Hypnobabies Language, Perspective, and “Hippie Stuff”
It’s interesting to me when I hear anyone talking about Hypnobabies and the language we use as “hippie stuff”! Clearly the person talking knows little or nothing about the way the mind works and how we can use that to our advantage, and since they don’t, they think that what is unfamiliar to them is invalid, crazy, ineffective, etc. ? What is clear to me is that everything in life that is new is unfamiliar to us, and often takes time to get used to (think back to when you first heard how babies were created – people seems to have gotten used to that concept very well). The fact that we and/or the people we know have not heard of or experienced something does not take away from that thing’s validity, success or effectiveness. If it did, the world would still be considered flat! With Hypnobabies language, it is all there for reasons that were designed around the way that our minds process language to produce desired results. We learned a long time ago at Hypnobabies that the moms who have the best births embrace our Hypnobabies language and use it every day, confident in their mind’s ability to create positive effects in mind and body by doing so. In our Hypnobabies Mindfulness articles, science, language and mindful connection meet, and our students are fascinated to learn about how their brains work, and how simple words used consciously and subconsciously can create a much easier birth experience! ❤
Perspective: noun /pərˈspek·tɪv/
A particular attitude toward or way of regarding something; a point of view. Perspective also means the ability to consider things in relation to one another accurately and fairly. If something is in perspective, it is considered as part of a complete situation so that you have an accurate and fair understanding of it.
We tell our Hypno-moms: The point of changing certain language we use in Hypnobabies is in part, to avoid the negative connotations (emotional associations) that certain “pregnancy and birthing terms” have on our conscious minds and much more importantly, the subconscious, which is often just like a 3 year old and very impressionable. Saying that you “personally don’t have negative associations or issues with typical [obstetrical] wording” is fine, however *many* women do and don’t even realize it yet, and it is much more important how your inner mind is being affected by them. Learning, hearing and using Hypnobabies words hundreds of times alone creates an effect in itself on the subconscious, and as with everything in life, your perspective will determine how you feel about them. We encourage our Hypno-moms to embrace Hypnobabies language fully, or change their perspectives until they can if they want the best birthing experience possible!
And of course, since 95% of our Hypnobabies moms give birth in a hospital and are considered “mainstream”, they all aren’t “granola crunching hippies” (not that there’s anything wrong with that!), as some people have called them. A change in perspective belongs here too. Most moms, no matter where or how they will give birth, would love to experience less pain and more confidence, and that is what Hypnobabies is all about. Here are a few quotes from a very experienced, revered and wise midwife about a huge message that all birth care providers can/should *avoid* providing to pregnant and birthing women, and about learning something previously unfamiliar:
“Believe me: if you are told that some experience is going to hurt, it will hurt. Most pain is in the mind & when a woman absorbs the idea that the act of giving birth is excruciatingly painful-when she gets this info from her mother, sisters, friends, midwives or physician – that woman has been mentally prepared to feel great agony” ~ Ina May Gaskin
(And *this* is why we teach what we teach in Hypnobabies, and it works!)
“When I encounter a story that reveals something about a labor or birth that is new to me, I don’t automatically dismiss it as untrue or irrelevant simply because I am unfamiliar with the phenomenon it reveals.” ~ Ina May Gaskin, Birth Matters (Wise words for all!)
And WHO takes Hypnobabies Classes? These intelligent people do
Thank you for reading this and learning a new perspective!
Kerry Tuschhoff
Founder/Director of Hypnobabies
