As a part of my course, I have my students write about the theories in hypnobirthing and then interview someone who has used it. I have seen great births with this method, though most rarely will call it completely pain free. Even so, it is a very effective technique to work through labor. Below, though, is a beautiful story of a painless labor using hypnobirthing as well as some insight into the strength of women. Enjoy!

“I met MR 7 years ago this August. We became fast friends even though we were opposite in a lot of ways. I was raised the oldest of 7 children, constantly surrounded by babies, birth and breastfeeding and she was an only child who never even had a second thought about those things. I desperately wanted to be a mother since I could remember and M wanted nothing to do with it. We spent 2 years of our friendship doing lots of fun road trips with our husbands, playing games late into the night and having each other for dinner and wine. During many of our late night talks, M and her husband let us know that they were never going to have children. They liked their freedom, they didn’t want to bring life into a broken world, plus they just didn’t have any desire at all. I got pregnant with my first son and was ecstatic. M was curious. She asked me all sorts of questions and seemed pretty interested in everything I was learning about having babies. The day I had my son (after a long 50 hour labor), she and her husband brought us celebratory beer and she held my B for the first time. A change came over her immediately. Just about a year later, M found out she was pregnant. It wasn’t planned and I was scared for her! She didn’t seem the motherly type, and I could not imagine them giving up their high paced lifestyle to parent a little one.
Early on, M read Hypnobirthing the Mongan Method and started listening to pregtastic podcasts. I was shocked at her excitement to have this baby and was delighted as she spent her 9 months of pregnancy active and healthy and just glowing with pure joy. She loved being pregnant. She was mentally strong and physically strong and she never wavered in letting stories of pregnancy ailments get to her.
With my one experience under my belt being a long overdue, long labor, I was trying to prepare her for the disappointment of having your due date come and go. The day before her due date, I left to go out of town for the weekend. About 12 hours later I got a phone call that she was in labor! I was so bummed out that we wouldn’t be there to welcome that baby with celebratory beer and that I wouldn’t be there to talk through her birth story with her.
Just a few hours later I received a picture on my phone with a picture of a radiant Monique holding a beautiful newborn A. That picture kept me up all night. I would toss and turn and then just look at the picture again. Such joy and confidence filled her face. Not a hint of fear.
As soon as I got home I headed over to hold the baby and get the details on the birth story, I was also planning on “helping out” since I was sure she was overwhelmed with a crying newborn at this point. M hadn’t even changed a diaper before she had A so I was sure my “expertise” would be needed. I walked into a room with a confident mommy and a peaceful sleeping A. M told me her birth story with ease and fondness. She used the phrases, “It wasn’t painful!” and “I laughed when I was pushing” and “It was like a party!”. I couldn’t believe my ears! Here a woman without any exposure to birth previously, had learned to trust her own body and had a relatively painless birth!
Two and a half months later, a surprised M called me with the news that she was pregnant again! She continued this pregnancy like the last, even running up to the last days of her pregnancy. This go around she had asked me to be in the room and to take pictures of the labor and birth. I was curious. I had already begun my birth photography business and had photographed many painful labors (many ending in epidural), and in the back of my head I didn’t quite believe M stories of her first birth. The truth would be exposed. When she called me and told me she was in labor, I went to her house where I watched her laugh, finish cooking up some soup, sway and dance. We headed to the hospital not when she was crying in pain but just when she felt like it. In the dark of the night I watched her in her self hypnosis quietly and beautifully sit still during contractions with a pleasant smile on her face. After contractions she would continue her conversations in such a normal manner. There was never once a sound uttered or a “I can’t do this” spoken. Around 9.5 cm she fell asleep! I was in awe! So her stories were true! She really wasn’t feeling pain. That night beautiful R was born and joined her family and her sister who wasn’t even walking yet.
I learned a lot that night watching M deliver her second baby. I witnessed the strength that M had in her mind and how that affected her attitude not only during birth but throughout her pregnancy and parenting. She was never once scared but just accepted birth as a normal beautiful thing. Consequently M describes her labors as relatively painless.

On April 20, 2013, I will be showing a new film called The Face of Birth here in Maricopa, AZ.  For anyone that is interested, it costs $10 and the proceeds will go towards scholarships for my students.  You can find more info here:  https://www.facebook.com/events/529730953726326/?fref=ts

I just sat down to preview this for the showing.  I was a bit apprehensive before watching this film, because I thought it might undermine women’s legitimate choice or desire to also choose a hospital or cesarean birth.  But it didn’t.   It is about working to allow women the right to choose home birth as well as other choices.  It obviously favors home birth, but it also acknowledges that it’s okay for women to make other choices, and that it is the ability to make a choice that is valued.  It is, in fact, advocating for women to have choices, period.  This is something I am very much in line with.

I also loved the experts they chose to interview.  It includes well known childbirth advocates, such as Ina May Gaskin, Michel Odent, and Robbie Davis-Floyd, but it also includes some very articulate and intelligent midwives that helped to provide a whole range of information on childbirth choices.

The stories from women were also very touching and filled with raw emotion.  It is obvious from these interviews, the impact choice can have on a birth, be it homebirth or in the hospital.  They very accurately show the difficulty present when a women is wanting to choose something that is not culturally mainstream and the effect it can have on a woman and how they feel about themselves and the experience.

This is a great movie to watch for those who are wanting to understand the choices that are available and the effect that taking away choices has.

Beginning on March 22, 2013, we will be increasing the price for our monthly course subscription plan. This is in part due to the greater management and accounting required for the convenience of being able to pay for the course on a monthly basis.

We will continue to offer the option of early course completion, which for the ambitious student affords her the opportunity to graduate in less than one year’s time. This allows a student to pay only for those months in which she was taking the course.  So for example, if it takes only 9 months for the student to complete the course then the student only pays for nine months’ registration fees to complete graduation.  We do not anticipate ever taking this option away.

In the meantime, any registrations processed before Friday morning, March 22, 2013, when we make the switch (probably around 9 A.M. Mountain Standard Time – Arizona) will be grandfathered in at the former price for the length of the course.

I am going to do a post on metabolism and how it may be what really triggers our labor to start……but it’s late and my brain is telling me to go to sleep.  So, I thought I’d start a new series of posts instead called the top five.  These will be my top five groups of anything birth related.  Today I’m going to focus on my top five birth webpages.  These are the pages I am always referring people to for more information.  So without much ado, here they are.

Writing Your Birth Plan: Tips from an L & D nurse, part 1 (there is also a part 2)

This is written by a great L&D nurse that thinks a lot like me:)  This particular post gives some good tips on what to write in a birth and things that might be best to leave out.  It would be a great resource for doula’s to make a handout about and give to clients.  She also has a bunch of other info on her blog that is great stuff.

Induction of Labor Balancing the Risks

This is written by a midwife in Australia that does home births.  I love all her stuff because she does such a good job of informing you without making you feel pressured to choose one way or the other.  This particular post focuses on post date pregnancies and the risks involved in induction or waiting for labor to start.   Very easy to read, and full of good info.

The Hunting and Gathering Mama

Katy Bowman is a scientist that studies natural movement and how that helps our bodies function optimally.  This post talks about pregnancy and birth, and what we need to do to get our bodies in shape for the big event.

Delayed Cord Clamping Should be Standard Practice in Obstetrics

Lots of good info and research on why waiting to clamp the cord is probably how we should really be doing these things.  This blog tends to be a little more technical as it is written for physicians, but it’s got so much good info in it.

Evidence Based Birth

If you are looking for any kind of info regarding birth, this is a great place to start.  Another one of my favorite blogs.

When you are pregnant, your body produces 1250 mL more blood volume, plus you are heavier:)  All that tends to push fluids out of our blood
vessels(where it belongs) and into our tissues.  We actually have a
system that helps to put that fluid and other materials back into our
circulatory system.  It’s called the lymphatic system.  It is similar
to the circulatory system except it doesn’t have a pump.  If you’ve
heard of your lymph nodes, that’s a part of it.    Because it doesn’t have a pump, it relies on your muscles movement to do it’s job.  You also have those lymph nodes that get backed up if the muscles are tight around them.

Below are some links to exercises that will help loosen up tight muscles
and allow the lymph to move more efficiently and put those
fluids back where they belong.  Walking will help to get your muscles
moving to also put the fluids back where they belong.

http://www.alignedandwell.com/katysays/immunity-boost/

http://www.wholeliving.com/136269/detoxifying-stretches-boost-your-immunity/@center/179721/yoga
When your sitting, raise your legs and wiggle and stretch those
body parts that you feel the most tight in.  Really, just think
movement, no matter what position you are in:)  Compression stockings
may also help to keep the fluids out of the legs, but it’s sort of a
band aid and doesn’t really fix the problem(i.e. lymphatic system
needing to work better).

Here’s a couple of links that talk about this concept(it is discussing immunity, but it’ll help with the fluids also).

http://www.alignedandwell.com/katysays/immunity-boost/

http://www.wholeliving.com/136269/detoxifying-stretches-boost-your-immunity/@center/179721/yoga

There are other tips you can find online for swelling but it just
makes sense to me that you should first and foremost support the
system that we have that helps to put the fluids back where they are
supposed to be.  The hard thing is, it’s not a simple fix:)  It is really important to make this a daily thingand it will take a little bit of time, but the good thing is, these exercises will help with lots of pregnancy related ailments.

One of the most important things women need to do when discussing their birth choices is choosing their care provider.  Below is an essay I wrote about the differences between the midwifery model of care and the medical model of care and why that is important in your choice of care provider.  Midwifery_Model_of_Care

Need I say more?

Often people feel like the role a doula plays can or should be done by other healthcare workers. While this would be nice, in reality it is very difficult for healthcare workers to provide good medical care and good labor support. In particular there are a few things that set a doula apart from other healthcare workers.

A doula will stay with the laboring family from the beginning of labor until the end. Sometimes that beginning is also unpredictable, but the doula will be there from the very first contraction. This is something that is just not workable with our current medical system. Many healthcare providers also see their role as more medical and don’t help much with the emotional aspects of beginning labor or afterward.

The doula is also very knowledgeable about the client she is working with. She often meets with them before and after the birth to attend to needs and planning. Because of this, she knows her client very well and comes to know what she truly needs during labor and birth. This is very different from what is provided by healthcare providers. Often the first time the woman meets her nurse is when she is admitted. She also sometimes works with a group of doctors or midwifes that makes it difficult to get to know them. Even if they have just one provider, they often are only allotted a certain amount of time to meet with them.

Another big plus that the doula brings to the birthing room is their training in labor support. Most nurses and medical providers have little formal training in labor support beyond the medical. Due to our birthing environment, most women choose epidurals and many medical providers now have little experience working with women in a non-medicated birth. Some medical providers actively seek out learning in these areas, but this is the exception rather than the rule. Because of this, a trained doula makes a great asset to the birthing team.

According to the cochrane review on continuous labor support, labor support was more effective if it was not a part of hospital staff or the woman’s social circle, or in a place where epidural analgesia was not readily available. The study pointed out some reasons that a professional doula may have better results than a midwife or nurse. Nurses and midwifes often have other patients that they are taking care of, which makes it hard to focus solely on one patient. They also have to spend a large proportion of their time managing technology and keeping records. Many nurses and midwifes may begin and end shifts in the middle of the woman’s labor which makes it difficult to provide continuous support and often they lack labor support training.

It was also noted that professional labor support showed more clinical results than just family members or friends. This could be due to the fact that friends or family may not as be familiar with birth, and they themselves may need support when working with the laboring woman.