Question… When you think about the experience of giving birth, what words or images come to mind for you?
Did your answer happen to include empowerment?
My hope is that perhaps some of those adjectives came to your mind. More commonly when I ask this question in the first unit of my HypnoBirthing® childbirth education classes, the answers I hear from moms and dads-to-be look more like fear.
CULTURAL INFLUENCES OF BIRTH IMAGES
In our current culture, these are very common expectations of first-time parents as well as the very real previous experiences of second, third, even fourth time parents. Look around at what influences these thoughts. Movies and television shows almost ubiquitously depict every single birth in one of two ways. They are represented as either life-threatening and high-drama events where, time after time, we watch the birth process fail; or they become comical caricatures that show mothers hysterically screaming for drugs and partners clumsily bumbling along in their attempt to support. When was that last time you saw a representation of birth that didn’t include one of these elements? When was the last time you were shown a birthing mother in all her glory and power, using the instinctive gifts already within her? Those representations are truly rare. Whether we realize it or not, the images of birth that we are inundated with leave very real imprints on our subconscious mind, usually beginning when we are children and persisting through adulthood. They skew our perception of how intelligent the human body is and how often it can function just as it was meant to. These impressions color the thoughts we have regarding birth and our ability to give birth. This is especially true when most of us grow up never seeing what true undisturbed birth looks like, whether that be in real life or through media.
I would like to pause for just a moment at this juncture to say that I have the highest respect for the variety birth experiences that women have had, whether simple and straightforward or following a more complex journey. Many of the mothers and fathers who seek out my childbirth classes are desiring to experience natural, physiologic births. So with that in mind, I have chosen to write this article to address one the biggest hurdles to that goal… our own perception of birth. Please know that the philosophy and techniques I will talk about and that I teach in my classes can serve parents no matter where their birth journey leads them.
DISCOVERING THE FEAR-TENSION-PAIN CYCLE
In 1891 and in 1916 respectively, Doctors Jonathan Dye and Grantley Dick-Read were on the hunt to solve a riddle. Why were some of the poor, uneducated women they attended in labor were seemingly able to birth very easily without much discomfort or distress, while the affluent mothers they served cried out in agony until they were anesthetized, requiring their births to be facilitated by instruments such as forceps. What was present at these births to make such a difference?
Dr. Dick-Read determined it was not what the less affluent mothers brought to the birth that made it easier and more comfortable. It was what they did not bring. They did not bring fear or expectations of agony. After observing this phenomenon many times, Dr. Dick-Read hypothesized that the mothers who expected negative experiences got caught up in what he called the Fear-Tension-Pain cycle. He concluded that when a woman believes birth is a dangerous and painful event, her body creates unnecessary tension. This tension results in pain and ultimately creates a self-fulfilling prophecy. Quite amazingly he came up with this theory before our current understanding of the autonomic nervous system and how the natural hormones of labor, when uninhibited, facilitate the birth process. If you wish to delve deeper into his theory, I highly recommend reading Dr. Dick-Read’s book, ‘Childbirth Without Fear.’
It is commonly understood now that the thoughts we have can and do create physical and chemical changes in our bodies. There exists a mind-body connection where each affects the other. When the sympathetic part of our autonomic nervous system, also known as our fight-flight-freeze response, is activated we experience physical changes such as increased heart rate, sweaty palms, and the shunting of blood from our non-defense organs (i.e. uterus and digestive system) to the organs and muscles that could help us fight or run from danger. This a great system to activate in the event of an animal attack or physical danger. But when it occurs during labor, it disrupts our body’s production of the natural cascade of birthing hormones and causes unnecessary tension in the body. This process not only occurs when there is an actual threat but also if there is a perceived threat, such as fear of pain or mistrust in one’s own birthing body. Stress hormones known as catecholamines are produced which crowd out our body’s pain-relieving endorphins, also leading to the experience of increased discomfort.
Now let’s instead look at birth where the parasympathetic part of the nervous system, also known as the rest-digest or feed-breed response, is activated. When a mother approaches her birth feeling calm and confident, following her birthing instincts, her body will create its own natural endorphins (the same thing that creates a runner’s high) and facilitate the appropriate production of labor hormones. Labor usually proceeds more quickly as the body is relaxed and opens easier. It is typically more comfortable due to the rising level of endorphins and lack of tension in the body.
BREAKING THE CYCLE
Breaking this cycle first starts with changing our thoughts about birth. Changing our conscious thoughts can be accomplished by learning about how the body is designed to be able to give birth. Childbirth education is key in this process. Seek out an independent childbirth class to build knowledge of and confidence in your body and your baby’s body. Learn about how both work together in a beautifully choreographed sequence throughout pregnancy and birth.
The changing of birth perceptions also needs to take place not only in our conscious thoughts but also within our subconscious mind. Remember that since childhood, our subconscious mind has been absorbing the message from thousands of negative birth images and stories resulting in a distrust of birth that lies just beneath our conscious awareness. These can be the most difficult thoughts to change since we are frequently unaware of them. But there is a very effective way to tap into that subconscious and replace worries or self-doubts with confidence and trust. Hypnosis is a tool we can use to reach the thoughts we harbor in our subconscious mind, which normally are not easily accessible, and replace those negative thoughts and behaviors with those you consider more desirable.
WAIT A MINUTE, HYPNOSIS FOR PREGNANCY AND BIRTH?
Yes, you read that correctly. This is the part of my HypnoBirthing® childbirth classes that raises the most questions. And understandably so, since most folks have not had formal experience with hypnosis aside from the theatrics of stage hypnosis. But what if I told you that on average you enter a state of hypnosis about seven times a day? Would you believe it?
Hypnosis is a natural state! Everyone has experienced it. If you have ever been daydreaming, meditating, or experiencing that relaxed lull right before you fall asleep or just upon waking, then you have experienced a light hypnotic state. Another example that most people can relate to is driving home from work, parking in the driveway, and realizing that as your mind wandered during the drive, you made it home safely without consciously thinking through all the steps. Those moments of autopilot are when our subconscious mind is being accessed.
Simply stated, hypnosis is a relaxed state of mind and body in which a person is highly responsive to suggestions for change. In HypnoBirthing® classes, you learn how to bring yourself into much deeper states of hypnosis and relaxation. You are then able to facilitate the clearing fears or worries about birth, the releasing of natural birthing hormones and painkilling endorphins during labor, as well as the changing of your perception of birthing sensations. HypnoBirthing® does not claim to offer completely “pain-free” or “painless” birth, although there have been many moms who have experienced this. Instead, we subscribe to the concept that birth can be easier and more comfortable when a mother is relaxed, is confident in her abilities, and is supported by caregivers who respect what she and her partner are doing.
VIEWING BIRTH AS A NORMAL, NATURAL, AND HEALTHY LIFE EVENT
Lastly, let us continue to demand and expect more accurate depictions of birth in the media images and stories we encounter. I love to see the faces of couples in my first class of my five-week series when I tell them that we are going to watch birthing videos. The tension is usually palpable in anticipation of something gory or traumatizing. But what is truly remarkable is watching those same faces change after we have watched two or three videos, as they realize that birth can also be calm, beautiful, empowering, gentle, euphoric, and transformative.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO FIND OUT MORE?
Please contact me with any questions you have! You can learn more about the group and private HypnoBirthing® classes that I teach at my website www.iowahypnobirthing.com or by contacting me at iowahypnobirthing@gmail.com.
Read more about the philosophy at HypnoBirthing® International’s website at https://us.hypnobirthing.com/about/what-is-hypnobirthing-definition/ .
Ashley Ladroma, RN, HBCE:
Ashley Ladroma is a Registered Nurse and a HypnoBirthing Practitioner. Born and raised in Iowa, she now currently lives in Des Moines with her husband, Farfum, and their two HypnoBirthing babies. She received her HypnoBirthing®Childbirth Educator certification from the HypnoBirthing® Institute and is a Gold Seal member.