the year 2009-2010 and on, this mindset is no longe the badge to wear. The new badge of birth is : Birth is what I make it to be.  Birth is a reflection of my mindset – I have the power within me to experience a painless, loving,peaceful birth of my child.

What if?

The proof, the science of relaxation is in.  Your thoughts affect your physical response. Watch and see…  Now think about what YOU’RE  thinking, stressing about with pregnancy and upcoming birth experience.

Relaxation is important to understand first, how it works, and then do it to reap its benefits for labor, birth, and as a new mom.

Lesly

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It’s very sad to know that the USA is #30 on the list of countries with the greatest infant mortality. We are at the bottom of the list!  It is important for women to learn about Midwives and use them as their care provider during pregnancy and birth.  This is part of the Birth Mindset – to educate yourself and choose the maternity model of care (Midwives) that is more benficial to women than the medical model.  Watch this video, learn more, and share with others.  What to do if there are no Midwives in your area?  Look for a Doula.

Lesly

Reducing Infant Mortality from Debby Takikawa on Vimeo.

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The new science is awareness of your thoughts. As Bruce Lipton PhD continues to explain.  What does this have to do with childbirth? Everything! If you don’t believe you have the innate ability to birth a baby, or that your body doesn’t know how, it will influence the choices you make and your birthing experience.  Just as the people around you will affect you as well …

Lesly

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We are bodies of energy. Watch this video with Bruce Lipton, PhD … very interesting. It will make yu think twice …

Lesly

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This is a great article on Hyposis.Dr. Grantly Dick-Reed wrote a really great book called “Childbirth Without Fear” and used Hypnosis in the 1950′s and perhaps even ealier than that.  There are some great programs out there that use hypnosis the most popular being “Hypnobirthing”.  Hypnosis has a huge, positive reputation as a tool for pain management because it works.  But, like anything else you have to  practice, or “train” your mind and body for it.  This is one way to manage labor discomfort.  Understanding why it works is the starting point. So read the article. No hukus pokus here.

Lesly

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Learn How the Knowledge and Use of Hypnosis Supports Healthy Outcomes in Childbirth

The Mind- Body Connection

Eleanor D. Laser Ph.D

Using hypnosis to relax and be in control during labor and delivery isn’t simply a matter of babying yourself; it’s actually good for you and your baby.  In fact, hypnosis can help you experience a healthier and more comfortable pregnancy. Larry Goldman, MD. In Medical Hypnosis:An Introduction and Clinical Guide, states that it may help control nausea and vomiting, help adjust blood pressure, may reduce the risk of premature delivery and  help reduce or eliminate pain and the need for drugs during labor and delivery, may reduce the need for episiotomies ,as well as prevent postpartum depression.  Best of all, hypnosis puts you in charge or your childbirth. It prepares you to enjoy the greatest event of your life; the birth of your baby.Dr. Eleanor Laser “laserhypnosis.com” says that hypnosis is a phenomenon that can assist in adjusting areas that are inhibiting you from a productive life.

The childbirth technique is based on the pioneering work on” The Hypnoreflexogenous Technique” by Drs. Roig and Garcia, and Dr. Grantly Dick-Reed author of “Childbirth Without Fear.”  According to these studies, in hypnosis, each contraction can serve as a cue to go into a deep state of relaxation, even during the height of labor.  It empowers you to eliminate fear, tension, and anxiety, which in turn relaxes the muscles of the uterus, thereby reduces pain. Therefore, a part of your mind can be enjoying the beach in Hawaii floating in the water, while the other part of your mind can hear every word and direction during the process while participating in harmony and comfort.

Hypnosis training begins in your sixth month of pregnancy for you and your birth companion, who actually becomes your coach. You will learn for example to imagine that you are on a vacation, daydreaming, relaxed and oh so comfortable.  Hours seem like minutes and minutes seem like seconds and time passes quickly. With each contraction you will relax even deeper into the rich color of your choice. Staying in this beautiful place you realize that you will remember only the pleasant things about labor and delivery.  And your labor will seem short and your delivery a wonderful, pleasant experience”…Ultimately, hypnosis may make your childbirth more comfortable, and enable you to bond with the baby in a more relaxed and energized experience.

Now that you learned a bit about hypnosis, you can apply this knowledge to your own health care situation. The advantages of hypnosis are that it is effective in treating numerous symptoms and problems those resulting from medical, psychological, and sports. Some of these areas include smoking cessation, needle and general phobias , infertility, overweight, shift negative patterns, performance anxiety, and also in preparation for  surgery as well as during surgery and many other  issues and or symptoms. Dr. Laser also teaches “hypnosis for surgery at Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital at Harvard in Boston. To sum it up, with hypnosis, childbirth may be more comfortable; the birth companion has more of a role; and after the birth you can endear and bond immediately with the baby because you are more relaxed and energized.  There are more positive outcomes for you and your baby, and you achieve a calmer, more peaceful birth environment.  In addition, hypnosis produces more calm natured babies who are better sleepers and eaters. There may also be fewer complications, less need for medication, and easier resolutions, all because hypnosis allows you to relax more than any other method.

Basically, hypnosis is an altered state that we all experience everyday, its like daydreaming, when you forget how you exited the road and arrived home, or when you are watching a movie or reading a book.  So, come along, start to awaken to the power of the mind.

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Years ago there was a woman in one of my childbirth classes complaining about another instructor who was teaching childbirth classes who had a Cesarean birth.

“She shouldn’t be teaching! She never gave birth naturally – so how could she know?”

I discussed what she had just said and I said “You know, nothing in life is straight forward, or always goes the way you want in reality. I am sure she wanted to have a natural birth and something happened and she couldn’t. I am sure she feels enough guilt for what ever reason about her birth experience.”

When it was time for this woman’s own birth experience, she herself had a Cesarean birth. I remember running into her at the hospital and she said to me “I feel so bad I said those things. I didn’t plan on having a Cesarean birth ….”

There is no place for  judgement when having a bay from other people – especially other women who have experienced birth.  Childbirth is a very private, extraordinary experience that brings up all kinds of feelings.

Does it really matter if that woman has an epidural or chooses to have a non medicated birth?  Are the women who choose to have a Cesarean birth really crazy?  Who are we, you, or I to judge their circumstance and situation.

Woman are known to be “catty”, critical of other women. This is one arena where it is in appropriate:  Several things happen when women judge the choices made by other women surrounding childbirth

• it creates lack of self-trust in the woman who is being judged
• it can cause guilt in the person who judges and something happens to the woman their judging
• it’s unsupported
• it creates bad feelings
• it causes envy that a woman didn’t birth the way someone else did
• it damages self-esteem
• it causes “what if “
• a sense of rejection by others (You don’t want an epidural? Why not?)

and so on.

In the early 1900′s in the USA women – friends, neighbors, family had “social births”. These woman would come together to help the laboring woman for days to weeks. This is a lost tradition. But, there’s no reason why as women we can’t embrace the choices of others of how and where they want to birth.

So. Does it really matter how a woman does it? The end result is all the same – she gave birth and became a mother.

We can rejoice in that.

What if we embraced  the women we know and the decisions they make to birth their baby. We would encourage her to do what she wanted, what was right for her.  This behavior would help women to trust themselves more and not create doubt or guilt, but instead, surround her with support.

What would things be like then?

Lesly

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 Living on Planet Pregnancy for nine months can be overwhelming. Once you find out you’re pregnant you immediately think that someone will guide you through this new territory, tell you what to do, where to go, find what you need and when. Your health care provider in many ways is a guide throughout your pregnancy. However, many times they just don’t have the time to spend with you to answer all your questions or give you the emotional reassurance you need. 

 What to do, right? Well, here’s a thought – pregnancy, from the very first day, is really the beginning of parenting. It’s a great time to hone your skills in planning, decision making, knowing your options, and taking action during the next nine months. When you baby arrives you’ll be using these skills even more. So use this time well because nine months goes fast! Don’t wait until the last minute to educate and prepare yourself for baby.

 1. Research your pregnancy and birth options from your point of view.  Meaning, (although challenging) follow your own interests and learn about them, don’t be swayed by what other people think you should do. Build self-reliance based on your own opinions and values. Also, self–reliance leads to resourcefulness in problem solving, and getting the information you need.  The more informed you are, the better decisions you’ll make during your pregnancy and afterwards.   

 2. Choose to see a Midwife if you can. They have a different model of care when it comes to pregnant women and birth. They are safe, well trained, and many Obstetricians have them on staff. Midwives believe in the natural process of pregnancy and birth and not likely to do a lot of medical interventions.

 3. Trust your “gut”.  You may be anxious about birth down the road, but now is a great time to learn and practice how to trust your natural instincts. Intuition is a key element during pregnancy, labor, birth, even parenting.  The sooner you develop this skill, the better you’ll respond physically and emotionally  to this exciting life changing event.

 4. Join a pregnancy support group. There’s nothing like a bunch of happy pregnant bellies to share with!

Lesly

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October 4, 209

 Being pregnant may feel like you’re temporarily living on another “planet”.  It’s an experience totally unfamiliar to you, yet familiar to hundreds of thousands of other women around the world. The first pregnancy is always as mysterious as it is perplexing. And for most expectant women, It’s a huge gift all wrapped up in a time span of nine months.

 For nine months your pregnancy is rich with unknowns begging questions from you to your health care provider, friends, and family members who understand and may have experienced this journey before you. They know what to expect, right? And everyone has an answer for you too, right? Although some comfort may be found in their responses, the truth is, your pregnancy is as unique as you, incredibly personal, and unlike any one else’s, why?

 It’s simple. There’s no one in this world like you.

 So if living in a land of unknowns, or on “planet” Pregnancy for nine months is exasperating yet exciting, how can you be, feel, and enjoy your pregnancy while others around you may treat, speak, and behave differently — just because you are pregnant? Here are some ideas:

 1. Celebrate the fact that you are an amazingly unique individual! No one can do or think the way you do. You and your pregnancy are special, pamper yourself.

 2. Your pregnancy is not an “it” or a “thing” it’s part of you. You are nurturing and caressing your baby, sharing your body to provide what he or she needs for healthy development — love and nutrients.  Eat well and y bond early with baby by playing music, sing lullabies, touch your belly often, indulge in a relaxation class like prenatal yoga.

 3. What ever the circumstance, accept the pregnancy and do this as soon as you find out you are. If the circumstances surrounding the pregnancy were traumatic, are problematic, find a professional therapist, or coach to work through it.  Emotional support is important during this time. The happier you are about your pregnancy the better your experience will be.

 4. Start learning from day one about your body’s normal physical responses to pregnancy, and normal development of your baby. This will raise your comfort level. Make a list of questions and ask one or two each time you see your doctor or midwife.  Don’t go on the internet pregnancy chat groups to ask. You won’t get the answer you want or need, plus you’ll read a lot of emotional material that may make you nervous.  Always find your information from credible sources not hear-say or word of mouth.

Lesly

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Most childbirth classes are held in a hospital environment. However, these classes tend to be uniform in content and reflect the hospital’s position on epidurals and medical procedures.  This is sometimes challenging for the childbirth educator as their teaching philosophy may go against the grain of the hospital’s policies.  For this reason, going to an outside source via a private class, or a class on the internet is a better option for expectant couples where information will not be withheld. For example, it is well known that the cesarean rate has increased dramatically nationally. Yet, hospitals and physicians are not comfortable sharing their cesarean statistics with “patients” nor are instructors encouraged to discuss this openly in a hospital based childbirth class (even though couples are well aware of the rising numbers).

 The problem with hospital based childbirth education is this: It’s a medical model of managing a woman’s pregnancy and labor with medical technology. If a woman is guided towards a traditional obstetrician, she will be enveloped into a care model that may not embrace her personal wishes on how she would like to birth her baby. Once she is on this “medical” path her education about preparing for birth is limited to the education provided by hospitals or her physician. 

 The Internet provides a wealth of information in preparing for childbirth. Couples can find a variety of classes with different philosophies that meet their personal values online. Online childbirth education is much more informative and frees expectant families to really explore what they want and how to get it. Technology – webnars, YouTube, conference calls, etc. make childbirth education not only more informative, but very accessible, even to the woman who is on bed-rest, or the mom who lives in a rural community and can’t get to a childbirth class. Online education provides incredible flexibility in when a couple may take a class. There is also the financial commitment.  Certainly an online childbirth class will save time, money, and gas – three very important factors to consider during economical challenges. 

 Some couples when they go to a “live” class in a hospital, they like to meet other couples who are expecting also.  It is a unique time of bonding and establishing the “I am not alone ” feeling with other women. Also many classes may include a tour of their birthing facility which would not happen with an online class. 

 However, with the rise in social networking, sites devoted to just moms exchanging ideas, experiences, and wisdom, the live class may become obsolete. Yet the one most necessary factor that will always remain an important constant, is human contact. The gentle, understanding touch on the arm, a message signaling everything will be alright, physical practice of techniques such as breathing, relaxation, and positioning, etc. Childbirth is physical and emotional. Hands-on practice prepares a couple for birth. One can read all they want on “preparing” for childbirth. But the reality is birth won’t happen through an iPod. The birthing process requires human involvement, human contact, and patience.

 “Live” classes will continue in hospitals, but if you want the opportunity to explore childbirth classes that are more informative, meet your needs and values, it is best to seek them outside the hospital environment. 

Lesly

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