Hypnosis for birth is nothing new. It’s the simplicity of the program that makes it seem too easy…...but there's no magic to it, it's simple biology. The part of your mind that controls digestion, your breathing, your eyes blinking, making sure just the perfect amount of blood gets to every nerve, muscle and fiber in your body…is the same part of the mind that is responsible for reproduction and birth. The same part of your mind that released the perfect egg and created the exact conditions for a healthy pregnancy is the same part of your mind that is responsible for the unique hormone release between mother and baby that starts labour and helps you give birth to your baby.

Gentlebirth mothers trust the innate wisdom of their bodies to give birth easily, we trust our bodies to know how to give birth – just the same way your body KNOWS to take the next breath as you’re reading this page - with no conscious effort on your behalf.

Practicing your Gentlebirth program (listening to your birth rehearsal CD)will create the level of relaxation needed to induce hypnosis and reduce the stress hormones (catecholamines)that slow labour and make it much more painful. These hormones are designed to signal the body of crisis by creating an instant "fight-or-flight" response. This automatic response redirects blood away from the uterus and non essential organs (like when your face drains of blood when you get a fright)to the arms (to fight) and the legs (to flee)so the muscles of the uterus tire very quickly and begin to tense.

This response is a protective mechanism for when the mind senses a stressful situation - for many mothers this response happens immediately when labour starts and especially when reaching the hospital....even though you consciously know that you are at the safest place. These fears are imprinted in the subconscious mind but Gentlebirth helps to replace those negative assocations and replaces them with confidence and relaxation.

When the catecholamines are reduced the hormones of your body's natural epidural (endorphins) can increase. This in turn increases oxytocin - the wonderful hormone that helps labour progress more easily. The fight or flight (painful) hormones and the 'epidural' hormones cannot co-exist in the body so the more epidural hormones you have the less chance the 'stress/pain' hormones have. The result is a calmer, confident mother and a calmer baby.