Solution Focused Hypnotherapy
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Hypnobirthing - it's all about the context
Apr 21, 2024

Hypnobirthing - it's all about the context

The wonders of hypnobirthing, using hypnotherapy for pregnancy and birth.

Having spent many years not only attending births but also looking after women throughout their pregnancies, I have learned a great deal about us humans at a time when women are both vulnerable and powerful. This momentous event is not only very special but also is something that happens day in, and day out. Us women have magical abilities where we can produce a brand-new human baby having spent many months growing, watering, and nurturing this precious cargo. Getting said human out of us is also a pretty enormous feat and one that should be treated with a lot of care and respect. However, over the past 2 decades I have witnessed a decline in the autonomy of women during pregnancy and birth as we have become more and more focused on a more medicalised approach. I have also witnessed that when women are given the self-belief, confidence and safety, they are more than capable of trusting their own abilities and focus on what is at hand. Which is wonderful. And the simple truth is that most of the time, it does all goes well; there maybe a few hiccups on the way but childbirth is no longer the most dangerous of times for women. When women are given the control, support, confidence and self-belief that they are super capable of something that they are essentially designed to do, then they do it.

Each pregnancy is different, we all have different experiences, even though the process is the same. But the nuances are completely individual and should be acknowledged as such. We can have very different context within the same experience. A woman can give birth more than once and have very different births. There is so much that affects the experience and these need to be considered from a brain perspective, when using hypnotherapy to assist the outcome of that experience. Hypnotherapy has a 2-way ability of dealing with something specific whilst dealing with the emotional tentacles of that particular, something specific. So, with childbirth, there is a great deal of emotional baggage that needs to be acknowledged when focusing on birth. But the wonder of hypnotherapy means that this emotional baggage is dealt with in the sub-conscious mind. You don’t have to figure it all out yourself which is why hypnotherapy is so brilliant in dealing with specific issues such as birth, fears, exams or public speaking etc etc!

Birth is something that we as mammals have done since mammals have been on this planet. And if we watch how other mammals give birth, we can learn a thing or two. They go off and find a quiet, warm, secret cubby hole and quietly get on with it on their own. They can stop their birth if they are disturbed until they find somewhere safe to continue the process. But… the difference with humans is that we give birth to immature babies. These babies cannot get up and walk off and run away from danger. Human babies are 100% dependent on another human to pick them up and take them out of the way of danger. And the reason we give birth to these little balls of joy, is our brains. We cannot give birth to a toddler. What a terrifying thought! So, we need some help from other humans to help us give birth in safety. But this can also mean that we completely depend on others to help and support us, so within this, we need to hold onto our own power, our own autonomy and be in a calmer and more sensible place so we are able to make decisions, while the brain is not in full blown fear mode. That won’t help, so it’s all about having peace of mind and able to cope with the whole process of birth.

Hypnobirthing can certainly help too with the pain aspect. This can be explained by understanding the pain pate theory, it’s how a TENS machine works. By being in a position to control and manage the pain, we are able to focus on the wider picture of giving birth, getting the baby human out of our bodies in as calm and safe a way as possible! I have seen women do this naturally where they are obviously feeling safe, and they just go into mammal mode and basically trust the process and more importantly, their own primal ability to give birth.

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Fear of flying & Anxieties: After having a difficult year I decided to try hypnotherapy with Penny and it was the best choice I have made for myself! I'm now able to live more in the moment and have a better understanding of how to cope with or even eliminate my anxieties. I also had 2 sessions dedicated to helping to reduce my phobia of flying which helped me tremendously as I was able to get on a plane again without feeling terrified! Pen is always very positive and relaxed during our sessions and always makes me feel comfortable.

Anxiety/Stress: I went to see Penny as I felt stuck, struggling to cope & unable to move on in life. I had 12 sessions.  I had never really done hypnosis before & really struggled to focus on the words as my mind raced everywhere. Penny reassured me it would still work - which it did. It took a couple of weeks to kick in but I really appreciated the time taken to focus on the issues & Penny's positive attitude really filtered through. Slowly my positivity increased, the overthinking eased off & my sleep improved. This allowed me to problem-solve & plan more changes to make. It was like moving a large rock - once we got it moving progress started to happen & towards the last few sessions things started to speed up. I would recommend Penny to anyone who feels overwhelmed or near a crisis point.

Pain: I had 12 hypnotherapy sessions with Penny. The hypnosis was relaxing & reviving and seemed to link with my subconscious & bring me back to positive feelings. I still use the audio which acts as a kick-start if doubts start seeping in. I also found Penny's voice calming & reassuring. I have no reservations in recommending Penny. I liked her honesty in what the therapy could offer. I have been very happy with the outcome of the hypnotherapy.

Stop Smoking: Both myself and my husband decided it was time to stop smoking. My husband had smoked 20+ a day for 35 years and I had also smoked on and off for years. We can both honestly say we have never felt better thanks to Penny, she made us feel comfortable and was very reassuring, after just one appointment we were smoke-free.  We are now looking forward to extra holidays with the money we have saved and also stress free knowing we can travel and not worry about going without a cigarette.

Stress Buster/Body Image: Pen has helped me massively increase my resilience to stress. Tasks which seemed ongoing and impossible became doable. While work may still be stressful, the speed with which I bounce back is great and has allowed me to put in boundaries, both personal and professional. It has increased my self-confidence and assertiveness and has improved my sleep patterns so much. Penny has also taken me through several weight-loss sessions from which I am feeling the benefits and feel now that I am in the right place to start an exercise regimen and take control of my fitness.

Sleep Issues: I was slightly sceptical over hypnotherapy, probably because I was frightened of being made to do something I didn't want to. But my sleeping was all over the place and I'm a constant worrier, so thought I'd give it a go - I am so pleased with how relaxed I felt and how my sleeping has improved. I feel much calmer now and can rationalise things better than before. I thoroughly recommend it to anyone with for a variety of problems or habits, and Pen's voice is greatly comforting when I listen to the recording when going to sleep. I know I can come for a top-up whenever I need to.

Public Speaking: I wanted to try hypnotherapy in order to deal with the anxiety I experience before speaking in public. My sessions with Pen have helped me reduce this in such a short amount of time it is really unbelievable how effective they’ve been. I now feel calm and focused and those waves of panic that tripped me up before talking in public have entirely gone away. I can’t stress enough how effective these sessions with Pen have been. She is calm and an intuitive listener who instantly puts you at ease. I wouldn’t think twice about recommending her sessions to anyone.

I would highly recommend Penny for helping and supporting anyone suffering with anxiety. My son Louie was suffering from panic attacks and it was heartbreaking watching him missing out on having fun with his friends because of a general fear something was going to happen. Penny was recommended to us by a friend who’s daughter was suffering from anxiety and was attending sessions with Penny to tackle this and couldn’t talk highly enough of her. So we thought it must be worth a try. Louie started having sessions with Penny and the difference was amazing, he started being more confident and less panicky and slowly started getting back to his usual happy go lucky self, which was a joy to see. I’m sure anyone who has a child, family member or friend that suffers from this realises how stressful this situation can be on a day to day basis. So get in touch with Penny, it could change your life.

From Katie's mum: "Pen, thinking just how bad she was and how far she has come! I have no doubt in my mind that if anyone else’s child is suffering then you are the person to help! We are so thankful".

Hypnotherapy.... The final piece of the puzzle that completed and transformed my life. Amazing!

I had hypnotherapy to help me with my anxiety and depression and honestly, it changed my life for the better. I was in a place where I thought there was no escape from these feelings. However, hypnotherapy turned things around for me greatly. My OCD has also died down massively and it has also helped me through the very rough time at school. I'm extremely grateful for Pen's clear and kind understanding and I strongly recommend this to anyone who is having these similar feelings as well, as it will change your life for the better.