FAQ
Your Questions Answered
Q: When is the best time to attend birth classes?
That is up to you. There is information and practices that are useful for the entire pregnancy, that will benefit you and baby hugely. Some mothers attend early on in their pregnancy and then jump in on a course to refresh the labour coping techniques closer to due time. The courses are designed with an additional 2 hour follow up practice labour zoom call that are scheduled monthly. You can select these to best suit you, and can attend as many times as you wish!
Personalised packages can be designed to spread the sessions out appropriately through the pregnancy. For e.g. 1 in each trimester.
Q: I am very nearly due, will it be worth it?
Absolutely! You will gain knowledge, tools and techniques that will most certainly help you through your labour and birth. Your partner will feel much more confident in supporting you.
Q: Do partners attend? What if I don't have a partner?
Yes. This work is much more successful when a birthing companion(s) attend. I recommend that anyone you plan to be at your birth attends this training. The importance of the birth companion is underestimated as they can both influence how the labour unfolds both negatively and positively. This training aims to create confident birthing companions who know how to support mum best. If no one can attend with you - that is OK too. You will still gain so many helpful tools and information to cope with labour better. The price is one price for you AND your 1 or 2 birthing companions.
Q: My Partner is a bit apprehensive and doesn't want to attend?
Totally understandable! - Most partners are a little unenthusiastic, but it's these (guys mainly) that are the ones raving at the end of the course about how great it was and how much they are looking forward to embracing the challenge of birth and feeling excited about meeting their wee one. Once they are assured that they can come and go as they need to or just lie down and relax, this usually puts them at ease. However, I also unfortunately have a nifty ability of making everyone feel comfortable, especially the guys! The content is so capturing, engaging and PRACTICAL that they don't want to miss out anyway.
Q: Are the classes only for those that want natural births?
No! Absolutely NOT. You will leave this course feeling more confident however your birth unfolds whether surgical, with interventions, intervention free or at home. The only certain thing about birthing is that birth is unpredictable. Through the training you will have learnt many tools to work towards the birth you ideally want but also to be able to navigate choices and cope with the unpredictable twists and turns. Even if your circumstances mean that you have a surgical or scheduled birth, you will understand how these instrumental tools benefit both mum and baby through all types of labours and births.
Q: I'm a bit unsure of the term HYPNOBIRTHING, it sounds a bit... "out there"?
I agree! I too was sceptical of the term hypnobirthing but it's really a broken down term for using hypnosis for birthing. The Intuitive Hypnobirthing programme is really based on the physiological principal that the uterus needs as much oxygen as possible for it to work most effectively and also that fear can interrupt this process. The Intuitive Hypnobirthing classes encompass all the tools needed for birth, including breathing, positional and rebozo techniques, massage, mindfulness, relaxation, visualization as well as self-hypnosis. There are packages that do not include the hypnosis recordings: Better birth and Compassionate Birth.
Q: So, what is hypnosis and how does it help birthing, again it seems a bit out there?
Hypnosis is a wonderful and effective therapy that can be used to achieve therapeutic change for e.g quitting habits, overcoming phobias, changing undesired behaviour patterns and even help with getting pregnant, to name just a few. Hypnobirthing uses hypnosis, which is actually more like a guided relaxation, in this context, it aims to create affirmations that have positive effects on your birthing experience. You will have access to recorded scripts that helps you release any fears about birthing and/ or parenting and guides you through a beautiful birth visualization, plus more, when you attend the INTUITIVE birthing course.
Q: My partner and I still feel very sad and angry about a previous birth experience and we are afraid that talking about it will make us too upset.
Yes, that is big! Talking or thinking about a birth experience can cause the flood gates to open or unleash the anger and rage, which we try hard to avoid right? However, these are clear indicators that there are parts of this experience that need processing, as they will be affecting your life and relationships or perhaps getting in the way of future birth preparations.
With the processes that I can take you through, Birth Experience Resolution sessions which include talking, art and movement, recalling your birth experience will, yes, be emotional but after the session you will have been guided safely to a different perspective about the birth. Clients often feel a huge relief or that a burden has been lifted and that they can start talking about it again without bursting into tears or rage.
What we resist persists and so if we keep trying to avoid processing it, it will eventually express itself in other ways... undesirable behaviour and reactions, relationship stress or even manifest as physical illness and pain as well as affecting mental well being.
The fear release hypnosis of the hypnobirthing classes is also a gentle non confrontational way of moving forward from a previous birth experience.
Q: What is the sliding scale?
I offer suggested donation brackets to make these offerings accessible to as many parents as possible. I would rather you have access to these tools and support rather than miss out. It is up to you to choose to pay what you can or what you would love to, or be in touch and we can organize a payment plan that suits us both OR another form of energy exchange.
Q: What do you mean by energy exchange?
Hmm yes... a new term for many! If your situation is creating financial stress for you at the moment then we can exchange in different ways. Perhaps you have a service or product that you would like to exchange e.g. hair cuts, meat, fruit and veg, wood, marketing, graphic design, time etc etc. I would love to give these classes away for free but I find that when people exchange in some way, they are much more committed to themselves and their learning, support and healing.