Home HypnoBirthing® How Hypnosis Eases Childbirth
HypnoBirthing ® — The Gentler Way
Lena Garafalo, RN, MS, APRN, BC,
NPP http://community.nursingspectrum.com/MagazineArticles/article.cfm?AID=9866
It all started several years ago when a young woman listened to tales of pain and horror about her own birth — as told by her mother. She decided that she would never go through such an experience when her time came to give birth to her own children. So in the late ‘50s, when Marie Mongan's time came to birth her first child, she embarked on an almost unheard of concept for that time, which she later coined HypnoBirthing®. By the time she had her third and fourth babies, Mongan gave birth without the use of any anesthesia.
She commends her physician for being supportive of her wishes. She says, “I wanted it charted that I did not want anesthesia forced,” and he respected her decision. She used the principals of HypnoBirthing ® to have the birthing experience of her choice. Now through five, two-hour classes, expectant parents can learn this innovative way to bring their babies into the world.
“The concept of HypnoBirthing ® is not new” says Marie Mongan, MEd, MHy, a certified hypnotherapist from New Hampshire. The literature points back to Jonathan Dye, a physician from Buffalo, NY, who as early as 1891, referred to a similar technique. Obstetrician Grantly Dick-Read, an English pioneer of natural childbirth in the 1920s, supported such a technique for women to safely and comfortably birth their babies.
What Is HypnoBirthing®?
According to Mongan, it is “as much a philosophy as it is a technique.” This method assists women to use their minds, imagery techniques, and their bodies to birth their babies without drugs and with minimum discomfort. Deep relaxation techniques are used to help women eliminate the “fear-tension-pain syndrome.” Relaxation tapes, light touch massage, visualization, breathing, and music, are all used to break the cycle and release the fear often associated with childbirth.
HypnoBirthing ® teaches mothers that their bodies are created to give birth and that their babies' bodies are created to be birthed. “If healthy women are carrying healthy babies, there should be no complications. During birth, the mother's body and her baby instinctively know what to do,” says Mongan.
More Than Semantics
HypnoBirthing ® embraces a language shift from terms regularly used in obstetric circles. Babies are “birthed,” not “delivered,” says Mongan, “Pizzas are delivered, not babies.” A mother's membranes are “released,” not “ruptured.” The person accompanying the mother — be it the baby's father, mother's friend, or a professional labor attendant — is referred to as her “birthing companion,” not “coach.” It is felt the more traditional term “coach” suggests a sporting event, which the birthing of a baby is not. “Contractions” are not mentioned; instead mothers are taught about “surges.” With each surge, the mother is one step closer to birthing her baby. “Fetus” is also taboo; rather the unborn baby is just that, a “baby.” It is believed that words are associated with visualizations and emotions and dramatically affect the outcome. Words affiliated with pain trigger that response and break the serene atmosphere of the softer, gentler birth setting.
Key Images
Certified HypnoBirthing ® practitioners, like Donna Brett, RN, prepare mothers-to-be by teaching them about the “phases” rather than “stages” of labor. There are two phases — the thinning and opening of the cervix, and the actual birthing. Brett teaches moms to use slow, gentle breathing to move the baby down through the “birth path.” The image of a “rosebud,” signaling an “opening blossom” as the mother prepares to birth her baby is also used.
Another image used is that of “blue satin ribbons,” symbolizing the two muscles involved in the workings of the uterus in birthing the baby. Brett, a critical care nurse at Saint Catherine of Siena Medical Center in Smithtown, NY, and owner of Harmonic Pathways in Setauket, NY, has long used the mind-body connection. She used such techniques to birth her second child, who was born in just two hours.
Birthing in Harmony
Brett first learned of HypnoBirthing ® from a pregnant friend and has been sold on the idea ever since. Recently, one of Brett's HypnoBirthing ® moms delivered a 10-pound baby using this technique. Brett describes the birthing environment as “harmonic,” whether it's in a birthing center, hospital, or at home. All involved in the birth — parents, HypnoBirthing ® practitioner, hospital nursing staff, midwife and/or physician — are working together in an atmosphere of peace during the birthing, while music is playing softly in the background. Idle chit-chat is not permitted.
Mongan says, the moms “carry over this calm into their parenting skills. Babies are more mellow, better sleepers, and better eaters.” There are about 1,600 certified HypnoBirthing ® practitioners trained through Mongan's HypnoBirthing ® Institute.
Lena Garafalo, RN, MS, APRN, BC, NPP, is patient education coordinator at Long Island Jewish Medical Center, a North Shore-LIJ Health System facility, New Hyde Park, NY.