Can hypnosis really beat the pain of having babies? The NHS thinks so
HYPNOSIS to deal with the pain of childbirth was once left to only the trendiest new mothers.
But now more and more NHS hospitals have begun offering the technique to all pregnant women.
Midwives across the UK are being trained in ‘hypnobirthing’ – which claims to help mothers cope with labour through concentration alone.
True believers say the method is so powerful that women can feel no pain during labour at all.
Indeed, the wackiest advocates claim mothers only experience pain because they have been brainwashed into thinking they should.
But while stories of pain-free miracle births are a little far-fetched, more moderate hypnobirthing experts have persuaded the NHS that the technique has merit. Midwives in the Highlands, Colchester, Wolverhampton and Stevenage are now putting on classes, with others in Exeter, Gloucester, Walsall and Bury St Edmunds soon to follow suit.
Teri Gavin-Jones, a midwife and hypnobirthing coach, said a quarter of women giving birth at Colchester General Hospital in Essex now take courses in the technique.
These used to cost £250 per couple, but were made free last year.
Ms Gavin-Jones added: ‘We were hearing such great things about the benefits of using the methods we no longer felt we could ask people to pay.’ Hypnobirthing coaches teach techniques such as visualisation and controlling breathing to help women remain calm.
Tamara Cianfini, co-founder of the Wise Hippo hypnobirthing programme, said: ‘Staying calm reduces the “fight or flight” response, which can result in adrenaline flooding the body and unhelpfully directing blood away from the womb.’
The method is also thought to help release pain-relieving endorphins. Ms Cianfini claimed some women reported virtually pain-free births – with a few even experiencing physical pleasure. But she stressed that those who opt for drugs should never feel like failures.
Mother Naomi Mogg, 40, decided to try hypnosis with her second child after a traumatic experience giving birth to son Oliver.
She and partner Reese Moody, 27, went to hypnobirthing classes where she was told to consider contractions as ‘surges’ like rolling waves.
Miss Mogg, who went into labour on Easter Saturday, said: ‘What I learned gave me the ability to deal with the pain. I got all the way to the end without even gas or air. Then the baby’s heart rate started dipping and they had to intervene.’ She accepted pain relief and baby Freya was safely delivered with forceps.
Miss Mogg, from Stevenage, Hertfordshire, said the fact it was not a totally ‘natural’ birth did not bother her, adding: ‘The techniques meant I felt very much in control.’