An Hypnotic Birth Experience
For the past 12 months, Natal Hypnotherapy has been conducting an on-line survey to test the effectiveness of self-hypnosis.Does it really help women to have a positive pregnancy and birth experience? Unfortunately it’s a common perception that giving birth equals pain. However, this survey shows that this is not the case.
769 users of the Natal Hypnotherapy CDs were asked to rate, on a scale of 1-6, a number of questions with 1 being no help at all and 6 being extremely useful. The results were unanimous, with six coming out as the highest percentage for every question.
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The percentage of women scoring a 4, 5 or 6 when asked how much the CDs helped with the following areas were:
 90% - increased their feelings of calm before the birth
85% - overcame fear before the birth
85% - increased trust and belief in their body
72% - felt calm during the birth
66% - felt more in control during the birth
64% - coped well with the pain during birth
In addition 95% felt they had benefited from using them and 97% of people surveyed said that they would recommend the CDs. And only 15% ended up with a caesarean compared with the national rate of 23%.
Regardless of where or how the women gave birth, there were positive stories to be told too:
“I am convinced that the birth preparation CD subconsciously helped me prepare for the birth and made it a positive experience. The hypnotherapy was responsible for giving me confidence in my body making me stay calm and the whole experience less painful”.
“I had an elective caesarean at 39 weeks. Although I did not go through labour, the CD helped me so much to relax on the day and help cope with the pain afterwards. I'm a complete wreck with needles and hospitals but I used the relaxation techniques to get me through the surgery and recovery. I would recommend them to anyone regardless of their birthing plan”.
“I did not feel much pain throughout, just a sense of the birthing process taking its natural course. I was calm and lucid and felt that I was able to manage my breathing and as a result ease the physical intensity of the contractions”.
These are fundamental findings which back-up the recent important NICE report on Intrapartum Care – care of healthy women and their babies during childbirth, which was published in September 2007. In the ‘coping with pain in labour’ section it says that: ‘women who choose to use acupuncture or hypnosis should be able to…the little evidence available shows that they may reduce the pain of labour and do not appear to adversely affect either maternal or neonatal outcomes’.
The award winning self-hypnosis programme is for use throughout pregnancy, childbirth and afterwards. Mothers using the CDs learn self-hypnosis techniques, relaxation and guided visualisation to help them be more confident, create a state of calm and relaxation, increase bonding with their baby and maximise their body’s natural potential.
December 2007
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