Hi Fiona! Introduce yourself and tell everyone a bit about you…
I’m Fi, I am 35 and work in Human Resources. I enjoy keeping fit (I go to the gym regularly) and love reading, I have to confess I love the Twilight books and films, hence my choice of of baby name!! My husband and I have been trying for a baby for some time and we were thrilled when I gave birth to Edward on 25th August 2013, he is my first baby but I have 9 nieces and nephews so I have been around children a lot and was at the birth of one of my nieces so had first hand so experience of labour and birth.
How did you discover Hypnobirthing and why did you decide to do it?
A friend of mine had done hypnobirthing for the births of her two children and had told me about what a wonderful experience the births had been. To be honest, I didn’t really believe her, I mean, giving birth is painful, right? However, when I found out I was pregnant I asked her again about hypnobirthing so she lent me the Mongan method book to make up my own mind. The book just made so much sense my husband and I decided to speak to a hypnobirthing practitioner. I found Liz Standford’s details in the prenatal unit at the hospital so dropped her an email. Liz came back to me straight away and we arranged to meet the week after for a pre consultation. On meeting Liz, we felt really comfortable with her (she is really normal) so decided that we wanted to give hypnobirthing a go and agreed to have one to one classes that would fit in with our busy schedules.
How did you feel about birth before the classes and how did you feel about it after the classes?
Before the classes I still believed that birth would hurt….’a lot’ and kept referring to ‘pain’ all the time. The classes gave me some great tools to help with my pregnancy and the confidence that I could control any discomfort, I know it may sound strange, after the classes I was really looking forward to the whole experience of labour as I knew at the end of it I would have a wonderful little baby.
What were other people’s reactions to your doing Hypnobirthing and how did you deal with that?
The majority of people I spoke to were very sceptical and told me that it would hurt no matter what (they thought I had turned into a hippy). My sister, who has had 3 children, thought it was a load of rubbish and labour would be awful. I actually stopped telling people in the end as they all liked to give me their own horror stories. Shortly before the birth, I spoke to my cousin whose friend is a midwife who said that the best births she had assisted with were hypnobirthing. That filled me with confidence that I was doing the right thing and ultimately I didn’t worry about the views of others.
What did you enjoy most about the course?
My husband and I developed an excellent rapport with Liz and we had lots of fun and laughs whilst learning some important hypnobirthng techniques. Liz was very attentive and patient in answering all the random questions I tended to ask. If she didn’t know the answer, she would always find out the answer and come back to me the following day. The classes were really enjoyable and worth every penny.
What did you find the most challenging thing about the course?
I think the most challenging thing I found about the course was being disciplined enough to listen to the affirmations and rainbow relaxation every day. I tended to listen them when I went to bed and I would be asleep within minutes and wake up at the end!
When the time came for you to give birth, how do you feel that Hypnobirthing helped?
I don’t know if I can put into words how much hypnobirthing helped when I went into labour. I was calm, kept relaxed throughout, verging on sleep at the end stages! My husband knew what to do and was great at talking me through each stage and keeping me relaxed. My very sceptical sister happened to be staying at my house the night I went into labour and whilst my husband tried to get some rest (my waters broke at 12am!) she helped time my contractions. She couldn’t believe how quiet and in control I was and has completely changed her opinion on hypnobirthing telling everyone she couldn’t believe how calm I was and that I wasn’t screaming during the contractions!
Other than using Hypnobirthing for giving Birth, were there any other benefits to doing the course?
I am able to apply the techniques learned in hypnobirthing to many stressful situations and I think it helped me keep calm at work during my pregancy in general. I think it has been a major factor in having such a calm, happy and contented baby from the moment he was born.
Finally, what would you say to Mums reading this, who are thinking about doing Hypnobirthing but are worried that it might not be for them?
Do it! Just give it a go and you will be pleasantly surprised, you will not regret it. Just make sure if you do, you give it 100%.