By Jackie Bland
In this image you can see a Poppy seed pod. Nature has ensured that this seed pod is programmed to break open and disperse its content at just the right time to ensure (in this case) that bright orange poppies will spring up with the new season.
We sometimes forget that nature has done exactly the same with human beings - most women’s bodies have been perfectly designed to give birth, naturally, at the right time, with minimum intervention. When the time comes for a baby to be born, a wonderful and precisely timed cocktail of powerful hormones takes control of the mother’s body to guide the process.
Too often though, the process is disrupted because of stress. When a mother becomes stressed during the birth process another blend of chemicals, including adrenaline, is released by her body that can slow or even arrest the natural process. Many women end up with unnatural, highly managed and stressful births simply because they are tense, frightened and thus out of control, rather than having anything medically wrong with them. (A common occurrence is for labour to ‘stop’ inexplicably when a mother arrives in a hospital environment). Often mothers end up feeling robbed of the opportunity to give birth more naturally, some wrongly blaming themselves.
Hypnobirthing teaches women, and their birth partners, approaches and techniques which help to make birth relaxed and harmonious. These techniques include different types of breathing to calm the body, and each other, at key stages; self-hypnosis to help keep relaxed even during the final stages of labour, and ways to let go of fears and anxieties around childbirth.
To help parents feel more in control, hypnobirthing courses also include easy-to-understand information about what happens to a woman’s body during each stage of labour and tips on how to create the ideal environment for giving birth naturally, whether that is at home or in hospital.
Occasionally, of course, there is a condition or development during labour which requires intervention of some kind in the best interests of mother and baby. On these occasions preparation through hypnobirthing techniques helps all those involved stay calm and relaxed, so that even more managed births feel more natural and enjoyable.
To find out more contact jackie@pureturtle.co.uk or via facebook.com/pureturtle