When I found out I was expecting baby number two, I immediately knew that I wanted to try again for a completely natural birth experience. Olivia’s birth had been wonderful, and I had no complications from the epidural or the birth itself, other than lots of pain after we came home, but nothing I couldn’t live with. So, upon the return of the positive pregnancy test, the search began for the best natural childbirth method I could find. I had gone into Olivia’s birth with a stubborn mindset that “I can do this,” and not much else. I had practiced some Lamaze breathing techniques that they showed us in childbirth preparation class, but didn’t really have anything else in place. So, after laboring at home for almost 24 hours, and arriving at the hospital still at 2 cm dilated, I was more than discouraged. When my doctor decided to break my water at 4 cm four hours later, I was certainly not prepared for the overwhelming pain that would consume me.
I knew I didn’t want to experience that again, so in my research, I was drawn to two natural childbirth methods. The first was the Bradley husband-coached childbirth method which stressed deep relaxation and “pain with a purpose.” I knew how painful Olivia’s birth had been, so this appealed to me. I liked how logical it all seemed- yes, it would hurt, but there’s an end in sight and you will reach your goal if you push through the pain. However, I continued my internet searching, and stumbled across a program that touted, “No pain for Mommy, no drugs for baby- pain-free childbirth.” “Yeah, right,” I thought. “Have you ever given birth??” But, after reading more about the program, and visiting various related internet sights, I started to wonder, “Which would I rather have? Pain with a purpose, or no pain at all?” Well, that’s a no-brainer. I’d rather have no pain- wouldn’t anyone?
So, I dove head first into a program called Hypnobabies. It was a self-hypnosis home-study program that came with multiple CDs, a birth guide and multiple supplemental materials for my birth partner (my wonderful husband). Everyone I told about this thought I was nuts- at first, I did too! But, then I realized how perfect the program was. It reaffirmed everything I already knew about childbirth but had forgotten- that birth is a natural process, that my body was created to do this. So, I followed the schedule and listened to every track on every CD. I even downloaded them onto my MP3 player so I could listen while I was at work. I restructured my whole mindset about childbirth, and it worked! Henry James’ completely natural, drug-free birth story begins!
It is a long story so, to read Sunny’s Beautiful Birth Story of Henry James’ click here.
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Hypnobabies® Childbirth Hypnosis 