“After having three kids in the more standard way, the birth of my fourth child was very different after doing the HypnoBirthing program.

I found that the HypnoBirthing program gave me, personally as the father, more purpose in the birthing process. We were able to formulate a birth plan, and I was able to communicate one-on-one with the midwives and doctors, which gave me something to do. In previous births, I would be reading the Herald Sun in the corner of the room or walking up toMcDonald’s to fill in time. But the HypnoBirthing process was more hands-on, and I learnt so many strategies and techniques to support Asha through labour.

The birth was a lot calmer from the beginning, and we were able to stay at home for a lot longer in those earlier stages of labour. This made the whole experience a lot better for Asha and myself.  We stayed at home for five and a half hours before going to the hospital, and that was due to all of the techniques that we were taught in the program, the hypnosis and relaxation scripts, the massage techniques, visualisations and breathing strategies.

We were fortunate enough to go to a hospital that were very open to the techniques that we wanted to use. The lights were dimmed, voices were lowered, and they communicated with me rather than withAsha. We implemented our birth plan and we couldn’t be happier with the outcome. Once Tate was born there was three hours of skin-to-skin contact, and we were left alone to bond as a family. After that time, Asha was able to have a shower and we walked as a family down to our room. The midwives were amazed at how good Asha looked, and how calm both her and the baby were. Even now, two and a half weeks later, Tate is calm and sleeping, a totally different baby to our other three. I don’t know if that has anything to do with HypnoBirthing, but we definitely believe it does. Asha’s recovery, in comparison to what she went through for her previous birth, was extremely quick… a lot quicker than with Zara.

All in all, completing the HypnoBirthing program was a fantastic experience and I would recommend it to everyone. It is a bit outside the box, but it challenges the normal medical practices and puts the decisions back in to your hands. It empowers you as a male in particular, and empowers the mother who is going through a very special time that should be cherished. Birth is something that isn’t scary of fearful, it should be something that you look back on as an enjoyable experience, and so it should be.“