It’s true to say this is the place I start with a lot of people, and I say people because that's anyone I come into contact with who asks what I do, pregnant or not. 

Hypnobirthing sadly, gets a bad wrap, but the reason why is really astounding, because of the name! Not because of peoples experience, not because of a high volume of people not championing its success, but because of the name!!! 

How many other things do you get put off by the name? I mean really put off, make a judgement and don’t want to try and learn more? - I tell you, it’s a struggle to think of many, so it really sucks that Hypnobirthing has this reaction and if it was up to me, I’d love to call it something else, because between me and you the ‘hypno’ bit is really the equivalent of about 30 minutes of the course, that's 30 mins of an 8 hour course! Have I got your attention now?

So, let’s cover off the Hypno bit now. In birth we teach you, the pregnant person, to enter a state of deep relaxation, that's it. That's the Hypno bit!!! And what is deep relaxation? - well, it’s basically where your conscious mind switches off and you are so relaxed you are not analysing the environment around you, you are often focused on something or nothing, but ultimately, you are calm, relaxed and allowing your body to just function. 

Have you ever driven to work, a friend's house or to your parents home and thought, I don’t remember that drive, well, there you have it, you were in a state of deep relaxation!! That is the Hypno Bit, something you and I do so very often without realising it. 

WOW! So the fundamental thing, the foundation of Hypnobirthing, is entering deep relaxation in labour, and, spoiler alert above, we all do it already! 

Can you now tell me, you don’t believe in Hypnobirthing? That it’s hippy? I think it is clear that it is a technique you all have and use without even realising. 

Now, I expect you are thinking, well what are the other 7.5 hours of your course about then if this is all the ‘Hypno’ I need to know. So this is the best bit, the bit that gets me all excited, the penny drop moments that leave couples walking away feeling, WOW, we have got this, bring on my baby’s birth! 

Hypnobirthing is about science, it’s understanding your body's functions and how they start, support and move labour along to deliver your baby. You are taught how to work with your body to do something it was made to do, because “no other natural bodily function is painful and childbirth should not be an exception” (Dr. Grantly Dick Read) - i’ll just leave that quote there to land with you for a second……. 

Hypnobirthing is also about choices, what pain relief would you be comfortable choosing, where would you like to chose to birth, what examinations would you be happy accepting, what interventions would you welcome and what would you like to avoid, everything in birth is a choice, Hypnobirthing is there to encourage you to just ask ‘why’? 

And lastly, Hypnobirthing is there for all births, home, hospital, induction, vaginal, VBAC and the big shocker, c section - because however your baby enters the world, is a birth, it is a monumental occasion and you, the pregnant person, deserves to feel calm, prepared, empowered, in control of your choices and have all the hormones flowing to birth, bond, feed and recover. It’s about all the feels and all the feels being positive. 

There you have it guys, Hypnobirthing is Birth Coaching, Birth Preparation, an Antenatal Education and it really is just a form of Mindfulness, there is nothing Hippy about it!!!