Spoiler alert, no I am not in labour. BUT I did have my first full day of thinking so. In this episode I discuss the symptoms i had, and what I did (including the very non-hypnobirthing reactions I had). 

In Hypnobirthing (and one thing I really love about it!) the birth companion has such a key role during the pregnancy and birth. But how do they feel about this role? and about the changing role, going from individual to parent? In this episode I discuss the the changes we all go through when coming to terms with the that we are going to be parents- I mean, come on, it’s scary stuff!

In this episode I am talking all things birthing classes; I say all things, I mean it is limited to my experience of Hypnobirthing & two, interesting, experiences of anti-natal classes. I will talk about what you should look for in classes, what I enjoyed (and didn't enjoy) and the differences between my experiences. 

I am past the 38 week mark and things are changing, I think I am starting to feel stereotypically pregnant and along with that I am getting obsessed with googling pregnancy symptoms- I know, it does not sound too Hypnobirthy does it?! But, I said I would be honest about my experience. Listen to this episode for my 38 week symptoms & the affect it can have on mindset.     

A key teaching of Hypnobirthing is that we have to condition our minds to believe that birth is a positive experience; due to media and the narrative we have probably been told our whole lives, for most of us, this is a re-conditioning. And that is hard- especially when people are so obsessed with telling you their difficult birth stories. Now, do not get me wrong I believe every women has the right to share their story and for some women who have had a 'negative' experience, sharing is...

As I hit week 38 of pregnancy a new fear sneaks in (I know I know fear is bad but I have to be realisticall here!). My fear is that I get into labour and I totally forget all of my Hypnobirthing practice. To avoid this happening I have put together a pack of resources and a revision session for my birth companion and I to study (I know I  know I am geek). Tonight I am going to talk about the resources you will need, what to remind yourself and your birth partner of and quite practically, what...

It is episode 70-woah! and in celebration I am doing (what I think) is a super useful episode on my Top 10 tips to making Hypnobirthing practice easy and part of your daily routine. Honestly, with Hypnobirthing there seems to be an infinite amount of information to learn but what is most important is your practice and fitting it into your everyday life- so here is how I do it. 

A more Hypnobirthingy (yes that is a word) title for this podcast would be 'comfort levels' but I need to make it clear, I am discussing the ways we can natural maintain high comfort levels (naturally not feel pain) but also that I am discussing medical interventions & forms of pain relief. I fully believe in Hypnobirthing and have no intention on using any medicalised methods of pain relief but it does not mean I do not see the importance of understanding them, when they are used and...

As a recap of my learning so far, and as a way to introduce any newbies to Hypnobirthing I am sharing 10 ways to have a successful Hypnobirthing birth- these ideas come from women who have had successful births & encompasses both the teaching and practice of Hypnobirthing.   

Have you asked yourself during your pregnancy 'What the F is Colostrum?' and 'Why do I need to become a farmer of it?' (Or is that just me?). In this episode I am going to talk about what colostrum is, why you might want to get some expressed and stored before your baby arrives... and talk about my rather comical experience of this so far. 

Have you heard the term ‘Doula’ floating around loads recently? Especially with all the reading around birth it is a word that keeps coming up and so I decided, instead of using some vague idea I already had of what a Doula may be, to actually do some proper research and find out what they do, who they are and how they can benefit your birth. In this episode i share my findings and how I originally started by thinking it was just an expensive commodity that a celeb may have to seeing the true...

Tonight I am discussing the age old question "what are you having?"; "I am having a baby" responded the sarcy feminist mother (that's me). I am discussing the reasons I am not find out the sex of my baby, gender stereotyping and social conditioning. Finishing with an extremely balanced conclusion; you do you. If you want to find out at 20 weeks absolutely go for it, or if you want to wait until 40- awesome! Either way baby will be loved & bring joy and that is the main thing. 

I have been so torn on whether to pack a 'Birth Bag' aka a hospital bag, but with no intention at all of going to hospital I refuse to call it that! My dilemma comes from my belief in the law of attraction and the idea that what you put out to universe becomes reality... yes, sounds a little crazy when I write it like this but basically I was stuck on this belief that if I packed a bag for the birth then I would some how put it out to the universe that I was going to hospital. Anyway, after...

After having a beautiful baby shower & being spoiled with gifts, tonight I am discussing nesting; yup that uncontrollable urge to organise your books in alphabetical order and sort your spices in accordance with colour (okay a little much). This urge to get s**t done is great; the more you do now the more time you get to bond with your new baby BUT this should not compensate on your time to relax- remember this is super important to! listen to hear why we nest, what it may look like and...

In this episode I am discussing the fact that although we clearly acknowledge the transition that we go through to become parents, we rarely acknowledge & discuss the huge transition that a baby is going through by entering the world. A baby is going from the comfort & serenity of the womb to the chaos and sensory explosion of the world. I will discuss some ways we can ensure that this transition is as smooth as possible for you & baby (and also rant a little about the pressure...

In this episode I will talk about Post-Birth Bonding; essentially why skin-to-skin is super important at building the foundation, both physically and emotional, between you are your baby. But not only between mum and baby but also between parents and baby and how there are many things you can do together to ensure the baby is feeling loved and safe; after all it has just made a really big transition into the world!

It is day 60 (oh my gosh I do not know how!!) and I am discussing the last stage of labour, yes your beautiful bundle of joy is with you but the labour journey is not quite over yet. I will discuss what your body gets up to during this stage, including birthing your placenta and how the incredible bond between mum and baby supports this stage. I will also discuss what else is going on around you during this stage, which at the time you will probably be too oblivious to at the time due to...

..and now, the baby will enter the world! In this podcast I will discuss the last stage of birthing baby (no not the last stage of labour all together, there is more of that to come). In this episode I will discuss the change you will experience in regards to your surges and with that, comes a change in your breathing- I recap birth breathing and give some hints & tips for birth breathing your baby out. 

Just when you think you have learned a lot and know most of the terminology out there, you hear something and and think "what the..." for me it was this term and the numbers related to 'The Pelvic station'. In the short episode I am talking about what this is, when you will hear it being discussed and what it means... because knowledge it power!

A long title for this episode! I am essentially discussing the end of the early phase of labour and the change or transition (which will feel smooth & euphoric- yes you read that correctly!) when we go from the up stage of labour to the down stage. I discuss whats going on in our bodies, how we may feel and what we can do- which is mostly nothing because this is the time we give over to our awesome bodies!

In this episode I am discussing a slow or resting labour; why it happens and what to do... the good news is, IT IS NORMAL and for the majority of women  your labour will rest at some point and you will not need medical intervention because of it. Instead, I will talk about some of the reasons out body needs to take a rest, when it happens and natural ways to get labour re-started again. 

In this episode I will explore further early labour; particularly what is going on physiologically- because knowledge is power! The more we know about the biology of our body, the more we can trust it and relax into labour. I also go through some 'hallmarks' you may come across during this part of labour; little nods to tell you things are going in the right direction. 

It is time to talk labour; how will I know, what will it feel like, what is happening and what should I do ?! Well most importantly you should trust your body and allow your instincts to tell you what to do.. but it helps to be a little informed. In this episode I will discuss the physiology of the first part of labour, what you can do to keep it calm & relaxed and how to put your Hypnobirthing practice into action. 

After a midwife appointment, and being told as a first time mum I am likely to go over my "due date" (the make belief concept!) I wanted to discuss some ways to induce labour naturally. So from hot curries to getting hot under the sheets; in this episode I cover several methods to induce your labour naturally. 

Today I am talking about how our amazingly wonderful bodies give us signs that labour is getting closer; in this episode I am discussing those signs, what you might see, feel and experience as labour is approaching.