Childbirth shouldn’t be feared; it’s supposed to be one of the most exciting, powerful and life changing moments in a person’s life and yet, we know that this just isn’t the case for way too many of usBirth is more often than not fraught with fear and anxiety.
Hypnobirthing is one of the ways through which you can have a more calm and positive birth esperience. Does it work? Yes, it does. Our hypnobirthing courses in Melbourne do not claim to eradicate all the stresses of childbirth but instead provide the tools and techniques to help you manage them better.
Hypnobirthing prepares expecting parents and caregivers for all the pathways their birthing journey may take. Our aim at Little Bird Flies is to support you to make safe, and informed decisions whilst utilising a range of tools and techniques to help you to labour with greater ease.. Australia’s Department of Health recognises hypnobirthing as a type of antenatal class, but it’s so much more than that.
Hypnobirthing Australia’s Positive Birth Course is a 12hr course taught over a weekend workshop or over a couple of weeks in 4 x 3hr sessions with a certified Hypnobirthing Australia practitioner. You can choose to take the course privately 1-on-1 or in a small group setting with other expecting parents. Little Bird Flies offers flexible learning options; in-person, virtual classes and even at-your-own-pace learning options. You will receive a folio of course resources including a detailed course booklet and have access to Hypnobirthing Australia’s huge range of online resources which includes; MP3 tracks, birth videos, a wide range of detailed educational resources and articles, birth videos and an in-depth practice plan. We’ve been doing classes for many years now, and we can confirm that mums, dads, and caregivers who have taken a hypnobirthing course with us at Little Bird Flies come away feeling not only excited but empowered and infinitely more prepared.
Hypnobirthing techniques are a support structure designed to help you navigate labour and birth more calmly and confidently. Through practice and guided hypnobirthing course programs, you will learn how to create a more conducive mindset to achieving a positive and empowering birth no matter the circumstances. The hypnobirthing techniques will benefit in all situations- with an assisted birth, inconjunction with pharmacoligcal pain relief such as an epidural and even during a cesarean birth. Even though many just want to know if hypnobirthing will work for them, the hypnobirthing program will teach you how to work with your mind and body, in your own way, so that your muscles are relieved of tension and your hormones flow at all the right times just as your body was designed to do instinctively. Practice and preparation is key but if you feel like you are running out of time don’t let that stop you from taking a Hypnobirthing course with Little Bird Flies, Melissa teaches expecting parents right up until 39 weeks at times!
Hypnobirthing teaches birth givers and their birthing partners to focus on themselves and their baby. To block out the negative stories and visuals we have been conditioned by since the day we were born through a range of techniques including; self-hyposis. Self-hypnosis or meditation allows us to drop into a state of relaxation and control that in-turnallows the body to labour as it was designed to do; undisturbed and with ease. Without the interruption of fear and anxiety, our body can release all the right hormones at all the right times and enable all the birthing muscles to work together in harmony. It might be challenging to imagine how you can bring your body to this point of relaxation during a process that we have been conditioned to fear, but it is possible. There are a range of techniques we use in hypnobirthing, these include:
Two main breathing techniques will centre the mind and body.
How we think and speak about ourselves is how we begin to believe who we truly are. Words are so incredibly powerful so it is no wonder that in a hypnobirthing class you will learn how you can change your language to create a more positive space for you to visualise and create your own positive and empowering birth story. For example, instead of using the word “contraction” to describe the natural tightening during labour, you think of them as a “surge” or “wave” for a more positive and less triggering . Another example is replacing “rupture” of the membranes with the word “release.”
There’s also the use of guided visualisation, where you might picture relaxing images in your mind to relax your body during your surges. We also use visualisation techniques to help you visualise your birth story and the positive and empowering birth you want to achieve; we want to rewire our brains around birth so that we are fired and wired with positive birth stories and expectations so that when your birthing day arrives we are filled with excitement and self-belief rather than fear and hesitation.
Physical touch is one of the most wonderful tools in our hypnobirthing toolbox. Physical touch can quickly drop us into a state of surrender knowing that we are loved, supported and safe. You will learn a range of acupressure and light touch massage techniques that is going to not only help you navigate your labour and birth as a childbearing person but provide your birthing partner with a sense of purpose and empowerment and confidence in their ability to support you.
The hypnobirthing toolbox will help you to surrender to the incredible sensations of your labouring body. Having a range of tools to help you focus and let go of the tension within your body will help you to manage the pain and quite possibly the overwhelming feelings you might be faced with throughout your labour.
If you still have some questions, feel free to give us a call at Little Bird Flies, and we can discuss our range of courses that cater to any schedule and any learning pace. We offer hypnobirthing classes in Melbourne. And you can take online classes from anywhere in Australia – Sydney, Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Cairns, Townsville, Darwin, Perth, Adelaide, Hobart, Central Coast, Geelong, Newcastle, Canberra, and Wollongong.
