Your health:

Staying Calm...during childbirth?


Stacey Collins
Having watched Channel 4’s One Born Every Minute, I find it surprising that couples still want to reproduce. The programme should come with a warning ‘Do not watch if expecting’ as it certainly will not alleviate any fears that mothers-to-be will naturally experience.

After hearing the screaming, panting and cries for an epidural, my mother always asks me why I watch the terror-inducing programme; am I trying to put myself off ever having children?
One Born Every Minute is like watching a shocking accident, it is disturbing, horrible and graphic but you can’t take your eyes off it.

The programme explores the different ways in which the women and their partners deal with the stress and trauma of childbirth. The latest method to be revealed on One Born Every Minute which has created a bit of a stir is Hypnobirthing or Natal Hypnotherapy.

Whilst this movement has been circulating for some time, since 1942 in fact, using hypnotherapy to prepare for the birth is meant to help couples overcome the pregnancy panic so that their confidence is improved and the level of pain during the birth is dramatically reduced. Both the American Hypnobirthing- The Mongan Method and the British Natal Hypnotherapy provides couples with CD’s, courses and scripts to encourage women to use their natural instincts during pregnancy and childbirth by using self-hypnosis rather than epidurals and other medical aids.

But does this technique work or is this another money scamming, Age of the Aquarius type fad. Well from reading sites like Mumsnet and Netmums, the feedback from mums appears to be very positive with many parents recommending this relaxed style of childbirth.

So there is light at the end of the tunnel, metaphorically speaking of course, and we women should not be discouraged from having children through programmes such as One Born Every Minute. However, as a woman with zero pain tolerance I’m pretty sure I’m going to wait until a pain-free method is discovered…I could be waiting a long time.

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