Now in Bradford on Avon

With the ever increasing demands in Bath and Bradford on Avon we are now pleased to announce that we will be running courses at the Growing Needs shop in Silver street in Bradford on Avon.

Book on our FREE taster session in this beautiful picturesque location today and see what hypnobirthing with Kieren & Jai can do for you!!

Pushing in the 2nd Stage of labour

Women are still expected to push during labour using the closed glottis
or "Valsalva" technique which is done by holding your breath and
pushing down very hard for as long as possible.  However there is much
research to suggest that "coached" pushing from the midwife is more
detrimental than it is helpful.  The Royal College of Midwives published
a document in 2007 with a literature review of the evidence to support
spontaneous, woman directed pushing in the second stage and NOT
coaching by midwives.  The key messages to come out of this document
are:

The RCM following the literature review has established a set of
guidelines which are echoed by both the World Health organisation
(WHO) and the National Institute of Health & Clinical Excellence (NICE). 
These guidelines are:

·         Care within the second stage should be non-prescriptive,
thereby facilitating spontaneous, instinctive maternal behaviour.

·         There should be no arbitrary time limit for the second stage of
labour in the presence of maternal and fetal well-being.

·         Routine Valsalva or 'breath-holding' style pushing can have
harmful effects on the mother and fetus.

·         Women should be supported and encouraged to push
spontaneously, which will often include vocalisation.

·         Midwives should adopt a flexible approach to the early pushing
urge depending on the extent of dilation of the cervix and other signs
of maternal well-being. 

·         During the initial 'latent' phase of second stage there may be
no urge to push. This is normal and women should not be directed to
push during this phase.

·         Delayed pushing until there is an urge to push should be used
for women who have had epidural anaesthesia.

·         Women should be encouraged to adopt upright positions during
the second stage to encourage fetal descent and avoid instrumental delivery.

In short you should be supported and encouraged to do whatever your body tells
you to do during the second stage where labour is progressing normally without
complication or epidural insitu.  Coached pushing is detrimental to both maternal
and fetal wellbeing and should be discouraged as recommended by NICE.  Have
the strength to trust your body and conviction to continue with what feels right.

Kieren

Visit us at the Bristol Baby & Toddler Show

The Bristol Show is on Sunday March 6th from 10am - 3.30pm.

We will be exhibiting at the show where you will get to see some real life testamonials from our courses from mums and dads who have been through our programme.  Why not come along and meet us and find out more about HypnoBirthing with us in Bristol.

The Bristol Baby & Toddler Show is an exciting show dedicated entirely to every aspect of maternity, babies and young children, and a great day out for all the family!

The Bristol Baby & Toddler Show is at Ashton Gate Stadium, Bristol BS3 2EJ and there's plenty of free parking.

For more information visit http://www.little-monster.co.uk/bristol.htm

Kieren & Jai

We are Preggers!!

We are so happy that we have now had the 20 week anomaly scan which has shown a healthy little baby boy who is growing and developing, ready to meet us in June.  Of course our little boy will enter the world with all the principles of hypnobirthing with the aim of a home birth.

It is a surreal experience as I am so used to being on the midwifery side of things, but now we have our own little of bundle of joy on his way I have beenlooking at things from a dad's perspective.  We went to our first home birth group, as we are aiming for a home birth, which as it happens was all about partners and siblings.  Exploring the perspective of other men expecting their first child it was interesting how many just want to have an active role in labour.  The great thing with hypnobirthing is that it prepares men wonderfully, giving antenatal education and definitive things to due during labour and birth so that you can come together as a unit...working together to celebrate this amazing miricle of human love

Kieren

Barnsley Hospital Does Hypnobirthing!!

Following the success of a pilot programme of 28 women, Barnsley NHS trust now incorporate Hypnobirthing as part of their maternity services.for the people of Barnsley.  seven of the hospital's midwives are trained in hypnobirthing so that women can be given more choice.

It is fanstastic that gradually people are seeing the benefits of hypnobirthing.  Join us for one of our free taster sessions tpo find out more - visit our website to find out the dates and book yourself a place TODAY!!.  http://www.bristol-hypnobirthing.co.uk/

Kieren & jai

IN THE NEWS: The Flu Jab

Of course the word on the street is that pregnant women should be offered the flu jab... but why?  There are a number of different strains of flu, and incidently the findings are that most of the current strains found circulating and being passed from person to person can be covered by the current vaccines available - one of which is the resurgence of Swine Flu.  The UK government is currently urging all pregnant women to get vaccinated.  Pregnant women are 4 times more likely to be hospitalised with the flu than healthy women and 2 times more likely to die as a result.  These startling statistics reflect the fact that the immune system is compromised during pregnancy, however many pregnant women are refusing to take this as there is not enough long term data on the vaccine as far as its safety for pregnancy is concerned.  It has been made clear that the vaccine is safe even though the debate is still strong.  It is important for you to realise that the choice must be yours as to whether you decide to take it or not.  If you do contract flu while pregnant, then the chances are you will be OK, but if it develops to pneumonia then it may be more difficult to shift due to your ever decreasing lung capacity. 

Symptoms include:
- High Fever
- Extreme Tiredness / Exhaustion
- Headache and Sinus Pressure
- Coughing
- Sore Throat
- Runny or Stuffy Nose
- Muscle Aches

Ways to try and avoid getting the flu:

- Avoid close contact with those who are sick.
- Wash your hands before eating and before touching your eyes, nose, or mouth.
- Stay home when you are sick and encourage others to do the same.
- Take your prenatal vitamins regularly and consider taking the following extras: Vitamin D, Vitamin C, Calcium, and Folic Acid.
Hopefully you won't get the flu this year, but if you do:

- Drink plenty of fluids to keep yourself hydrated
- Make sure you keep your temperature at a safe level (lower than 38C) by taking paracetamol as required.
- If symptoms or fever persists - inform your GP

Take Care

Kieren

New testamonials on our website!!

We have finally got round to posting a number of stories and testamonials from mums and dads who have been on our hypnobirthing courses over the years.  Thank you for those of you who have agreed to share your stories so that everyone can see how magical an experieince hypnobirting is.

Watch out over the next month we will be including video testamonials on our website!! watch this space...

Kieren & Jai