Emma & Baby Thomson
January 2017

I was in hospital with raised blood pressure and decided to be induced .... even though this was what I desperately wanted to avoid third time around, but it felt like we were fighting a losing battle, so we just needed to crack on and get him here.

 

I had asked for a home from home room which had a birthing pool and I had taken my fairy lights and the Hypnobirthing music; so the room did actually feel quite calm and relaxing, even though it wasn't in the birth centre like I had wanted.

 

My water's were broken but unfortunately nothing happened for four hours, at which point we were told things can take longer with third babies! I had taken one dose of blood pressure tablets and thankfully my blood pressure had settled, so baby wasn't being continuously monitored at this point.  I had requested that they put the monitor onto my baby's head when they broke my water's as I felt that this way of monitoring enabled me to mobilise and remain upright.

 

So I was able to have a bath in the birthing pool, and listened to the Hypnobirthing CD and practised my breathing, just like I had done every night at home in the run up to my due date, and hallelujah some mild surges began.

 

So, after four hours when they wanted to start the drip I had the confidence to ask for a bit longer.

 

Another two hours passed and the surges were getting stronger.  I continued to breathe through them.  At this point I was examined and was 2cm dilated, so the plan was to start the drip.  The midwife put the cannula in and left the room to go and get the syntocinon hormone drip.

 

And this is where the Hypnobirthing really came in to it's own!  I really did not want the drip, but at this point I knew we just needed to get him here. The surges were really starting to build now, so I began using the gas and air, and I think this was just what I needed to let my body fully relax and do what it needed to.

 

It was amazing!  I totally left the room and went to a different place, concentrating on my breathing and letting my body take over. This stage was really fast and only lasted about half an hour.

 

By this point baby was being monitored and unfortunately, as I was so silent, at the point I needed to start pushing the midwife started to get concerned about his heart rate, and started to move me back on to the bed, which brought me back in to the room.

 

I went through a bit of transition at this point, thinking I wouldn't be able to push him out, but it lasted only a few seconds as I quickly put my Hypnobirthing back in to action, fuelled I think by the doctors mention of forceps!  So only a few minutes later and he was born without the need for either the drip or the forceps! I was totally overwhelmed by the joy I felt at meeting him.

 

I cannot thank you enough for the skills you gave me to have such an amazing birth experience.  Having had two rather traumatic births previously, and being a person that finds it difficult to relax, and I wasn't 100% sure that the Hypnobirthing would do anything to help. So I was astounded at just how powerfully all the positive suggestions in the scripts had actually gone in to my unconscious brain, allowing me to switch off completely and just let my body take over.

 

I will highly recommend Hypnobirthing to all expectant Mums I meet, as I can honestly say that if it can work for me it can work for anyone!