My number one tip on how to birth naturally

Did you know that the biggest factor that can undermine a woman’s labour is fear? 

Did you know that it is also possible to have an ecstatic or even orgasmic childbirth experience? 

Dr. Sarah Buckley, a medical doctor, mother of four and writer on pregnancy birth and parenting quotes in her paper Ecstatic Birth:

“Giving birth in ecstasy: this is our birthright and our body’s intent. Mother Nature, in her wisdom, prescribes birthing hormones that take us outside our usual state so that we can be transformed on every level as we enter motherhood”.

With that said, here comes my number one tip. I will tell you what to do, why to do it and how to do it.

What to do 

Use your pregnancy as an opportunity to teach yourself how to trigger the relaxation response in your body and practice, practice, practice until you go into labour.  When you use the same triggers you practiced in pregnancy, when in the throes of labour, you will find it so much easier to relax the body because your body has learnt how to do it.

Why to do it

There is a lot of science behind natural birth and what it can teach us beyond birth into our life as a mother.  Physiologically there is a beautiful and synchronic dance occurring within a hormonal system designed to lubricate our bodies with connection, love, pleasure, excitement, and tenderness. 

This hormonal dance is governed by the oldest part of the human brain, our ‘reptilian or primal brain’ – which is in control over our instinctual behaviour patterns. It is akin to the structures found in reptiles and other small animals ensuring their survival as a species: behaviour such as fight, flight, freeze, appease and ritual displays.

One of the most remarkable things about human beings unlike any other species in the animal kingdom is our ‘modern brain’– the part of the brain that has enabled as to dominant all species on earth. This is the brain responsible for intellect, reasoning, conscious thought. 

Unfortunately, this part of the brain is responsible for making as fear birth… it is often stimulated too much during birth and this can have pretty big effects on the ability of the mind to connect inward and allow the body to birth naturally.   

“Today, we have knowledge of many, many things and the relations among human beings have multiplied ad infinitum. But we live in cities that are like deafening factories in awful Babels, with nothing to remind us of our inner world. Our communion with this inner world is not through contemplation but through books. We have passed from intuition into intellectualism.” 
― Rudolf Steiner, Esoteric Cosmology

I love this quote. It really helps explain where we have gone wrong when it comes to our birthing and mothering culture. We use our intellect to medicalise or manage what is a natural and normal function. It goes without saying, that sometimes birth gets complicated and needs to become medicalised. Knowing how to relax is even more important in this scenario!

Coming back to normal, uncomplicated labour. For it to progress well, we must have capacity to connect inward to the most primitive part of our body and learn how to get into a state of relaxation to ensure this part of body can function as it should in childbirth and motherhood.

I believe the biggest challenge we have now is mindset one, not a medical one – hence my number one tip! Learn how to relax and calm the body in pregnancy.

How to do it

Yoga & hypnobirthing are powerful skills that teaches us how to do this – no matter what course your birth takes. Firmly held in the believe that birth is a normal physiological function of the human body, yoga and hypnobirthing educates expectant couples on mind body connection and how to birth positively using a range of tools and techniques that condition the mind to release fear and promote a state of relaxation in the body. 

Consider hiring a doula

Committing to a practice every day in pregnancy is not an easy task and having the right support and guidance can mean all the difference.

This is why I designed my Yoga and Hypnobirthing Doula packages because I believe having professional support and coaching throughout your pregnancy is paramount in improving your chances for a natural birth.

Learn about my offerings and book in a free consultation so we can plan how to get you into a state of calm in pregnancy and birth.