3 Doulas

Why Taking Your Hypnobabies Childbirth Education Class Early Is A Smart Move

By: Mandy Schutt

 

Many times expecting moms begin researching their childbirth education options toward the beginning of their pregnancy expecting to enroll in a class that is close to their estimated due date (I like to call it a “guess date” since it’s a pretty general date. First time moms go an average of 8 days past their given due date!)

So, as a Hypnobabies instructor, I often receive calls and email from moms who are looking to enroll in a class that is in the almost distant future. This is a great plan for a lot of childbirth education courses but Hypnobabies is a little different.

 

Why? Well, there are several reasons why it might be best to take a Hypnobabies Childbirth Hypnosis class earlier in one’s pregnancy but I’m going to address two of them here.

1. The Hypnobabies Childbirth Hypnosis class consists of six wonderfully dense classes that are simply jam-packed with childbirth education. To name a few: pregnancy nutrition, cord-clamping issues, care provider choice, medications used in childbirth, partner support, doulas, newborn appearances, breastfeeding, skin to skin contact, and many, many more. For a more extensive list of topics covered, click here.

 

With all of this new information available for new moms and dads to further research and study, some parents actually discover that their birthing plan begins to change a little (or a lot!) and taking the class early allows them to arrange these changes in a timely, non-stressful manner.  For example, parents will learn in class about what a doula does and may be interested in hiring one for their birth. Taking the class early on would allow time to interview several doulas and choose the one that best fits their needs and personality. After learning about cord clamping parents may want to discuss this thoroughly with their care provider to see where she stands on the issues and then include their wishes on the birth plan. After learning about the importance of choosing a care provider that you feel comfortable with and who supports all your birthing wishes parents may choose a completely different care provider. Taking the class early and making changes early can eliminate a lot of hassle with medical institutions and insurance companies.

 

2. An important element of Hypnobabies that is not offered in many other childbirth education courses is that of hypnosis. When one begins to understand how hypnosis works and how well it works when practiced consistently, it’s easy to see why taking the class earlier in pregnancy can be extremely beneficial. Imagine knowing that you are going to run a marathon in six months. You wouldn’t wait until the very last minute to start training, you would start as early as possible to prepare for the big event knowing that the stronger your body is when you run the marathon, the easier it will be for you. This is similar to how hypnosis for birth works. The stronger the mind is, the easier it will be to use on your birthing day. Having time and dedication to practice hypnotic concepts after the six week Hypnobabies course has finishes is very beneficial indeed!

 

Hypnosis For Childbirth Q&A, Part I

By Mandy Schutt

I teach Hypnobabies Childbirth Hypnosis.

I don’t have crystals hanging from my rearview mirror.

I’ve never had my palm read.

I don’t wear patchouli.

I’m not any good at yoga and I don’t even have a Buddha statue in my garden.

So, what’s an average girl like me doing teaching hypnosis techniques?

Isn’t that stuff for the mystical, aura-reading, granola, slightly “out there” types?

I used to think so, until I met my first Hypnobabies Childbirth Hypnosis instructors; she was wearing a button up polo shirt, drove a minivan, and was the mother of three adorable little boys. Some might even mistake her for a soccer mom, certainly not the type of woman who would subscribe to something as extreme as hypnosis!

After a few minutes of hearing her talk about Hypnobabies, I realized that I’d had it all wrong. Hypnosis wasn’t as crazy as I’d thought, in fact it sort of made sense- especially as a tool to use during childbirth. Hypnobabies Childbirth Hypnosis provides birthing moms with about a gazillion ways to make their birth better and it really just starts with hypnosis.  

I had a lot of questions about the hows and whys and whats of hypnosis. Turns out, my questions were actually pretty commonly asked. Now, as a Hypnobabies instructor, I answer these questions all the time- especially from doubting daddies. Without fail, there is always a dad who comes to Class 1, who is there, “to support my wife” and that’s about it. I love- and I mean LOVE- skeptical fathers in my class. Why?

1. Duh, they show their character by agreeing to go to a class with their wife (even though the sound of three hours, once a week sounds like torture!) out of pure support. A guy who does that must really love his partner!

 2. I know that in a matter of a week or two (sometimes within mere hours) “Doubting Daddy” will

become “Positive Papa” as he sees for himself how beneficial hypnosis is to his wife and child, and how informative the classes are for birth partners and expecting mothers alike! By the end of the series, moms AND dads are sad to go, the classes have been educational, reassuring, exciting, and a great place to socialize and swap positive pregnancy stories!

It’s rewarding to see this transformation as an instructor! I welcome skeptics, for I was once one myself!

 
If you're hypno-curious (especially if you are a doubting daddy!), take a look at a few of the commonly asked questions. I may just take the words right out of your questioning little mouth! But if not, be sure to send your inquiries to the email address below. 

Q: Isn’t hypnosis when someone control’s your mind?

A: an absolute and emphatic, “No!” to this one! All hypnosis is self hypnosis. You are able to pull yourself out of hypnosis at any time and if you never want to enter it you simply don’t. No matter what a hypnotherapist or script-reader of any sort says or reads- you are in complete control! No one can make you do or say anything that you don’t want to while in hypnosis.

Q: If that’s true, why did I see a man squawking like a chicken at the hypnosis show last year at the fair?

A: These types of hypnosis shows are funny for people to watch, but there is a reason why many of the audience do not go up on stage- they don’t want to. The individuals who are doing all the silly things on stage actually want to be up there. You may also see that throughout many of these shows, someone who initially was game for participation but becomes uncomfortable mid-way through, and they are gently escorted off of the stage.

Q: Isn’t hypnosis against the rules of many religions including Christianity?

A: Hypnosis is not mind-control, nor is it a means to alter the mind. Hypnosis is simply a state of mind that we are in many times a day- while we are driving, watching television, or reading the newspaper. Here are two articles written by Christians addressing this question.

Q: Doesn’t hypnosis remove a birthing mother from the process of her child coming into the world?

A: Quite the contrary! Hypnosis actually encourages the mother to connect deeply with her body and baby in order to facilitate a more comfortable birth. Mothers who use hypnosis are aware of the birthing waves that are moving their babies down and out, however many mothers translate these sensations as pressure, a squeeze, or even a warm hug. It’s not that the actual process has changed during these mothers’ births, but they approach the “pain” (I hesitate to use that word, as some do not experience pain at all during their births) from a different mindset.

Q: If a mother is in a trance when her baby is born, is she able to deeply bond with her newborn after the birth?

A: Absolutely. Since the process of birthing hypnosis places great emphasis upon mother-infant bonding, when the baby finally arrives and is gazing into its mother’s eyes the bonding that takes place is ecstatically wonderful. Indeed, the mother already knows her child so well that this face-to-face meeting is extremely meaningful. In Hypnobabies we teach new parents a lot about how to care for their newborn in the earliest moments of life outside of the womb. Hypnobabies has even added a birthing “stage” to their curriculum called, “Baby Kindness”.

Q: What does hypnosis feel like?

A: Hypnosis feels different for everyone. Because we are all so unique in the way we learn and take life in, there is not just one way to explain the feeling of hypnosis, though almost all of my students have, at one point, used the adjective, “relaxed”. In Hypnobabies Childbirth Hypnosis, we place a lot of emphasis on relaxation since the body is better able to birth in a relaxed state. There is no right or wrong, better or worse in hypnosis. While one mother may be able to experience her hypnosis scripts in a very tactile manner, another may see, or envision the script. All learning types will benefit from the calm that relaxation can bring them!

More Q&A to come!

I’d love to get some questions from readers too…no patchouli required. Email me at: mandyschutt@yahoo.com

The Hypnobabies Childbirth Hypnosis website is a fantastic resource for the hypno-curious and covers topics ranging from how to find a local Hypnobabies class, if Hypnosis is in any way related to religion (it’s not!), how you can learn to walk, talk, and birth while remaining in hypnosis, and lots of other great stuff!

Hypnosis, Pleasure, and Pain- My Personal Story

By Mandy Schutt 

 “So, when you used hypnosis to birth your daughter, you didn’t have any pain?”

That’s one of the first questions I am asked when I share that I used hypnosis to prepare my mind and body for birthing.

However, the program that I used: Hypnobabies Childbirth Hypnosis, is careful to stress that their program is not all about achieving a pain-free birth. Sure, there are many women who are fully capable of birthing painlessly (I’ve seen it!). Most western women, however, move into their birth so amped up to go through labor’s agony that they defeat their chances of a painless birth before contractions have even started. Tension caused by fearful expectations cause the body to birth more slowly and painfully. Knowing this, we can easily understand that the more relaxed we are throughout pregnancy and birth, the less pain we feel during our birthing time.

Personally, I did not have a pain-free experience for most of my birth. I can however, tell you what hypnosis DID do for me: Mandy's birth, "It's a girl!" Not to be published elsewhere without permission from author.
 

-Allowed me to address my birthing fears head-on and deal with them before I was giving birth so that my birthing time was a joyful versus a fearful event

  

-Reminded me every day that I was capable of birthing and mothering my precious baby

  

-Provided wonderful bonding time between my baby, my husband, and myself for months before my child’s arrival

  

-Prompted me to take time out for myself amidst life’s business. During the last few months of my pregnancy I was working, traveling, bought a house (a fixer at that!), and doing all the other baby-prep stuff. I was so relieved to have an “excuse” to escape it all for a few minutes a day!

  

-Provided an in-depth and complete childbirth education course. Yes, I was a professional birth doula already but the Hypnobabies Childbirth Hypnosis program taught me even more!

 

-Really got me excited for my birthing time! I didn’t view labor as a means to an end, I looked at it as a metamorphosis; a wonderful event that would change my life forever and bring me closer in touch to the woman that I am.

 

-Allowed me to feel comfortable and beautiful through my whole pregnancy and birthing.

 

-Pain-free pushing. I pushed for about an hour and a half and while I did exert great effort, there truly was no pain during pushes nor did I ever experience the ring of fire. My daughter’s head came out along with one of her little fists (“nuchal hand” is the technical term for this, though I prefer to call it the “Superwoman Pose”) and even with this uneven, extra stretching I felt no pain.

 

 

Who knows how much longer or more intense my birth would have been had I not used hypnosis. I remember my mind pulling to its forefront specific lines and affirmations from the hypnosis scripts that I had practiced, “I accept whatever my birthing time brings me.” was the one that presented itself to me again and again. Acceptance. That could have quite possibly been the biggest benefit to using hypnosis throughout my birthing.

 

Cool article! I’d like to read more about the Hypnobabies Childbirth Hypnosis classes Mandy teaches.