Hi, I’m Jasmine.
Before I got pregnant with my first child I discovered a wonderful book called “Birth Without Violence”, by Dr Frederick Leboyer. This book illustrated how a birth was something calm and gentle, physiologically normal and above all, a natural experience that wasn’t at all how the media has portrayed it. Listening to stories of friends’ birth experiences left me in no doubt – I wanted a quiet, calm and gentle birth for my own children.
With a family background in holistic therapies and conventional medicine, I knew that where the mind goes, the body will follow. But I had always thought myself a ‘wimp about pain’, I was scared of hospitals (I’d never been sick or injured to stay in one) so I was fairly reluctant to have a medicalised birth as far as that was possible. I also knew that though I didn’t know how to have a baby, my body did! It is naturally designed to birth a baby. With a basic knowledge of hypnotherapy I knew it was possible to alleviate any fears, calm my mind and relax my body, allowing it to do exactly what nature had designed it to do. So when I found out I was pregnant, I went looking for something that could help me achieve that.
From the moment I heard about HypnoBirthing: The Mongan Method, I knew this was what I’d been looking for! This was not a New Age fad, it was quite the opposite – this was a return to the instinctive way of birthing. It is a philosophy for birth unlike any other. HypnoBirthing reawakens our own natural birthing instincts and the quiet innate wisdom within us as women, as mothers-to-be, part of our ancient heritage throughout the millennia. Calm, fearless, in the moment, working in tune with our body, our baby and nature – this is how I felt birthing is supposed to be!
We were all prepared for an easy homebirth and during this time I did not require any pain relief at all! Yet there are no absolutes in life, and we had an easy transfer to hospital after a change of circumstances. The special methods of breathing and visualisations kept me focussed and in the moment, allowing me to be calm, in control and keep my baby well oxygenated and in optimum health. The information about what was actually physically happening meant that I had no fear – I was in touch with my body, and my baby. Once we arrived at hospital, I know, without a shadow of a doubt, if I had not had my HypnoBirthing training and the toolkit of techniques for maintaining my relaxed state, I would have felt out of my comfort zone. If not for the breathing techniques for staying calm, and relaxed and my wonderful birth partner’s HypnoBirthing knowledge and support learned during the course, I and my baby would have had a very different and possibly even considered rather negative birth experience. I was able to be lucid and completely coherent and also engaged with staff by being informed about procedures and outcomes. Even though the medical staff were convinced we would need a Caesarian, we birthed naturally, with just a small bit of assistance. In fact, the ward staff all commented on how quiet and serene our delivery room was!
I like to tell my first experience here because it was not a ‘perfect’ birth, but HypnoBirthing enabled my positive mindset and help achieve the birthing experience and arrival for our child that we most wanted, in spite of our surroundings. Calm comfortable, relaxed. Exactly what HypnoBirthing is designed to help you accomplish. No matter what turn our birthing took, I was calmly prepared to meet them. It even evoked an air of reverence and peace for her arrival among the staff too!
I was so amazed and excited about what I had experienced I knew that I wanted to train as a practitioner to share the incredibly valuable information I had learned with birthing mums. I truly believe every mum-to-be should know this simple but highly effective empowering information; to have a chance to learn these instinctive and easy techniques and know how birth can be a truly positive, joyful and fulfilling experience for you, your partner and your baby. The birth of Soren, my second child was a very different and truly ‘textbook’ HypnoBirthing birth experience, by contrast – you can read the full story here!
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Training and Qualifications:
Doula
Conscious Birthing
Glasgow, Attending April 2018
Breastfeeding Helper
Breastfeeding Network
Kilmarnock 2015
IEMT Practitioner Certification
IEMT Training Organisation
Edinburgh 2015
HypnoBirthing®: The Mongan Method – Certified Childbirth Educator
HypnoBirthing Institute
Brighton 2013
MA Social Anthropology and Archaeology
University of Edinburgh 2008
Full professional insurance with FEDANT: Register Entry Number: 12919