Hypnotherapy can be used during pregnancy and childbirth to prepare a mother for birth and/or to attempt to treat a number of issues ranging from fears and minor health conditions related to the pregnancy, to the possibility of reducing or eliminating pain during labor.
General use during pregnancy
Evidence suggests there may be value in using hypnosis for a wide range of pregnancy related problems,such as heartburn, high blood pressure and postnatal depressioncitation needed. Practitioners believe that during pregnancy and prior to birth, the use of hypnosis can significantly shorten labor, reduce pain and reduce the need for intervention. Practitioners also believe that babies born to mothers who have used hypnosis to relax and calm themselves will sleep and feed better.
Hypnotherapists who specialize in hypnosis for childbirth can offer a tailored approach geared towards individual women. This is especially important if they have additional phobias or fears associated with childbirth. This can include needle phobias, fear of hospitals or even fear of pregnancy itself.
Hypnosis for labor
Hypnosis can also be used as a pain relief method during labor. Obstetrician Grantly Dick-Read first wrote about the phenomenon in the 1930s in his work on natural childbirth and since the 1980s a range of different techniques have been developed that utilize hypnosis in a natural childbirth. These include the Mongan method (also known as HypnoBirthing®), the Lamaze method, and the Natal Hypnotherapy method.
Research
A post-review of patients who had used hypnotherapy for labor was published in 2004 in the British Journal of Anaesthesia 2004 (93(4):505-511) by A.M Cyna, G.L. McAuliffe and M.I. Andrew. The review suggested that there was evidence of the reduced need for pharmacological analgesia but a more substantial trial was required. Subsequently there is a major controlled trial currently underway in Adelaide, Australia which is seeking to conclusively prove that hypnosis can a make a significant difference to women in pregnancy and laborcitation needed.
In 1993, a randomised control trial by M.W. Jenkins and M. H. Pritchard, 'Hypnosis: Practical applications and theoretical considerations in normal labour' [1] reported that hypnosis, combined with childbirth education,:
- reduced the length of labour
- reduced the incidence of pain medication use
- produced higher apgar scores
- reduced the incidence of postpartum depression
- increased the incidence of spontaneous deliveries
HypnoBirthing®
HypnoBirthing® - The Mongan Method was first developed in the US in 1989 and is taught by practitioners in 29 countries around the world, including over 200 practitioners in the UK. HypnoBirthing® is named after its founder Marie (or 'Mickey') Mongan M.Ed., M.Hy., a hypnotherapist, Harvard Fellow, and author of "HypnoBirthing® : A Celebration Of Life".
Natal Hypnotherapy
Natal Hypnotherapy is a UK-based method of preparing a mother for childbirth taught through CDs and courses. It was developed by Maggie Howell D. hyp, C.hyp, UKHypReg, C.tshyp, who used self-hypnosis for the birth of her first child and then went on to train as a Clinical Hypnotherapist before developing the Natal Hypnotherapy method. It has been found that listening to self-hypnosis CDs before and then during labour stimulates the postive mental images and deep relaxation that have been practised earlier. [2]
References
- ^ British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, 100(3), 221-226, 1993
- ^ Sheila Kitzinger, 'Birth Crisis', Routledge 2006, ISBN 0-415-37266-6
3. Marie Mongan, 'HypnoBirthing: A Celebration of Life'.
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