Lots of women like the thought of a natural birth, but the idea of being in discomfort for hours on end puts them off (and who is going to blame them). Even though most women feel that some level of discomfort it is a part of natural childbirth.
Some women will have fears during labour. It could be to do with the contractions that simply keep her from concentrating, and interfering with her ability to calm down, think straight and enjoy a natural childbirth.
Pain is a really subjective experience, and every person has their own threshold and mindset towards it. For some pregnant woman the mental, psychological and physical effects can overwhelm them and stop them from having the ability to stop worrying. During labour as the worry and discomfort increases so does the anxiety level.
Anxiety increases the intensity of the birth experience, making it a great deal more uncomfortable and scary. As anxiousness levels increase, so does the experience of pain, which in turn causes a spiral of dread, stress and discomfort. It is no wonder that focusing on relaxing, breathing and pushing can be challenging.
Any pain in natural childbirth can be hard to overcome if the mum is unable to remain focused and comfortable.
Nature doesn’t favour giving birth in times of risk, so if stress and anxiousness are permitted to run out of control, it can slow down labour and trigger more pain. Prolonged labour and increased pain can rapidly turn a natural childbirth dream into a nightmare. Anxiety can quickly lead to complications, for example a rise blood pressure levels or metal distress.
Hypnosis can be a valuable tool that assists in easing the labour pains for an expectant mother. As an alternative to tensing the muscles and attempting to work through the painful contractions, hypnosis will enable her to relax during each stage of labour. With the anxiety cycle under control, labour can move along much quicker and more comfortably.
Not only can hypnotherapy treatments help break the anxiousness cycle, but it could also help to reduce or even eradicate feelings of pain.
Lyta Humphris from Hypnosis Devon based in Plymouth, Devon explained why in her view a hypnotheraputic technique is extremely successful in helping expectant mothers to have a natural birth,
It changes the expectation from pain to positive expectancy. It eliminates the fear – tension – pain syndrome. The more tension you feel the more the baby stays put. When you feel relaxed the baby usually comes quicker. Milk comes in easier. Babies are calmer. Mothers are taught to breathe properly during contractions, simple but specialised breathing techniques for each stage of labour – hypnotherapy stops them from hyperventilating and to stay calm and relaxed during normal births. It teaches a woman how to let go all negative learned programming about natural childbirth, and how to trust her body and work with it.
*Disclaimer: Results may vary from person to person
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