Thanks to this mom from the Hypnobabies Yahoo Group for sharing her birth story!
I have only lurked here (on the Yahoo Group) previously looking for inspiration, but I had a wonderful birth with my second child and wanted to share my story with others!
I had a rough first birth with what I now know were some unnecessary interventions, so I decided to have an unmedicated birth this time around! I happened upon Hypnobabies late in my pregnancy (35 weeks), but was able to get an accelerated schedule to ensure I would complete the program in time.
I was still a bit nervous… I had a doula, but she’d only worked with 2 clients who used Hypnobabies, and my husband didn’t make the time to familiarize himself with the birth partner info or run through scripts with me… (I don’t recommend doing things the way I did, but I do want to reassure people who can’t do things exactly like you are supposed to that the program may still work, anyway!). Although, I had a fast, easy birth, not sure what might have happened with a longer labor.
The day before my daughter was born, I saw my midwife, who asked if I wanted my membranes stripped. I was going to decline, but it was 5 days after my guess date and they said they would have to induce at 42 weeks, so I decided this was preferable to being given any drugs. It worked!
After cramping all night, I had bloody show and pressure waves began at 8:30 the next morning. They were 4-6 minutes apart. We called our doula, who said it sounded like early labor and asked me to call back if they intensified. My husband and I went for a walk, pressure waves intensified and we called the doula again at noon. She advised me to eat some fruit( I also had miso soup) and she arrived at 12:45. She still said it was early labor, so I put on my birthing day affirmations and kept walking up and down stairs and around the house.
I needed to lie down, so I listened to the easy first stage track and tried to relax. Pressure waves were 1 1/2 to 3 minutes apart. Our doula agreed it was time to go. My midwife said we could come to her office first. The car ride was hard, but I was listening to the easy first stage track during the half hour drive, which helped. The midwife said I was 7 cm dilated and we went to the hospital. Our nurse was great, dimming the lights, avoiding any mention of pain and at no point was I offered an epidural. Absolutely everything went according to my birth plan — I even skipped the IV and got to drink an electolyte drink — although I threw up as soon as I got in the room, so I didn’t want that much of it.
They had to monitor the baby for 20 minutes when I got there. My water broke, they said I was 10cm. I only had a few moments of panic( then I realized it was because everything was happening so fast, I forgot to listen to Hypnobabies!). Once we put it on, I literally felt all of the tension disappear and was very relaxed! I never needed to use eyes open hypnosis because I didn’t have the time to get out of bed! The midwife showed up, I needed to push, and after an hour total in the hospital, my daughter was born!
It was the best experience of my life! I keep reliving it and I feel really lucky! We were all doing so well that we left the hospital after just 24 hours!
Amazing! I too found out about this very late in my pregnancy, Im hoping the materials will still be able to help, even if its just a little! I’m a few days past my guess date too, and Im getting my membranes stripped! Congrats on your birth. It sounds wonderful!