Hypnosis and Childbirth

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How does hypnosis aid natural childbirth?

Hypnosis is increasingly being used to help women give birth with the minimum of pain, medical interventions and pain medication.

And while no-one should claim that hypnosis can create pain free childbirth, several landmark studies show significant improvement for women who learn self hypnosis before giving birth. So why should this be?

Natural childbirth: Body and mind working together

These days, the ‘mind-body' link is well established. Everyone knows that what you think can affect the way you feel. This is a relatively recent development however, and it has not penetrated into some recesses of the healthcare profession.

Everyday mind-body interactions

Everyone has experienced being startled - the heart starting to pound, a funny sensation in the tummy, even tingling in the limbs. Of course, this is an automatic response to a perceived threat (the threat doesn’t even have to be real!) As long as you think there is a threat, this is enough. And this is the point: even the imagination can cause the body to respond.

(In fact, the body can respond before you even become aware of what you are scared of, but that’s another story!)

The adrenaline released at this time is a fast-acting and powerful hormone that activates this ‘fight-flight' mechanism in the body, causing blood to flow away from the main organs to the limbs, stopping digestion and causing the heart to beat faster. It belongs to a group of hormones called catecholamines that help to keep the body on a high state of alert.

So the point is, the mind affects the body.

A natural childbirth will take place when the mind, and therefore the body is relaxed and comfortable as possible. Anxiety gets in the way of natural childbirth processes.

Next, Hypnobirthing Benefits

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