Hypnobabies Hypnobirthing Class Benefits

How is our Hypnobabies Childbirth Class different from regular ”hypno-birthing” programs?

 
We are asked many times what is the difference between Hypnobabies and other natural childbirth or birth hypnosis programs, and here we answer that question by telling you our class benefits without disparaging any other particular group. Other natural childbirth courses have excellent programs and benefits that have helped many people have better, more relaxed births. We recognize that and celebrate them and what they do every day for those giving birth!
 
In Hypnobabies, our objectives are to help our pregnant couples bond with their baby in utero, teach you how to stay healthy and low-risk and be an excellent consumer, trust in your body, mind and baby, as well as become self-reliant and confident about birthing your own way; safely and *in much more physical comfort*. We overcome negative belief systems and programming, get you in touch with your own beautiful pregnant body, support you through your own excellent birth experience and give you skills that you will use for the rest of your life. Birth Partners are brought into the preparation process and have their own hypnosis  cues for becoming relaxed and calm, as well as a special role to play as they await the birth of their precious newborn. Please read the testimonials (below, at the bottom of the page) from people who used  other programs including Bradley and regular “hypnobirthing” for a previous birth, and then went on to use Hypnobabies – their experiences are well worth reading!
 
Hypnobabies teaches medical-grade, somnambulistic hypnosis techniques, which can be used for surgery without anesthetics. The amount of hypnotic depth that our students achieve when they learn, practice and use Hypnobabies *as directed only* can produce the same “hypno-anesthesia” that master hypnotists use for their clients who are allergic to medical anesthesia and need to undergo surgery with hypnosis as their only medication! Our goal is helping families to “enjoy your baby’s birth in comfort, joy and love”, and Hypnobabies’ medical-grade hypnosis makes it much easier to do so!
 
Unique to Hypnobabies: We are not a typical birth hypnosis class. Hypnobabies is very detailed, comprehensive and successful, uses medical hypnotic anesthesia techniques, from Gerald Kein’s powerful Painless Childbirth program, as opposed to simple relaxation techniques, visualization, imagery or meditations. 
 
Unique to Hypnobabies: Long before they ever step foot in their first Hypnobabies class, our students receive their first 2 hypnosis audio tracks: Your Special Place, which allows them to learn and become proficient in deep physical relaxation, and Easy, Comfortable Childbirth, enabling them to easily master deep hypnosis and positive birth training. Each student is then able to create deep physical relaxation and practice their hypnosis skills for several weeks (or months!) before Hypnobabies Class even starts. This makes it much easier to learn her Hypnobabies Hypno-anesthesia techniques in each class, bringing the Birth Partner into the preparation, (if they have one) and also how to use hypnosis for many other issues: nausea elimination, back and hip pain, insomnia, pre-term labor, pre-term bleeding, perineal massage, internal exams, turning a breech, etc.
 
Unique to Hypnobabies: 16 powerful, deep hypnosis audio tracks for use by our students as they learn, practice and use their Hypnobabies program as well as 2 45 minute-long Affirmations tracks. We also include 1 hypnosis track for our Birth Partners so that they easily become calm and relaxed about pregnancy and childbirth.


Group of people practicing hypnosis

Unique to Hypnobabies: Since the background music in all of our Hypnobabies hypnosis audio tracks becomes a part of the hypnotic induction process, it contains “binaural beats”. This process allows the brain waves to synchronize (brain wave entrainment) which provides our students the ability to enter hypnosis faster and attain a deeper state of hypnosis called “somnambulism”, where Hypno-anesthesia is more easily created and accessed. This is a very important unique feature of Hypnobabies since our expectant and birthing Hypnobabies students can enter hypnosis instantly and become physically comfortable and emotionally confident as soon as the music begins!
 
Unique to Hypnobabies: 2 separate hypnosis cues for entering hypnosis quickly and deeply, and 7 hypnotic deepening techniques. These are important since everyone’s needs are unique during labor, and since each student has learned and practiced these cues many times, they can choose which ones are most effective when giving birth.
 
Unique to Hypnobabies: 5 somnambulistic hypnosis scripts in booklet form, for use by our Hypno-Couples to work with as a team. Our Hypnobabies students participate in one new hypnosis script each week in class and their hypnosis scripts booklet provides them with that same script to work with for reinforcement during the next week. This makes a huge difference when training the inner mind for success of any kind. It is called “compounding” in the world of hypnosis and is necessary for hypnotic suggestions to be retained by the subconscious. Working on progressively more powerful scripts several times week together also allows our students to become “hypno-trained” to the touch and voice of their birth partner and therefore respond much more easily and quickly to birthing cues during labor.
 
Unique to Hypnobabies: We provide detailed, comprehensive training for our Birth Partners by providing them their own Birth Partner’s hypnosis recording for a calm and confident attitude towards pregnancy and childbirth, and their own detailed Birth Partner’s Guide booklet for labor, which allows them to fully learn and feel confident about their role in the preparation for baby’s birth as well as easily supporting their partner during birthing. This includes 4 pages of verbal birthing cues which keep their partner in hypnosis during first stage, transition, beginning to push, the pushing phase as well as tools for remaining calm, relaxed, confident and comfortable in between contractions.
 
Unique to Hypnobabies: Hypnobabies can also be very successfully used by Single Mothers or those whose partners will not be participating in their birth preparation process since we have specific information and well as personal help and support for single students, to make their Hypnobabies journey easier and more fulfilling. All of our Hypno-anesthesia techniques can be easily learned, practiced and used alone, or with a Birth Partner or doula.
 
Unique to Hypnobabies: Hypnobabies classes also provide excellent and Complete Childbirth Education, and we are the only birth hypnosis program that does so (see information below, and our Class Outline). Providing our *Complete Childbirth Education* ensures that our Hypnobabies students will not need to take other childbirth education classes where techniques and philosophies are learned which can negate childbirth hypnosis instruction. “Pain management and coping skills” are actually opposite of what is learned in Hypnobabies; we teach Pain Elimination by using real Hypno-anesthesia. We have found that attempting to embrace opposing childbirth methods (which create specific belief systems) can be detrimental to success with hypnotic childbirth. Including Complete Childbirth Education is essential for *any* birth hypnosis program.
 
Hypnobabies’ Complete Childbirth Education includes the following:

  • Staying healthy and low risk
  • Comfort in Pregnancy
  • Detailed Birthing Choices
  • Creating Informed Consent
  • An in-depth Nutrition and Exercise program
  • Avoidance of Toxic Substances
  • Optimum Fetal Positioning
  • Turning a Posterior Baby
  • Stages of Labor
  • Anatomy and Physiology of Birth
  • Prenatal Parenting
  • Avoiding Back Labor with the Abdominal Lift and Tuck
  • Baby Kick Counting
  • Belly Mapping
  • The Risks, Benefits and Alternatives to Common Labor
  • Interventions
  • Birth Empowerment Skills
  • Birth Plans & Baby Plans
  • Touring the Birth Facility
  • Doula and Midwifery information
  • Avoiding Induction and Cesarean Section
  • Delayed Cord Clamping and other Baby Kindness information
  • Using hypnosis for 1st, 2nd and 3rd stage
  • Comprehensive and detailed birth preparation and labor support training for Birth Partners
  • A Quick Reference booklet for “instantly available Hypnobabies information” during labor
  • Birthing Rehearsals using Hypnobabies techniques in class.
  • Information on New Baby Care, Breastfeeding and Postpartum care for our students.

Unique to Hypnobabies: Hypnobabies’ “Eyes Open Childbirth Hypnosis”, which allows each student to walk and talk and move around freely yet remain deeply in hypnosis, very relaxed, fully present, aware and in touch with her body and baby and *comfortable while doing so*. Other programs rely on immobility for focus and concentration, which can severely impede the progress of labor and the descent and positioning of the baby.
 
Unique to Hypnobabies: We conduct full Birthing Rehearsals in class # 6 so that our students can experience using their actual Hypnobabies techniques and many different labor positions *while in hypnosis in class* which is invaluable, and also shows the Birth Partner hands-on exactly how to use his/her cues and assistance. What a confidence builder, and has made a huge difference in success rates here at Hypnobabies!
 
Unique to Hypnobabies: Our very successful Hypnobabies Birth Visualization, in which you can mentally and emotionally *practice* entering labor, experience your comfortable birthing techniques and give birth easily and in a very detailed and personal way. This “mental birthing rehearsal” is very important to the process of easy and comfortable birthing and is done many times until your Hypno-baby is born, helping program your subconscious mind to produce exactly the kind of birthing you want. Athletes and public speakers of all kinds do this to prepare with great success, and so do our students!
 
Unique to Hypnobabies: Our (4) wonderful Birth Guide audio tracks which keep you deeply in hypnosis with constant hypnotic relaxation and Hypno-anesthesia suggestions for both the first stage of labor and the pushing phase (helping to avoid the “ring of fire” and includes self-directed pushing) as well as “positive birth team” suggestions, dilation and effacement boosting throughout. Birth Professionals are fascinated at how completely relaxed and physically comfortable our students are, how easily they are able to move around and communicate and still remain deeply in  hypnosis, and how “in control” they are of their bodies, minds and emotions. Our Hypnobabies students tell us that our Birth Guide tracks are “Pure Gold!”
 
Unique to Hypnobabies: We require that our Certified Hypnobabies Instructors have a fully trained background in Childbirth and a minimum of 50 hours of Hypnosis training before becoming accepted into our Hypnobabies Instructor Training Program. This ensures that as a Hypnobabies Instructor, all childbirth questions and concerns from each Hypno-couple can be addressed, hypnotic depth can be assessed, and problems such as resistance and abreaction can easily be dealt with. We also require 32 hours of Hypnobabies Instructor Training and have a demanding and rigorous Instructor Certification process.
 
Unique to Hypnobabies: Our Hypnobabies Instructors are always available for help before, during and after your Hypno-baby is born, and we also have a free online Hypnobabies Moms support group attended by certified Hypnobabies Instructors for support and encouragement so that you can enjoy a community where others are using Hypnobabies as well.
 
Unique to Hypnobabies: Hypnobabies includes 21 hours of classroom instruction instead of 8 or 10, and although other childbirth programs may contain some excellent hypno-tools for birthing, none contain the amount of information, in depth hypno-anesthesia, training, practice and support of Hypnobabies. All elements have been carefully designed to work together and the results are excellent.
 
Hypnobabies is an empowering choice for anyone wanting Hypnosis for Childbirth that works easily and beautifully! ***Remember to check with your Insurance Carrier – some companies will cover the cost of childbirth classes. The insurance CPT code for childbirth classes is: S9436. You may also need this: Diagnosis code Z32.2, which is for childbirth education. Some Hypno-families have used their Flexible Spending Accounts for their Hypnobabies classes too, so make sure and check out yours!***
 
Please see our Hypnobabies Course Outline for more information on the subjects we teach in Hypnobabies Classes.
 
For self-study options, please visit our Hypnobabies Self-Study page for more information on our “Home Study Course”. 

Testimonials:
 
We asked the experts, our students, “Have you used another method of childbirth preparation before doing Hypnobabies for a subsequent baby’s birth? Please share your experience with those who are new to Hypnobabies and would like some encouragement that Hypnobabies is ‘worth it’ ~
 
Blair: I wanted to let you know that I used a regular hypnobirthing program for my first birth and have chosen to use Hypnobabies for my current pregnancy. With the hypnobirthing I did not feel as prepared and as confident as I do with this one. Hypnobabies is so much more in depth and comprehensive that it makes all the difference to me. I feel so much more confident in my choices, more prepared to deal with the unexpected and a stronger resolve that things will happen the way that I want them to and not what the Docs want. My birth is not to be convenient for them but all about me and my baby’s health. This pregnancy I have made a lot of major choices like switching to a midwife at 4 months, going to a natural birthing center unit, hiring a doula, and laying out specifically what I want to happen. It is nice to feel empowered by the program simply because I know what me options are. I didn’t get that with the hypnobirthing one and that is something I feel pretty strong about. Hypnobabies (the staff and program) have been so supportive of me that I could not have asked for anything more. Bright Blessings to you!!!(Blair had a challenging Pitocin induced birth, but did it comfortably with Hypnobabies!)
 
Susan: I did research on Hyp-birth when I was doing my own comparison shopping before my second birth. What I discovered was that Hypbirth includes ONLY the CDs, and if I remember correctly a video explaining how to use them. There is no childbirth information at all, so you need to go elsewhere to get all the information you need to be fully informed on how to have as safe and healthy a pregnancy and birth as possible. As for the hypnosis, like Hypnobabies, Hypbirth does include a way for women to enter hypnosis very quickly, which is good. But unlike Hypnobabies, Hyp-birth does NOT teach a way to remain deeply in hypnosis and very comfortable while remaining upright and mobile. Which means that many women probably need to remain in bed to be deeply relaxed if things get intense for them at any point.
 
That is what happened to me while using regular hypnobirthing, (for my first birth) and the result was a much longer birth than I likely would have had if I had been able to remain upright and mobile, as I did with my Hypnobabies birth. That was one of the main reasons I knew Hypnobabies was the best choice for me, and it really came in handy during my second birthing. In fact, I walked very calmly into the birthing center at full dilation. That’s something I never could have done in my first birthing.
 
Basically, even though Hyp-birth includes much more in depth hypnosis techniques than regular hypnobirthing, it still didn’t have the two things I found to be missing during my first birth. Namely, a complete childbirth education (so I could understand all my options in the rare case that complications arose, and discuss them intelligently with my caregiver – plus use natural alternatives avoid to medical intervention, when possible) and a way to remain calm and comfortable while upright during the more intense parts of the birth. Even though I looked into Hyp-birth while preparing for my second birth, I had discovered during my first birth that I needed more birthing information than I had learned through my hypnobirthing classes, so choosing a program that didn’t include ANY childbirth information wasn’t a good fit for me. And once I found out that it didn’t specifically teach “mobile” hypnosis skills, my decision was clear. I chose Hypnobabies for my second birth and had a fabulous, fully informed, pain-free and mobile birth, just as I hoped I would!
 
Sarah: I took a hypnobirth course when I was pregnant with my first daughter, and ended up not really using any of the techniques for a variety of reasons. For one thing (the big one), I was never really sold on the idea that it would actually work. There weren’t that many recorded scripts to listen to; my “birth partner” was supposed to supplement those by reading a few short scripts to me, but DH lost interest in the whole project pretty quickly and was always “too tired” to go over anything with me (which made me frustrated and angry); I found the instructions for the breathing exercises to be confusing and never got the hang of the exercises themselves; and the hypnobirthing book itself, while it has good information, isn’t laid out in a very helpful format.
 
By the time I got induced, I had pretty much lost interest in going natural. I got an epi when things got ouchy, and gave birth to a lovely little girl. Not a bad experience by any means, but I decided this time around that I’d like to have more control and more options than the first time around.
 
I haven’t actually birthed using the Hypnobabies course yet, but I have SO much more faith in it than in hypnobirthing. The week-by-week (and in the maintenance phase, day-by-day) schedule is VERY easy to follow. There are more hypnosis tracks (19) to listen to covering more topics. DH is still not very interested (not negative, just not willing to prepare in any way), but I feel like it doesn’t matter nearly as much as I have so much more information available to me–plus I’ve hired a doula who is really interested in hypnosis, so she’ll be there to help me out when needed.
 
I started doing the course at about 5 months and have followed it pretty faithfully. It’s basically really relaxing and enjoyable, so it hasn’t been a chore to do it. And I’ve been sleeping better than I did with my first pregnancy, so that alone is worth it! Another big plus has been reading all the wonderful birth stories here, which have given me much more confidence than I had with my first pregnancy and birth.
 
Susan:  I didn’t understand the differences in my first pregnancy and took a HypnoBirthing class. There weren’t any local Hypnobabies classes at the time, so my thinking was that a live class would be better for a FTM than a home study class. Unfortunately, I quickly learned that assumption was wrong. The HypnoBirthing class taught us almost nothing about birth and provided very little information on what to do during the birth. My husband and I left the last class with a belief that birth could be comfortable, but no idea how to achieve that. It didn’t go well. So when we were expecting our second baby, we used the Hypnobabies Home Study and were SO much happier with it. I literally learned more in the first half-hour after opening the Hypnobabies package than I had in all 5 weeks of our HypnoBirthing class. The depth of knowledge and power of the hypnosis skills blew the little we learned in the earlier class out of the water. Hypnobabies helped us have a much more enjoyable, comfortable an safer birth.

Rose: I took a basic hypnobirthing class with my first child. I found the class empowering, and it enabled me to relax. However, they did not teach us anything but how to relax. I never really felt like I was deeply in hypnosis. During the birth I was relaxed but I did end up asking for narcotics. At the time I knew very little about pain medication.
 
With my second pregnancy I used the Hypnobabies program and it was amazing. I was deeply in hypnosis, and there are so many wonderful scripts. There is also SO much information on staying healthy and low risk, as well as choices in childbirth. It was so great I flew across country to become an instructor!! 😮 )
 
I definitely recommend the Hypnobabies program.
 
Sandy: I took a private hypnobirthing class with my hypno-doula. I was not happy with the material or the CDs (only 2 come with hypnobirthing the class). My hypno-doula was great and she supplemented the material some, but not enough for me to become comfortable and confident in hypnosis. I then found the Hypnobabies course and ordered it and switched to it. My doula worked with me to learn the new cues and changes and she thought it was great too. If you take a hypnobirthing course, make sure the person truly has a background in hypnosis and is not just a childbirth person who learned hypnosis via hypnobirthing training. Mine was a truly certified hypnotherapist and childbirth educator with strong backgrounds in both.
 
I personally preferred the Hypnobabies and would choose it again. I love my hypno-doula, but I did not care for the hypnobirthing material. The book doesn’t explain everything – leaves a lot of holes to be filled in by class instructor and they only give you two CDs which don’t really help that much in my opinion. The rainbow relaxation helps you relax but doesn’t really give a lot of post hypnotic suggestions and doesn’t really prepare you near as well as the Hypnobabies CDs. The Hypnobabies course is so much more complete than hypnobirthing, although a few people might find their simpler approach preferable, most people don’t. The extra scripts in the Hypnobabies keeps you from becoming bored listening to same thing all the time and gives you much more tools and scripts to work with.
 
I had my DS with Hypnobabies in December and it went very well and I did not have pain, although I was uncomfortable at times from the pressure and tightening which was sometimes much more than I expected.
 
Kirsten D: I had 3 babies before Hypnobabies. Hospital babies. Medically orchestrated babies. Nightmare deliveries. Prep was the hospital course, where they tell you Pitocin does not make birth waves stronger…lies…. They told me how to behave to make life easy for hospital staff. Hypnobabies was a ray of light. I had 3 more babies. Hypnobabies. A home birth, a vaginal breech birth. With Hypnobabies. I wish I had had Hypnobabies from the start, but thanks to having a variety of experiences, I can wholeheartedly endorse Hypnobabies. God bless you, Kerry!
 
Carly A: I did Hypnobirthing on my first, and Hypnobabies on my second. I felt FAR more prepared and much more calm and comfortable on my second.
 
Veronica D: I did Hypnobirthing and found that in comparison to Hypnobabies, it was more of a visualization and focusing technique but not a true hypnosis method for managing discomfort. Ultimately I learned more about how to take care of myself and my baby during pregnancy and how to use hypnosis to truly focus and stay as comfortable as possible when the birthing process can get intense. I felt robbed by the Hypnobirthing course after taking Hypnobabies. I hope this helps!
 
Hailey M: First baby I used Lamaze, had a typical hospital delivery, made it 9 hours with Pitocin, got an epidural, flat on back for 3 hours, pushed for one hour and 9 lb 5 oz baby boy was born. Wasn’t able to nurse him.
 
Second baby, used Hypnobabies, was in birthing time all day but was so comfortable we didn’t make it to the birthing center before his head was born in the car, got to parking lot and midwives helped deliver the rest of my 9 lb 15 oz baby boy 🙂 Hypnobabies is so amazing! Oh, and number 2 is nursing like a champ!
 
Kim P: We did regular Lamaze for our first birth (natural). It was a very quick labor and from 6cm through 10cm I was very close to asking for an epidural. I’m quite sure if it had taken any longer to progress that I would have asked for one. Our 2nd birth was a c/s (twin breech). Our 3rd birth was a twin VBAC with Hypnobabies. I had a wonderful birth experience and never had that “out of control” feeling during transition like I had with our first birth. I never felt desperate for it to be over. Just a nice calm feeling that I was in control and everything was progressing like it was supposed to. People find it hard to believe that we had a twin VBAC, but then when they hear it was drug free (and as close to painless as possible) they are really shocked. It also came in handy for IV placement, shots (I had to have terbuteline shots a few times due to PTL), and cervical checks, etc… The nurses actually didn’t believe I was in labor because I was so calm. Definitely worth it!
 
July P: For my first baby I used a class called natural childbirth offered at the hospital. I was extremely tense during that labor and my baby did not descend. I had a C-section with her. My hypnobaby on the other hand came in three hours. love Hypnobabies and I would recommend it to anyone. I loved using the hypnosis tools before labor and during it. Labor was so much more manageable using the program.
 
Vanessa M: I used Lamaze and HypnoBirthing … nope, didn’t work. So excited to use Hypnobabies this time since I’ve read it works so much better!
 
Bridget E: With my first I just took the hospital class. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go natural at the time, because I was so scared of pain and the unknown, so I decided to play it by ear. I’d heard great things of Lamaze from my mom and other ladies but every time I looked into the “breathing techniques” I just couldn’t buy it. I would probably end up working myself into tizzy trying to figure how to do the breathing right and end up with more stressed. I didn’t really have a plan other than to see how far I could make it without meds and I didn’t last long. Cervadil–Pitocin induction at 41 weeks, begged for epidural at 2cm! Second baby, I found Hypnobabies and dived in head first. Felt so confident and excited for the birth, despite how much I disliked my first one. Water broke naturally on my due date at 6pm and by midnight I had delivered a 10lb 15oz completely natural! Labor was an absolute breeze due to the hypnosis techniques I had taught myself, and my Hypnobabies birth tracks playing on my iPod. Nothing compares to the confidence this program gives you. Love it!
 
Shary J. then asked: How different is the Bradley method compared to Hypnobabies? I’m torn between the two, don’t know which one to take!
 
Marilyn M: Hypnobabies includes the kind of information you would get in Bradley (nutrition, exercise, the process of birth, risks and benefits of procedures and medications commonly offered, etc.) as well as medical hypnosis techniques for comfort in birthing that you won’t find anywhere else.

Portia C: For my first child I used the Bradley method and had a hard hospital birth with unwanted medical intervention 30 hours after my water broke. For my second child I had in September, I used Hypnobabies and had an AWESOME birthing experience. Labor started at 8 PM, I went to bed at midnight listening to my birthing day affirmations/ first stage labor, went to the birthing center at 7AM well rested and had my baby girl at 8AM! Such a better way to relax, be more comfortable and let your body do the work!
 
Susan M: I took Bradley for my first and used Hypnobabies home study with my second, with much better results – I felt comfortable for most of my Hypnobabies birth! I’m now a Hypnobabies instructor. I love the whole Hypnobabies philosophy and see more and more how it applies not only to birth but life in general. Our minds, thoughts, and the words we choose to use are so powerful. I saw it in my birth experiences too. And I have to agree that you get everything and more in Hypnobabies that you would get in other classes.

Anna H: I was a Bradley student who skeptically gave Hypnobabies a try. I’m not sure how I would have stayed calm and relaxed throughout my natural birth without Hypnobabies. I became convinced during the middle of my birth that Hypnobabies was the real deal! You’ll notice some similarities in the physiology of birth and benefits/risks of interventions portions of the class. Other than those similarities, the class is very different! So much information in Hypnobabies about the psychology of mindfulness, positive thinking, and hypnosis itself. The philosophy of the course is extremely different (Bradley: pain is likely and you’re stronger than it vs. Hypnobabies: you can create comfort in your body). The tools that Hypnobabies offers are far superior in my opinion. Hypnosis (Hypnobabies has medical-grade hypnosis) helps mom stay incredibly much more comfortable and relaxed than just trying to relax using soothing music, comfortable positions, and a birth partner’s support with comfort measures. Here are a few articles that helped me fully understand the difference:

Jessica U: It really really is a night and day difference. I did Bradley with my first, Hypnobabies with my second, and will do Hypnobabies with every future baby.

Susan R:  I haven’t used the Bradley Method myself, but I did take the class as a birth partner for my friend, so I can give you that perspective. The childbirth information has similarities between Hypnobabies and Bradley, though in my experience, Hypnobabies was at least 15-20 years more current than Bradley. And since Hypnobabies has had 4 updates since then, it’s probably even more true now. As a birth partner, I found Bradley stressful and frustrating. I had already learned all the same physical comfort techniques in Hypnobabies as we were taught in the Bradley class, but was shocked when I realized that was all she had. For our births using Hypnobabies, those techniques were just supplemental ideas to help enhance the effects of the real tools – hypnosis. It was challenging going into my friend’s birth as a birth partner, knowing that she had nothing to fall back on if things like position changes, counter pressure, visualization, etc., weren’t enough to keep her comfortable. Luckily, my friend wanted the “white-knuckle” birth experience, and was happy with her birth though it looked unnecessarily brutal from my perspective. It was hard for me, watching her discomfort and knowing that she hadn’t “installed” any of the tools for herself that kept me comfortable when I gave birth. As a birth partner, I had fewer ways to help, and none of them were nearly as effective as what I had with Hypnobabies’ hypnosis techniques and other tools.

Two of my births were long(ish) at about 24-26 hours each. Hypnosis (from HypnoBirthing and a few Hypnobabies supplemental tools, not the full Hypnobabies course) helped me stay comfortable with my first, but interfered with my safety and that of my baby by undermining my ability to follow my body’s instincts to move during that birth.

With my second birth, on paper it would look like I had basically the same type of birth, but my experience was night-and-day different (and better!) Learning the complete Hypnobabies program allowed me to get the full benefit of being deeply in hypnosis and remarkably comfortable while moving freely and instinctively. That kept us safer and more comfortable and allowed the birth to go more smoothly. In fact, I slept for 4 solid hours in the midst of active birthing, right through transformation (aka transition), and was fully dilated when we arrived at the birth center. (Though they almost sent us home before I requested a cervical check, because they couldn’t tell that I was in my birthing time at all.)

With my third, I had a 3 hour birth that was more intense and less comfortable. Fast births are often more intense, since so much is being accomplished very quickly. But Hypnobabies includes hypnosis tools that allow people to enter and deepen hypnosis instantly. For fast births, or births that include moments of particular intensity, there are tools that allow birth partners to instantly bring the birthing woman back into hypnosis if something brings her out, and deepen her hypnosis and the “hypno-anesthesia” her body creates when she is in a hypnotic state (yes, that’s a real thing). Those tools became more useful during my third birth, though they were also essential for our earlier Hypnobabies birth. In my experience, the difference between a longer, slower, more gentle birth and my fast birth was that with the slower births I often found the sensations enjoyable and exciting. With the fast birth, I didn’t enjoy some of the sensations as things got intense, but at worst I would call them uncomfortable. Mostly, I just found myself being glad when they ended, which wasn’t true with my earlier births. Even the fast, intense birth was manageable. It took more focus, but for so much less time. As with my first Hypnobabies birth, one of my first thoughts after greeting our baby was, “That’s it? That seemed too easy.”
 
Hypnobabies Childbirth Hypnosis really does help you enjoy a much easier and more comfortable birthing! Use code hypno1528 for 10% off our Hypnobabies Home Study Courses.