Continuing with a series of blogs here at UK Birth Centre Ltd on preparation tips for your birth and beyond here we are discussing hypnotherapy.
Hypnosis is "a state of deep physical relaxation with an alert mind producing alpha waves, in which the subconscious mind can be more readily accessed" ( Mantle 2000 ) Hypnosis used for childbirth is almost always self-hypnosis: the hypnotherapist teaches the woman to induce the hypnotic state in herself during labour.
The Birth Ball for movement and pain relief in labour is a large inflated exercise ball that has been adopted into maternity care to aid relaxation and movement (Perez .P 2000). The woman can sit on or lean against the ball, which provides soft support.
Water birth enables women to give birth in the way their bodies were designed. I feel that birth pools have brought a special quality to the environment of birth, helping midwives get back to the roots of being with women.
The alternative approach to pain management includes a wide variety of techniques that address not only the physical sensations of pain, but also attempt to prevent you suffering by enhancing the emotional and spiritual aspects of your care. In this approach, pain is seen as normal but is separated from suffering and made acceptable.
You are unique, fantastic, a perfect human being; as are your baby, your pregnancy and your birth; they matter so much. I became an Independent midwife to ensure I could continue to support women through this amazing journey in the best way possible. Please take time to consider your choices in who attends you during this time. It is one of the most important times of your life.
I believe that women are wonderfully designed to give birth so when they are supported by midwives with whom they have developed a relationship of trust then amazing births will happen. My philosophy of trust in the physiology of birth differs from the Medical model of child birth that proliferates in our health care system. The medical model believes that birth is only normal in retrospect and is fraught with potential problems that need fixing at any moment! This form of care appears to disempower women and leads to the use of phrases such as “I was not allowed” or “I had to have and induction” evidence that the women did not have any choice in the matter.
I have been an Independent midwife for 8 years and have noticed that there are many things I view as essentials to my home birth kit that were absent when I was a community Midwife for the NHS. I am not talking about the standard equipment sonic aid, sphygmomanometer and stethoscope, thermometer, sterile gloves, etc.
No these are the idiosyncratic things that have made women’s birth and my life far better over the years!
I have been invited as a guest blogger by UK Birth Centres Ltd to speak about the importance of a home birth for both you and your baby. I have been an Independent midwife for 8 years and an NHS midwife for 20 years before that and it has been a privilege to work with women who are very sure of how they want to give birth.
A fifth of NHS spending goes towards insurance cover for clinical negligence, according to a report conducted by the National Audit Office.
The number of births in England has risen by almost a quarter in the last ten years, with the National Audit Office declaring that maternity services on the NHS were generally good, but there is still room for improvement.
A recent report in The Telegraph has revealed that half of UK women are not getting the birth care they want.
The findings, announced at the inaugural Birthright’s Dignity in Childbirth Conference in London last week concluded that British women are not receiving a dignified birth.
Mumsnet conducted a survey on 1100 women and found that only 50% of women in the UK are receiving their ideal birth care. A further 26% were not able to choose where to give birth and 24% didn’t consent to intimate procedures such as forceps delivery, vaginal examination or cervical sweeps.