Georgia & Dave’s Birth Story. March 2023
HYPNO STORY:
I always wanted to be a mum, and I always wanted to experience pregnancy, but after all the horror stories and stigma around labour, giving birth wasn’t something I was particularly looking forward to. Aside from the common first trimester morning sickness, all day nausea, fatigue etc. I had a lovely pregnancy. Being diagnosed with gestational diabetes at around 30 weeks was something I wasn’t expecting and caused a bit of stress, but I knew we were starting our Hypnobirthing course in late January and I was looking forward to resetting and focusing on bubs. Months earlier, my best friend had urged me to look in to Hypno, I was apprehensive - the common misconception is that Hypno is all about salt lamps, crystals & birth plans, we thought it would be too ‘woo-woo’ for us. Little did we know it would lead us to having the most incredible birthing experience. My first hospital appointment was with a lovely midwife named Robina who happened to run Hypno classes. Robina told me that Hypno wasn’t just about the birth mother, but also their birth companion, and preparing both of you for the birth - this was something that really appealed to me… over and over again, I’d heard male friends and family members talk about how they had to just stand by feeling helpless and weren’t able to “do anything” during the birth of their child - I wanted our experience to be different. I wanted Dave to be feel involved and have an active part in our little boy’s birth.
Dave was intrigued after speaking with our friends and after watching a few videos on Hypno, he was keen to give it a go!
We started our course the day before I went on maternity leave - we had an incredible group, all of which were having boys and we were all around the same stage in our pregnancies. The knowledge we gained was unbelievable - each week we would leave feeling empowered and excited for our birth journey. Robina was the most incredible Hypno guide, her knowledge was second to none. The environment and atmosphere she created for our group was so lovely and engaging. We loved every one of our classes and were sad to see them come to an end, but we left feeling positive and ready.
Dave was convinced I would be overdue, and we’d have the baby probably a week or so after the due date. I decided I was ready at 39 weeks, and on the morning of the 3rd of March, I went and sat in our baby’s rocking chair, put my hands on my belly and told him it was time to start making his way into the world. I drew one of my affirmation cards which read “I welcome miracles into my life” and I knew he was on his way.
Later that night, (at approximately 12.30am), I started getting what I thought were “cramps”… after a few hours of this and the cramps getting more and more intense, we rang the hospital, they assured me I was in early labour, I had a shower and popped on my birthing affirmations. Within a few hours I’d been so distracted by the intensifying surges that I hadn’t felt the baby move around, and decided I wanted to go into hospital to have him monitored, make sure he was all ok, and then I would come home to labour as long as I needed to. I used my breath work to breathe through the discomfort, keeping myself as relaxed as possible.
After being monitored for a few hours everything was looking good, they decided to check my dilation so that I knew how things were tracking before we headed back home, and it turned out I was 5.5cm dilated! I was beyond relieved, the discomfort had become so intense that I’d been vomiting, so to hear I was over half-way was music to my ears! At about 6am we moved to the birth suite and I instantly stripped off and wanted to get myself in the shower… Dave sped home to get the hospital bag (which we hadn’t put in the car, thinking we’d be coming home!). Once he got back we got some music going and I continued breathing through each surge, Dave ensuring I was keeping my face relaxed, shoulders relaxed, reiterating how incredible I was and making sure I was drinking plenty of water. Instead of anticipating the discomfort, I was looking toward the breaks in between surges where I could have a sing and a dance. At one point I asked Dave to go and get the midwife because I felt a lot of pressure and wasn’t sure if I should be pushing. When he came back in, he was followed by none other than our guru Hypno educator/midwife, Robina! We were SO over the moon to see her and know she was going to be there to help us bring our baby into the world! At one point, I felt the need to push but felt like my body was stopping me… Robina assured me that when it’s time to push, my body will do it naturally and I won’t be able to hold back. Knowing that my body would do what it needed to made me feel strong and assured, and before I knew it, I was breathing my baby down the birth canal. We decided I’d be most comfortable on my knees laying over the top of the bed. Dave kept reiterating my favourite affirmation – “each surge brings my baby closer to me.” After each deep breath he would tell me again, and I’d repeat it, with a smile on my face, visualising the flower opening, knowing I’d soon be holding our baby boy. Robina guided my breathing and supported me through each surge. She would check our baby’s heart rate intermittently which didn’t dip or raise, he stayed perfectly content the whole time. I was able to fully surrender and trust the process, and at 8.12am on the 4th of March, Ollie Jay Counihan came bursting into our lives and hearts. When he came out, I could hear his little squeal, Robina and the assisting midwife Alice handed him to me, I held his little body, felt his little hands cling to me, his little head resting on my chest - an indescribable joy, a full heart. I’d loved this baby from the minute I found out we’d become pregnant. To hold him in my arms, knowing we had worked together to bring him here in such a calm and positive way made me so happy. I was on an unimaginable high for days to come!
Dave’s experience:
Dave never saw his part in labour as more than a bystander, there to offer a bit of encouragement, but careful not to get in the way. After each Hypno class he came out exhilarated, with more knowledge than before, eager to practice different techniques, able to encourage me to listen to my rainbow relaxation when I felt stressed, and, when the time came, he was able to pull everything he’d learnt and put in into practice. Seeing the one you love in such discomfort is something you can never be prepared for. I knew there was no way I could alleviate the discomfort, but I knew there was a role for me, I knew I could help maintain the calm, and keep Georgia in the zone. I knew what techniques to pull out and when, and through it all, I felt like a confident advocate for my partner, and that’s the best thing you can be during such an intense time. I’ve never experienced anything quite like it. I know it wouldn’t have been the same without the knowledge I’d gained through Hypnobirthing.
Since birth:
Since having Ollie we’ve been able to incorporate some of our Hypno techniques into our lives - for me, the affirmations and the breath work have continued to be super helpful. Knowing the power of our voices and our calm demeanour, the same way we would talk to Ollie when he was in my tummy, comforting him when he gets overtired or fussy, being able to reground when the sleep deprivation kicks in, these are all things we learnt through our Hypno journey. We’ll be forever grateful for everything we learnt, and the experience it enabled us to have. Robina was the greatest educator we could have asked for! The guru of midwifery/hypnobirthing, we were so lucky to have learnt from the best and have her there with us!