Hypnobirthing

As I mentioned in several of my other posts, I used hypnobirthing to manage labor pain during natural childbirth with my two children. I don't remember how I discovered it, just that I was sceptical at first, however, the results spoke for themselves.
What is hypnobirthing? It is a childbirth preparation method that focuses on deep relaxation, visualization & self-hypnosis. The purpose of hypnobirthing is to keep a laboring woman feeling peaceful & relaxed while decreasing her fear & increasing the flow of endorphins (the "feel good" hormones). Rather than exhausting, shallow breathing & the distraction techniques taught in a typical childbirth preparation course, hypnobirthing emphasizes deep abdominal breathing & total relaxation, allowing the woman to achieve a shorter & more comfortable labor.
Hypnobirthing mothers are not unconscious during self-hyphosis, but rather deeply relaxed & focused similar to loosing self for a few minutes while staring into a fire place or daydreaming.
Although hyphobirthing doesn't promise painless birthing, many women report labor that they were able to manage easily. When the cause of pain - fear - is eliminated, birthing mothers produce more endorphins (natural pain relievers) & thus avoid the excruciating pain that is often spoken of by laboring women choosing other methods of birth preparation.
I personally can attest to that as I experienced only mild discomfort while being nearly fully dilated with both of my kids. Because of hypnobirthing the only truly painful part of giving birth for me was the head crowning (which is, thankfully, relatively short). I now can't imagine any other way to prepare for birth!

Resources:

1) HypnoBirthing - The Mongan Method

2) Hypnobabies

3) The Leclaire Hypnobirthing Method

4) HypBirth (the program I've been using)

5) Positive Birth - hypnobirthing online course