1. Anyone who says babies are ‘overdue’ over 40 weeks and that over 41 weeks there’s a 50% increase in stillbirth.
Wrong or poorly conveyed information can stress a mum to be unnecessarily. Human gestation can last up to 43 weeks. And a 0.04% chance of stillbirth increasing by 50% is only 0.06! Tiny chance of stillbirth… so really if a pregnancy is healthy, why not trust your body and baby and wait it out calmly. That way you may avoid a swathe of interventions which may change your birth experience entirely.
2. Film and TV showing women in agony giving birth on their back on the bed.
It’s literally the worst position you can be in to give birth because it restricts the space in your pelvis for baby to move through. ACTIVE positions such as standing, kneeling or squatting mean you’re giving your baby much more space, allow your tailbone to move and may reduce tearing.
3. Clinical birth environments.
Yes they need to be sterile and tidy, but we know that many people feel stressed in a hospital environment. It looks weird, smells weird and tends to be bright and scary. Actually, by turning off the lights, using battery candles or fairy lights, closing the blinds your parasympathetic system will release more happy hormones to help you relax and feel less pain. So as a hypnobirthing teacher: Let’s turn off those lights!
Loads more things annoy me as a hypnobirthing teacher. More to come another time.
If you’d like to learn more about how to prepare for a positive birth experience, create an optimal birth space and how to make informed decisions, join me for a Hypnobirthing course.