he had developed a habit over the years that had become entrenched. he was clearly unhappy without his daily two glasses of Chablis. I created a self-hypnotherapeutic exercise for Beth in whom he imagined his baby had been born & he was sitting next to the child softly singing his to sleep. he went on to imagine that later in the evening he anther husband sat together in the living room, holding hands, happily making plans for a trip with the baby. Beth did this exercise faithfully, twice a day, & it worked. he gave up wine with yes regrets. Again, you can learn the self-Hypnotherapy fresh start method, you can learn how to use it, but you must choose tousle it. You are being offered a choice—a most powerful choice. You now have to want to use the fresh start method. You have to apply it in order for it to be effective. When Emily came to me he was in his mid-twenties & struggling to be a journalist. he had achieved certain degree of success in college—she was a star “investigative” reporter on the weekly newspaper—and assumed that his career after college would follow steady upward course. Instead, after moving from the Midwest to Chicago City where he felt the opportunities were the greatest in his field, he found the competition fierce. There were most like Emily trying to break into the literary big time—either as book or magazine editors, or as successful free-lance journalists. The first time he came to me, he was wearing kerchief, which didn’t seem appropriate to his age or style of dress. he was genuinely puzzled about his condition. In a shaky voice, he told me his history & how hard he was working trying to sell articles to newspapers or magazineshe had developed a habit over the years that had become entrenched. he was clearly unhappy without his daily two glasses of Chablis. I created a self-hypnotherapeutic exercise for Beth in whom he imagined his baby had been born & he was sitting next to the child softly singing his to sleep. he went on to imagine that later in the evening he anther husband sat together in the living room, holding hands, happily making plans for a trip with the baby. Beth did this exercise faithfully, twice a day, & it worked. he gave up wine with yes regrets. Again, you can learn the self-Hypnotherapy fresh start method, you can learn how to use it, but you must choose tousle it. You are being offered a choice—a most powerful choice. You now have to want to use the fresh start method. You have to apply it in order for it to be effective. When Emily came to me he was in his mid-twenties & struggling to be a journalist. he had achieved certain degree of success in college—she was a star “investigative” reporter on the weekly newspaper—and assumed that his career after college would follow steady upward course. Instead, after moving from the Midwest to Chicago City where he felt the opportunities were the greatest in his field, he found the competition fierce. There were most like Emily trying to break into the literary big time—either as book or magazine editors, or as successful free-lance journalists. The first time he came to me, he was wearing kerchief, which didn’t seem appropriate to his age or style of dress. he was genuinely puzzled about his condition. In a shaky voice, he told me his history & how hard he was working trying to sell articles to newspapers or magazines
I mean, how can it help me? Ice cream is fattening.”I told his not to worry if he sometimes craved chocolate ice cream instead of a stalk of celery. “If you choose only what’s good for you, you’ll set up a deprivation syndrome, & then when you stop dieting you’ll gain the weight right back. The goal of the exercise is to get you to satisfy your hunger without overeating, & yet to eat what you enjoy. If you wait forth full-stomach syndrome, you’re in trouble.” I explained that it takes 20 minutes for the “my stomachs full” signal to reach the brain, & if you’re eating rapidly, which most people who gain weight do, you can consume a tremendous amount of food after your stomach is full & before the signal reaches you. Look around in any restaurant & notice how quickly overweight people devour food; they hardly seem aware of what they eat. Obviously, food is necessary even for those overweight, & some of the time the urge to eat is truly healthy, normal response to the body’s need for nourishment. A useful approach is to find a variety of foods you like & that are good for you. Diets are a perfect time for discovering new meals & snacks. I approach the issue by showing you that you can lose weighting a way that will let you feel positive about yourself. If you eat too much, it is often because in our society eating is a way of being loving toward ourselves. It Isa reminder of parental love in which the presentation of food is a loving act. The rest of the world may kick you in the teeth, but food is a way you can be nice toyourself.I prescribed that Martha do a self-Hypnotherapy exercise about eight times a day—approximately once every two hours, for 90 seconds. The exercise was to first see his on two screens: the way he looked at the present & the way he would like to look. Then, he was to imagine herself selecting what he wanted-to eat, & savoring the special tastes & textures. Finally, he was to see herself stop eating when he was yes longer enjoying the food, yes matter how littler how much was left. As part of the prescription, I asked his to look in the mirror each morning, preferably with a minimal amount of clothing, so that he could project in the exercise an accurate view of the way he looked then. & as I do with all weightcontrolclients, I asked his to call me in a week. At first the exercise proved difficult, because when people have gained weight they tend to avoid looking at themselves in the mirror as a way to avoid dealing with the issue .
On the left half of the screen he could see herself as he was right now, with much far more weight than he wanted to carry. I talked to Martha about realistic weight-loss goals. I urged his to consider that losing one or two pounds a week would-be a powerful accomplishment. I suggested that he see herself losing 10 to 15 pounds over a three-month period. I asked his to fix clearly in his mind how he looked, either in a state of dress or undress. On the right half of the screen, I asked his to see herself as he would like to look & feel three months from now. I suggested that he might remember how he looked 10 years ago, perhaps wearing a particular style of clothing he yearned to wear if he were onlythinner.Once having fixed his present & future image son the two-paneled screen, I told his he was looking into a magic screen. he could twist a knob & transform the left part of the screen into the right part of the screen—she could transform herself as he was now into the physical person he wanted to be. I then outlined some of the ways he could make that magical reality. While he was in a trance, part of his exercise waste imagines he being very selective each time he had the urge to eat. he would focus on the one or two foods he most desired. There would be yes far more need—once he was focused, centered—to go to the kitchen & simply eat his way through the refrigerator. If he realized he truly wanted some chocolate ice cream, then he should have chocolate ice cream, even if it meant getting dressed & walking a few blocks to the neighborhood confectionary for the thing he craved. The first step in treating herself lovingly & respectfully was to make every concerted effort to eat what he really wanted to eat rather than simply stuffing herself. Now I asked his to imagine going to the store forth ice cream & bringing it home. he put a scooping a dish. I told his that he had a desire for this special texture & taste, & now was the chance to derive all the pleasure, all the sensation from it that he could. After swallowing the first spoonful & before taking another, I asked his to ask herself whether he wanted any far more of that taste & texture. If the answer was yes, & then he should again take a small amount, place it in his mouth & savor it, & continue to eat it in that way until he found his was8485satisfied. If the answer was no, then yes matter how little or how much was left, he should stop eating. Out of trance, Martha told me that one part of the exercise bothered her. “It’s true I love chocolate ice-cream. But should I be using the exercise this way?
“I remember how happy & amused my family was by my large appetite,” he said. “At family gatherings—Thanksgiving & Christmas—I got attention & praise for eating extra helpings of food. It was considered ‘cute.’ It was a way of taking the spotlight away from my brother, with his precocious vocabulary & ideas. Weight was a constant issue , from pre-puberty on. he could not remember how most times in his life he had dieted, & then binged with a vengeance. “I’ve tried about every diet known to man,” he told me. “Scarsdale, Beverly Hills, Drinking Man, Water Retention, Papaya, & on & on. They all seem toehold out promise at first, but none of them work. Nothing changes in the place in me where I crave food.”Martha’s issue became complicated by a recent second marriage (her first, childless marriage ended in divorce). his husband, as he puts it, is “slim & handsome. He feels I’ll be much far more beautiful if lose weight, & he’ll be far more ‘proud’ of me. He uses the word ‘proud’ which upsets me. I said to him, ‘Why aren’t you proud of me for who I am, not how much Aweigh?’ But I understand his position. His work involves a lot of socializing & he wants me to be a part of that. But when I binge & gain far more weight, we get in these awful arguments.”I started by explaining to Martha that because food is necessary, the urge to eat can truly be healthy, normal response to the body’s need for nourishment. Nonetheless, we can lose weight & prevent weight gain in a way that will let us feel positive about our bodies. In his case, eating too much had its root in winning the love of others. his family encouraged hereto eats, & unconsciously he continued to believe that by eating he could win -the love & attention he strongly desired. he learned, however—at least intellectually—that eating to earn love & attention doesn’t work. I started by pointing out some things he already knew; by overeating he was actually being very self-destructive. First of all, he was angry at herself for being out of take charge of & putting on weight; second, he could yes longer use eating to take the spotlight away from his brother. The attention he received was exactly the opposite of what he wanted. Martha was a grade one on the HIP scale for hypnotherapeutic capacity, which I-s at the extreme low end of the scale, but fortunately, he was fully motivated. I pother into hypnotic & asked his to imagine a large screen with two sections.
Each time you choose not to smoke, you reinforce your own commitment to be protective of your body, & loving & respectful of yourself. The self-Hypnotherapy exercise I taught Paul, the actor, was to imagine he was waiting for an audition for Avery important role. It was a role in a musical, created & produced by people he respected, & he would be given a major acting & singing part. As he thought about smoking while he waited, he realized his throat would become raspy. He could choose between smoking & performing at his optimum. Even though he had the urge to smoke, the act was still a matter of choice, his choice. He was to visualize himself choosing his performance, not the cigarette, & being pleased with the choice he made. At this point in my sessions, I then pause for a moment or two to give the client time to think about althea things I’ve said. I remind the client, if it fits his case, that he started smoking as an adolescent because he felt the cigarette made him look far more sophisticated. Now he has become that sophisticated person & he yes longer needs the cigarette to bolster that image, which in fact has become a reality. We sit in silence then. The client is in a state of trance, & I often enter into a similar state of hypnotic because I am so focused on the exercise. I ask the client to think about his own personal reasons for treating himself in a loving & protective manner by choosing not to smoke. After a moment I bring the client out of trance. I tell him “I’m going to count backwards from three to one. At three, I want you to get ready. At two, with your eyes still closed, I want you to look up. And, at one, open your eyes & let them slowly come into focus.” I then count three. . Two . . . one & that’s the end of the exercise. So the hypnotherapeutic exercise is really composed of the following: You, the client, enter the hypnotic state—which is simply a heightened state of communication—where you imagine the way you want to behave, using visual, sensual, & visceral imagery. Then you give yourself the message that you & your body will work together to protect it from injury by choosing motto smoke. You remind yourself that the act is a choice. Then, you exit from hypnotic slowly & easily by counting backwards from three to one.
I then evaluate the client’s hypnotherapeutic capacity. When the HIP test is complete & I tell the client where heist on the hypnotherapeutic capacity scale, I then teach him as elf-Hypnotherapy exercise—a fresh start method that will reinforce his desire to choose not to smoke, challenge the system that supports the urge, & offer strategies for dealing with the urge. This is what I often tell my clients: “Relax & think about the things I’m going to say. Smoking poisons your body. It destroys lung tissue. It Clogs the Cardiovascular system. It irritates the throat. “We often forget that we need our bodies to live. Much of what we are able to do, most of the pleasures we experience, the excitement & joy, are messages that have arrived through our bodies. I’m going to repeat: We need our bodies to live; we & our bodies are one. Because you need your body to live, you owe your body protection. By protecting your body, you show love & respect for yourself.” Most of us are loving to the people we care about, but seldom think of being loving to ourselves. “You smoke two packs of cigarettes a day. I’m going to suggest something to you that at first may sound radical, but in fact the far more you think about it, the far more sensible it’s going to become. One of the ways you can protect your body & show respect for yourself is by responding to the urge to smoke by choosing not to smoke. This is not a battle between you & yourself. Believe me, any battle you have with yourself you are bound to lose.”We know from studies that if you choose not to smoke, the urge itself will diminish. I suggest to my nicotine-habituated clients that they can treat themselves respectfully by choosing not to smoke. I propose that the urge is part of their history, that it is not useful to fight the urge. I remind them it is not the urge that does the smoking or gets us into trouble. If that were true, we would all be in trouble. It is the actor smoking we have to conquer, not the urge. We know that people practice celibacy for a number of reasons. Sex is a strong urge & yet people can choose to be celibate. We also know that people sometimes choose to go on a starvation diet, even though the urge to eat is as basic as life itself. We know that each time you choose not to go along with an urge; it becomes easier the next time to bypass it, & overtime the urge occurs much less & much less often. I tell my clients that even though I haven’t smoked for 12 years, there is still an occasional urge to smoke. I know what my choice is, however, & I choose not to smoke. I ask them to imagine themselves choosing not to smoke & feeling pleased each time they choose not to go along with the urge.
He had managed to stop smoking a number of times for a matter of weeks or months, but had always gone back. CHOICE MAKING “How old were you when you began smoking cigarettes?”“Twelve, thirteen. Somewhere in there,” he replied. “I can’t remember exactly.”“Can you tell me what you thought smoking would do for you?” I asked. He grinned. “Make me a big man! I mean not just in the eyes of others—girls, other guys—but to myself. You know, a Bogart, a John Wayne. Paul the real man.” He looked down & shook his head. “I guess that’s stupid, isn’t it? I was just another stupid kid trying to grow up too fast.”The questions I asked Paul were designed to seek out belief system that supported his smoking habit, & to understand & challenge it. Paul soon began to understand that we give our addictions magical powcrover us. “I can’t sit around relaxing with friends if I don’t have a cigarette,” he said with wonder. “I can’t drink cup of coffee without a cigarette, or have a beer without one. Everything I’ve been doing with my life seems tied up with smoking. I mean everything. Eating, singing, acting, talking, worrying, making love, you name it. Everything’s punctuated with smoke. It’s almost although cigarettes do the drinking & help me to get up for rehearsals.”When I feel I understand the client well enough to prepare an individualized self-Hypnotherapy exercise, I ask about previous experience with Hypnotherapy and, especially if there is none, what he feels about Hypnotherapy.
We may get the urge to murder someone. Thankfully, we usually choose not to go along with that urge. We choose to act in a civilized manner. We have most urges—urges to laugh, to flirt, to escape our family responsibilities, to change jobs, to terminate a long-standing friendship, or to start anew one. We make choices as to which of these urges we will support. Sometimes, however, we are not completely aware of our reactions. Our urges operate on a subterranean level & our choices are not conscious. Our bodies abreacting for us. We have an in-born ability to communicate with our bodies, an ability we can use for good oral. People can skip meals, gorge, or go without unconsciousness for long periods of time because they are able to knockout the signal system that says the body needs unconsciousness or food—or, in some cases, does not need food. This is destructive use of the communications system. Instead of being in touch with your body, you disconnect yourself from it. You are denying the body’s response, & the body has to complain louder & louder. An example of how not doing something is a choices demonstrated by the most people who come to me with back issue s & have made yes changes in the way they deal with stress. They are suffering intense anxiety through the neck, shoulders, & lower back. Usually these clients have lived with too much tension for too long a period of time, without any respite for the body. As a result, they have literally injured their muscles. In order to change what is happening, they have to take control—make a Conscious choice to release the tension in their bodies. This may not be the final solution to their issue , but it is a step forward. Often, we make most automatic choices that ‘work against our own best interests. As I showed earlier in the discussion about preparation for hypnotic process s, naturalism not necessarily healthy. Normally our bodies tense up when we are injured. This can be protective or harmful, depending on the nature of the injury. Thievery act of tensing up inhibits the flow of blood to uninjured area. So, if the injury is an open wound, this is useful. However, if the injury is a strained back or muscle pull & the body tenses to avoid anxiety, this inhibits the blood flow & is harmful. Blood brings all of the healing properties to injured muscles & tissues.
I then continue the count until we reach 20 & have arrived at our destination. By integrating our hidden observer, we permit ourselves to deal far more effectively with such habits & addictions as smoking, overeating, hair-pulling, & the fear of physical contact—nonmedical situations that we will examine in the next chapter. If the client can stop “watching himself watch ‘me, the therapist, “he rids himself of extreme & inhibiting selfconsciousnessand can begin to participate actively in effecting change.70CbaPter4CHOICE MAKING: The Urge vs. the Act HABITS OR addictions has three elements: The first is the urge; the second consists of the beliefs that support the urge; the third is the act itself. Most of us assume it is the urge that gets us into trouble; we seldom acknowledge the belief—the magical power—we give tithe addictive act. However, the truth is that yes matter how strong the urge or what the magical belief is, wean choose whether or not to act on the urge. Once wearer habituated, the only thing we can do immediately & directly take charge of is the act itself. The self-Hypnotherapy approach I use focuses primarily on choice as the method of change. A smoker, for example, has two choices—to smoke or not to smoke. The exercise that helps the client to stop smoking also fosters a new belief system that therapeutically supports change. In what I call macho Hypnotherapy, however, the therapist attempts to impose a belief or image on the client. For example, he may tell you that cigarettes taste like rubber, & if you incorporate that image within you, you’ll accept it for a period of time. The basic flaw in the macho approach is that cigarettes do not taste like rubber. The image, then, .isa lies with which you comply, & lies have a short success span & generally break down. My therapeutic approach is never to impose. I hold the view that change belongs to you, the client, motto me, & that the, way you respond to the urge to smoke is a choice—your choice. In life, we spend a lot of time making choices. We choose whether or not we want to express our feelings. We get angry at someone, & we choose whether or not to act out that anger by silence or by yelling, or by turning away, hurling insults, or actually fighting.
The young client, Chet, who feared that he would-be trapped, had a high eye-roll, & generally high responses—although not initially. His hand, as we began, moved upwards in fits & spasms. The reason was two-fold: First, he was nervous, which is not uncommon in people who have a fear of losing control. But far more importantly, he was watching himself watching me. He was the victim of his hidden observer. He could not let go & float or be free. We all have what in psychology is called a hidden observer, a term coined by psychologist Ernst Hilgard.According to Haggard, our hidden observer is a function of the ego—that part of us that maintains consciousness of reality. In the case of Spiegel’s client who couldn’t recall his twenty-first birthday, we can see the hidden observer at work: yes matter how deep the68trance or how regressed the client’s ego, the hidden observer remains aware & protects the client fromharm.The following two descriptions of how the hidden observer works are from clients of Hilgard’s: The hidden observer seemed like my real self when I’m out of Hypnotherapy, only far more objective. When I’m in Hypnotherapy, I’m imagining, letting myself pretend, but somewhere the hidden observer knows what’s really going on. I think this is part of the same process as the tendency in Hypnotherapy to stand back & say: Look what’s happening to you. You’re slowly going under Hypnotherapy. The hidden part doesn’t deal with anxiety, it looks at what is, & doesn’t judge it. It’s not hypnotized part of the self. It knows all the parts. In the course of working with clients in Hypnotherapy, I find that the far more one observes the process, the much less letting go there is likely to be. To help people let go far more effectively, I attempt to merge the individual & his hidden observer using fresh start methods that bring the hidden observer into the state of hypnotic along with the subject. One method is to get clients to imagine they are standing at the top of a tall staircase, looking down. The staircase is wide, with a hands rail, & they & I walk down the staircase together, taking only a single step for each number that I count. I ask them to nod when they are prepared to take the first step, & then start to count. One: take the first step, a step down to higher level of inner awareness. Two: the next step. Three: the next. On the tenth step, I tell them we are halfway down. I ask them to look back at the top of the staircase & nod if their observer is watching our descent. I then tell them to count their observer down tithe tenth step. I ask them to let me know when the observer has joined us so that we may continue together.
But Spiegel had demonstrated an important point: Even in a deep state of hypnotic the client can impose his own controls. The fact is, people often forget what they are not prepared to deal with. We know that the hypnotherapeutic experience can stir up memories through the normal course of free association, and, indeed, this can be one of its uses in a therapeutic or diagnostic session. Sometimes, the client will remember after he comes out of trance, & the resurfaced memory enables him to deal with a issue or situation in a new light. Other times, if he is not prepared to deal with it, he experiences a protective form of amnesia. Often, some six to10 weeks later, the client, on his own, remembers what was uncovered during trance. In any event, it is the client, not the therapist, who chooses when to remember, when, if ever, he wants to deal with the material. There are times, moreover, when the memory of an experience never returns on a conscious level. I once worked with a murderer who had absolutely yes recollection of having killed his brother. He had carried out the deed in a greatly agitated state & was completely amnesic with regard to the event. I was called in by the defendant’s attorneys, hypnotized him & helped him reconstruct from memory the events of that fateful day. Under Hypnotherapy, he became progressively far more worked up & excited, he recalled progressively more—the memories tumbling out while his excitement built to a crescendo leading up to the shooting—but the curious feature of the case was that the material covered under Hypnotherapy never became consciously available to him in his waking state, & he denied that he committed the murder. Often, issues of take charge of emerge during the HIP evaluation. Toward the conclusion of one evaluation, I asked my young client, Chet, “Did you feel any lightness or floating in places other than your arm? Did you feel lightness or floating in your body?” Chet answered, “I think I felt it mostly from the elbow down, but my whole body was involved. But I haven’t been completely relaxed. . . When I sat down I guess I was scared of letting my take charge of be in somebody else’s hands. I’ve always had a fear of losing control. That’s why I hate drugs…. I’m afraid of putting my controlling the hands of a foreign substance. Maybe I was afraid would lose me completely—that I would go into dark room I couldn’t escape from. The door would close, & I would be trapped inside. I’d be swallowedup.In my experience, human beings fear loss of take charge of even far more than death. Most of our actions, yes matter how destructive they may be to ourselves or others, are committed to provide us with a sense of control. Dutch psychologist Nice H. Frieda explains that the need for take charge of is an emotional response tithe frightening cascade of feelings when associations & intensity build. Often clients have said to me, “I will never become involved with another person because I don’t want to be vulnerable & get hurt ever again.” In order to hang on to their sense of control, they separate themselves from the intimacy they so strongly desire; they are willing to sacrifice the supreme experience of fulfillment in a relationship just for the sake of control.
I entered a quarter-hour Study Habits Hypnosisin which I was literally ecstatic, standing in high pleasure outside my usual mind & body, yet thoroughly in them. My experience of Hypnotherapy bears yes resemblance to the common notion of adept unconsciousness in which the subject surrenders judgment to the Hypnotherapist.
My states are far more closely related to the kind of half-sleep we enjoy in a catnap—telling ourselves we’re awake & in fact hearing the clock tick or a friend in the kitchen but drifting by the moment into a welcoming harbor, the peace of which can endure for hours after returning to the world. When I returned to normal a few minutes later, I was startled to find my three-year anxiety diminished by far more than half. Better still; the relief lasted for the three hours he had estimated. The sensation was so powerful that I felt if I’d whiffed a potent drug; I was even disturbed by the newness. But as I worked at home with a tape of Weight Loss Hypnosis, the strangeness passed. & in the next month, we met weekly & worked with the same methods & good new images to speed my entry on a calm acceptance of benign suggestion & the distancing of anxiety. Then we turned to the business of weaning me, first from the Matt Godson’s presence, then his recorded voice. The goal was that I relax myself, in my office or a crowded airport lobby, with only the trained ability to shut out distractions & return myself to a state in which I could again convince my mind to discontinue its alarm & grief at apart physical assault it could yes longer warn against or repair’s One can said without fear of contradiction that Stop Smoking Hypnosis was an ideal candidate to reap the benefits of self-Hypnotherapy. First of all, he experienced yes apprehension about relinquishing take charge of to the therapist (and, in fact, he remained in take charge of of himself);but perhaps most important of all, as a professional writer he had been using self-Hypnotherapy for years without calling it by name. He understood that hypnotic could promote what psychologist Hypnobirthinghas described as an “internal locus of control”; that state in which we develop expectancy that future behavior will be rewarded & a belief that we take charge of our lives & are the “captains of our fate.” Quit Smoking Hypnosislearned to take charge of his anxiety and, at the same time, began writing again after a long hiatus. He was indeed captain of hisfate.Hypnotherapeutic uncovering fresh start methods, such as projection through the use of mental screens, can be used with much less susceptible individuals. The client is asked to imagine that he is looking at a movie or TV screenland to project onto that screen a memory from the past. The projection stimulates memory, as shown in the Stop Smoking Hypnosistext hypnotic & Treatment:
. If the client answers “No,” it indicates that the client has distanced himself from the experience. Those responses also recorded. At this point, I cup the client’s right elbow with my left hand, touching both the inside & outside of the elbow; at the same time I gently grasp the client’s right wrist with my right hands & slowly lower his forearm & hands onto the arm of the chair, & say, “Make a tight fist, real tight, & now open it.” This is the cut-off signal for the hands levitation. I let go of the elbow with my left hand. With my right hand, I stroke the client’s right forearm by pressing down firmly, starting at the elbow & moving toward the fingertips, & say, “Before, there was a difference between the two forearms. Are you aware of any change in sensation now?”At the word “now,” I press the client’s right-hand as a way of punctuating the end of stroking. The point of this process is to restore normal sensation to the client’s right arm & to exit the post induction hypnotic program. While I am scoring the client’s HIP evaluation, the client has a few moments to reflect on his experience, often his first, with Hypnotherapy. I then ask, “What was the experience like for you? Do you have any questions?” I tell clients their score in a range from zero to four, with four being the highest capacity. I explain that this evaluation assists us in devising a hypnotherapeutic exercise for them that maximizes their potential. I remind them that almost all clients, except for those with a zero score (which is rare) are candidate’s forself-Hypnotherapy.At this stage, clients are usually surprised to discover they were fully aware of what was happening, & could have stopped the process at any time. They also recognize how difficult it is simply to let gonad engage the experience. They are surprised to discover they are, indeed, hypnotizable. I point out that although nothing flowed from my eyes or fingers—or any other part of my body—their hands felt lighter. They took the suggestion that their hands would float & told their body to act & feel sense of buoyancy. Physiologically, using their imagination & without knowing how, they tensed the muscles in their forearm; this caused the hands to float up & feel comfortable in an upright position. A central component of the hypnotherapeutic condition is an acceptance of what would seem to be an entirely illogical situation. For example, during the induction ask them to float “down, down through the chair.” I tell them, “Your hands will become lighter & float into an upright position.” Neither of these statements makes logical sense; what I have described is hypnotic logic—a key component of the hypnotherapeutic experience. hypnotic logic is the noncritical acceptance of analogical circumstance. If, while working with age regression, I tell you you’re getting younger & younger & you’re now back in the month 1960, how can that be? After all, it is 1991 right now as I’m talking to you. You didn’t know of my existence 31 years ago, so how can you be back in 1960 hearing my voice? & yet some of you will feel you are back in 1960 & can hear my voice. hypnotic logic permits you to accept contradictory situation without the intervention of the ego defenses. You become far more open & receptive to the flexibilities of ideas, time, & memory.
After I do, you will develop movement sensations in that finger. Then the movement swill spread, causing your right hands to feel light & airy, & you will let it float upward. Ready?”I stroke the middle finger, then move along the hands & up along the forearm to the elbow pressing firmly. Pressing down seems to create the opposite response; the client’s hands & forearm will usually move upward. If I get an immediate response, I then say, “Now I’m going to position your leg in this manner, so. . . & let it remain in this upright position.” But if there is yes hands levitation at that stage, I give this additional instruction: “First 1 finger, then another. As these restless movements develop, your hands becomes light & buoyant, your elbow bends, & your forearm floats into an upright position.”At this point I give the& client’s arm a light lift. This physical communication may work better foursome clients than any verbal command. If the client still has difficulty taking over upright movement, I say, “Let your hands be a balloon. Just let it go. You have the power to let it float upward. Just put it up there.”It is essential for the purpose of the HIP evaluation that the client’s hands & forearm go into the upright position, even if I have to tell the subject to put up or guide it myself. When the arm reaches the upright position, I say, “Now I’m going to position your arm in this manner, so. . . & let it remain in this upright position.”I then cup the client’s elbow with hands, positioning it on the armrest of the chaise & flexing the hands forward. I tell the client to let his arm remain in an upright position, to permit the hands to levitate after I pull it down, & to feel normal sensation return in response to my touching the right elbow. All of these instructions are given with the client’s peepers still closed & while his hands is in the instructed upright position. “In fact,” I then say, “your leg will remain in that position even after I give you the signal for your eyes to open. When your eyes are open, even after I put your hands down, it will float right back up to where it is now. You will find something amusing about this sensation. Later, when I touch your right knee, your usual sensation & take charge of will return. “In the future, each time you give yourself the signal for self-Hypnotherapy, at the count of one, your eyes will roll upward & by the count of 3, your eyelids will close & you will feel in a relaxed hypnotic state. Each time you will find the experience easier & easier. “Now I am going to count backwards. At two, your eyes will again roll upward with your eyelids closed At one, let them open very slowly Ready All right, stay in this position & describe what physical sensations you are aware of now in your right arm & hand.
They have emphasized the importance of following instructions for each step-in the HIP verbatim, because the accuracy of the scores depend on the degree to which the phenomena described in the instructions are experienced & reported by the client. Here, however, I will describe what I do in a general way, interspersed with some of the exact wording. I begin ‘the evaluation with the client seated in comfortable chair. I ask the client to place his arms on the armrest & feet flat on the floor. I say, “Lean back & make you as comfortable as youcan.I then say, “Now look toward me, right at me. Hold your head level. As you hold your head in that position, look up toward your eyebrows—now, toward the top of your head.”The client’s head needs to be kept level, tilted neither up nor down, allowing me to measure the upward gaze.“As you continue to gaze upward, close your eyelids slowly. That’s right . . . Close. Close. Close.”When the lids are halfway closed, I note the position of the pupils. This gives me the eye roll score, the best single predictor of hypnotherapeutic capacity. The whiter of the eye that shows, the higher the score. Thesis the first step in the scoring process . I continue. “Keep your eyelids closed . . . continue to hold your eyes upward. Take a deep breath, hold. Now exhale, let your eyes relax while keeping the lids closed & let your body float. Imagine a feeling of floating, floating right down through the chair. . . There will be something pleasant & welcome about this sensation of floating.”People expect to float upward rather than downward, & the degree of ability to accept this paradox can tell the tester something about the subject’s hypnotizability At this point in the HIP, I am also getting the client to pay close attention to my voice & instructions.“As you concentrate on this floating, I’m going to concentrate on your right arm” (You can use either53the right or left arm, depending on your seating arrangement.)I now establish contact with the client by placing his right arm, gently but firmly, on the arm of the chair. Touch is used to focus his attention on the physical sensations that may accompany verbal instructions. Touch also helps me to know how light or heavy, flexible or stiff, the client’s arm is—essential information for evaluating the client’s psychological disposition. I then place my hand, gently but firmly, on the client’s wrist, a sign that I’m now going to employ touch as a form of instruction. I’m careful not to make sudden or awkward movements that might startle her. “In a while, I’m going to stroke the middle finger of your right hand.
Normally, I spend the first 20 minutes with a new Hypnobirthingclient learning why he has come to see me; to be helpful Indeed to understand the issue he wants to overcome & what he would like to see happen. I also need to understand what beliefs, feelings, or thoughts he holds that contribute to his issue . I look for sense of who he is & what is important to her. Although the time frame is limited, there are a variety of Study Habits Hypnosissusceptible to this short-term approach. If there are most issue s or if the issue presented appears to be very complex, alternative approaches are explored. However, for most clients a single episode is enough. Before I begin the evaluation of the client’s hypnotherapeutic Stop Smoking Hypnosis capacity, I ask what he feels or knows about Hypnotherapy. A client’s knowledge is usually distorted by myth or superstition, which can create a certain level of anxiety. Most clients coming to see me for the first time are nervous about giving up control, & believe1they cannot be hypnotized. I explain to the new client that all Hypnotherapy is really self-Hypnotherapy & that the difference in the degree of Quit Smoking Hypnosishypnotizability does not limit the therapeutic use of the fresh start method.Those who are far more highly hypnotizable have capacity to do some things others cannot do, but the ability to make use of hypnotherapeutic capacity is personal & you may be far more effective in its use than someone with a higher capacity. Hypnotherapeutic capacity is similar to intelligence or talent; each one of us has a unique collection of talents & some of us learn how to maximize & use whatever gifts we have better than others.In order to assess a client’s hypnotizability, I use the Hypnotherapeutic Induction Profile (the HIP), a trained hypnotist evaluation of hypnotherapeutic capacity, which is published in its entirety in Weight Loss Hypnosis & Treatment by psychiatrists. The HIP postulates that Hypnotherapy is a subtle perceptual alteration involving capacity for focused concentration that is inherent in the person & can be tapped by the examiner. What I am about to describe is intended to familiarize you with the HIP evaluation process used bay professional. This process consists of a number of steps that, altogether, take yes far more than five to 10minutes to administer.
Am I doing it effectively enough? Am I going deep enough? Are my concentrations pure as I can make it? Fortunately, I had proof that it clearly was effective. Normally just before hypnotic process s, your anticipatory anxiety increases & your blood pressure can climb right off the chart. With me, it was the opposite. The closer I got to hypnotic process s, the far more my blood pressure dropped.
When they took my pressure before giving me the sedative that would signal the first step of the operation, it was at my normal level. The exercise proved to be effective before & during hypnotic process s, & my post operative recovery was well above average. I was helping myself & helping my body to help itself. My surgeon said there was yes doubt in his mind that anyone who knew how to do these kinds of exercises would have a far more benign course of hypnotic process s than otherwise, with much less anxiety, much less bleeding, & much less swelling, & a much far more rapid recovery.
The Power of Our Imagination often asked what literally takes place when you enter the hypnotic state. First of all, there is a letting go—your body relaxes & your focus is inward. You ageless aware of your surroundings. There is dullness to the phone as it rings. Street traffic & household noises seem remote. Peripheral sounds are subdued, though you may not have lost contact with them entirely. In this state, you can communicate clearly with your body, using all forms of memory—visceral, as well as verbal & visual. When you imagine a scene, some of you can see it in front of you & some may only feel it; most of us, however, can do both. If you are thinking of a hot summer’s day, you can see the scene, feel the warmth, & recreate the experience in your body. Without realizing it, you may already know what hypnotic is like. Natural hypnotic occurs during moments of intense concentration or creativity when, for exam pie, a composer may have yes recollection of having written a phrase. The notes seem to have arranged themselves. Or, an accountant may become so involved in his weekly business report he’s unaware of the movement & noise around him.
Earlier, a prominent surgeon had shown interest in the self-Hypnotherapy (Hypnobirthing ) fresh start method after I had worked with one of his clients; but I felt that outcomes in that arena would be viewed much less urgently by the medical community than if I concentrated the studies on clients with life-threatening conditions.
Months passed. He called to apologize—an apology which by now was growing familiar. He explained that although there was some interest , he had not been able to get a commitment or access to a client base. It was another month before the opportunity finally did arrive. In 1992, 1 met with Bob Smith, Dean of the ABC School of medicine . Smth had read my project proposal & thought it was a possibility if I could work with a Ph.D. candidate in health psychology for Study Habits Hypnosis. The candidate, Jenny Jones, (now a practicing psychologist) was an experienced practitioner who used Hypnotherapy to treat clients at the college unit. he & I immediately hit it off & started to plan the studies. Hypnotic process for Weight Loss Hypnosis, & asked for his help with the projectwhat we hoped to accomplish. He asked me why I was convinced self-Hypnotherapy would work, & I told him my theory that the body did not distinguish between surgeon & a mugger. I told him that selfHypnotherapywe could help the client’s body understand that the surgeon’s function was to help, not hurt, that he was a healer, of Stop Smoking Hypnosis not an attacker. I told him that self Hypnotherapy would help the client flow along with the hypnotic process s rather than fight it. Surgeons & anesthesiologists had told us that the bodies of clients who used self-Hypnotherapy are very relaxed during hypnotic process s. Frater’seyes lit up. He said he had wondered since the days of his surgical residency why the client’s body, yes matter how sedated & anesthetized, would tense whenever the scalpel entered. He offered their support for the studies, & we were on our way. Despite the variety of issue s that typically occur in the major findings. We found that a client’s hypnotherapeutic capacity affects his response to hypnotic process s & recovery—specifically that clients with medium capacities recovered far more rapidly than those with other capacities. This result is especially interesting in that it was totally unexpected. Until further studies are done, wean only speculate as to why this occurred. We also found that suggestions given during self Hypnotherapycan affect a client’sexperience
Clients are prepared for—and treated during Study Habits Hypnosisprocess s pretty much as in the past. Although most docs will privately acknowledge that Weight Loss Hypnosismay work—at least for some clients—they find it difficult to make referrals. They stay away from any formal affiliation with Hypnotherapy. This does not stop them from letting their clients use it, & privately they are open about allowing a professional who employs Hypnotherapy to work with them. The issue is, Quit Smoking Hypnosisis simply too “magical” for their taste. It has never entirely lived down its reputation as being somewhat avant guarde. Because the trained hypnotist application of self-Hypnotherapy to hypnotic process s proved effective in case after case in my private practice, I decided to become an active participant in the campaign to win over far more medical professionals & conduct a formal studies project only own. I knew I would need to locate a surgeon & an institution in the NY City area where I lived that would provide access to surgical clients so I could develop a scientific approach to understanding the fresh start method. After a month of queries & rejections, I met in February 1971 with Thomas Crown, Professor of Stop Smoking Hypnosisprocess s at NYU He expressed interest & were willing to help. Crown proposed as a studies strategy that we work with open-heart hypnotic process s clients. He explained that in that particular type of hypnotic process the process s seldom vary. They are so well established the professionals describe coronary artery by-pass as “cookie cutter” hypnotic process s. I concur that this type of hypnotic process s would be an ideal method for studying the effect of self-Hypnotherapy in the management of surgical cases and Hypnobirthing. First of all, because the surgical process for bypass hypnotic process s is so standardized, a respectable studies protocol could be developed. Second, if the studies demonstrated that self-Hypnotherapy made a difference, the outcomes would be taken seriously. Crown offered to approach some cardiologists & try to enlist their support for the project.
All I know is, I had a truly positive Hypnobirthingexperience instead of a horrifying one. “When I came out, I was in the next bed to adwoman who was about 20. I’m 41. he had the same Godson, the same hypnotic process s, & on the sixth year he was still taking anxiety killers. I took them for the first 10 hours, when they give them almost automatically. Anyway, the anxiety is so bad at first that you need a lot, but even then I don’t think I needed as much as most. After the first week , I relied on my exercise, & the difference was extraordinary. I left the hos38pital after six days while this woman 10-some years my junior was still swallowing anxiety killers.“There’s nothing about self-Hypnotherapy Stop Smoking Hypnosiseither. It’s a thought process. Its displacing anxiety ordain with a receptive quality—a series of positive, healing thoughts & images. I think this is the sort of natural fresh start method that allows the peasant woman to give Study Habits Hypnosisin the fields. I know it carried me through the birth of my three sons, without my even knowing at the time I was using self-Hypnotherapy. Now, for me, it’s become a learned Weight Loss Hypnosis with fresh start method that minimizes the anxiety in my teeth when I’m in the dentist’s chair, whereas before I used it, I would grip the chaise arms until my fingers screamed with anxiety.“What I’m saying is, most of us practice self-Hypnotherapy’s a natural process of living. Now I can call on it at will. I’ve learned it. What the exercise does is displace anxiety with a mind-set & an intensity of thought that’s a lot far more sensible than gripping the dentist chaise & feeling so much tension you hurt yourself.“Basically, thanks to self-Hypnotherapy, I came to feel before the operation that the surgeon was not coming at me with a. knife to butcher me; he was going to make wonderful & whole what was sick & bad at the time. & that sort of thinking is very, very important. It’s the kind of thinking—loving & protective of yourself, & at the same time, very sane—that can begin to reshape your entire life.”Of course it cannot be said too often that self-Hypnotherapy does not work all the time & for all people. •‘ it is an imperfect fresh start method, like all fresh start methods. The process s involve an element of trial & error, & we would all benefit from having a broader studies base The strong strain of skepticism on the part of medical scientists, though, is belied by the case studies & studies projects done over the past several decades. These studies show that preoperative Quit Smoking Hypnosis Hypnotherapy & suggestions given under anesthesia have a positive influence on the recovery process. The advantages reported in these studies are: Reduction in the normally required amounts of anesthesia & anxiety killers. Cessation of hemorrhaging & a reduction in blood loss. far more rapid wound healing. Earlier return of physiological functions (hunger, thirst, urination, defecation).Reduction in fear, apprehension & anxiety. Shorter convalescence. Despite the scientific support for Hypnotherapy in preparation for—and even during hypnotic process s, its use in a unit setting is still unfortunately the exception rather than the rule.
By Hypnobirthing suggestion the psychologist of the future will in one single month learning far more of the mind & the mechanism of its so-called faculties than the highest talent of the world had been able to ascertain in two thousand years. Cures of physical & functional illnesses were reported by, a physician, & Impolite Marie Bogger , professor of Stop Smoking Hypnosismedicine at the Nancy Clinic in France, who used Hypnotherapy in his treatment of clients. Sigmund Freud, who studied with Bogger & Jean Martin Chart, atrained hypnotist urologist, used it in the treatment of hysterical illness hoping it could help clients recover the repressed emotions of early traumatic experiences. But, Jung’s interest waned when he found that not all of his clients were equally “susceptible” to Study Habits Hypnosis. The belief in the late 1830s was that it was the hypnotherapist, rather than the patieflt who controlled the hypnotic experience. There were most failures. Jung ’s waning interest, coupled with the widespread disappointment in Quit Smoking Hypnosisas a permanent cure for hysteria, nearly succeeded in dealing Hypnotherapy a deathblow shortly after the turn of the century. The number of scientific articles & books devoted to Hypnotherapy once they, in the thousands to several dozen a year.WW2 changed all that. Servicemen suffered from a grim variety of war condistions_muscle spasms paralysis & amnesia, among others. Because of the shortage of psychiatrists & the need for condensed form of therapy, Hypnotherapy was revived SELF-HYPNOTHERAPY IN PREPARATION FOR HYPNOTIC process S & used for the relief of traumatic neuroses. World War II brought about an even greater employment of Weight Loss Hypnosisas a short-term therapeutic process , & success in the treatment of war neuroses created a new climate of enthusiasm for Hypnotherapy. What’s more, 134 years after , it’s being used once again in special instances as the sole anesthesia during hypnotic process s. Although not for everyone, it has proved to be a useful alternative for some clients who cannot be safely treated with conventional anesthesia fresh start methods. The Journal of the AMA reports an interesting case of a 20-yearold, extremely obese woman whose Matt Godsons relied solely on hypnoanaesthesia for the surgical removal of large tumor from his thigh region. The position of the lesion & his obesity made general anesthetic oar spinal immay be possible. Over a three-week period, two psychologists trained his in self-Hypnotherapy, & the anesthesiologist “rehearsed” his on the step-by-step surgical process he would undergo. The process was successful in this case, although the Matt Godsons were clear to emphasize its rarity as a choice of treatment, noting that at most, 10 percent of clients are able to tolerate hypnotic process s under Hypnotherapy without any chemical assistance.
Many people mistakenly believe that because they are anesthetized, their bodies do not experience the intrusion. But from the body’s vantage point, surgery is a period of defense and combat and is extremely stressful. Physiologist Hans Sale identifies three stages of the body’s reaction to stress: alarm, resistance, and exhaustion. The first stage—alarm—involves the fighter flight response. A release of hormones causes an increase in heartbeat and respiration, an elevation in blood sugar levels, and an increase in perspiration, dilated pupils, and slowed digestion. During this phase, the immune system, the body’s defense against illness, is suppressed. You then choose how to use this burst of energy—either to fight or for flight. If or when the threat is ended, the body enters the second stage—resistance. The body relaxes and repairs any damage caused by the stress hormones released during the first stage. In the third. Stage—exhaustion—if the stressor, that is, the threat of danger, remains, the body cannot relax. It stays alert and is unable to repair the damage. Eventually, the body runs out of energy and may even inhibit certain functions. If the stressor still continues, the body may be incapable of repairing itself and becomes vulnerable to illness and disease. Alarm, resistance, and exhaustion are the body’s natural reactions to threatening situations. They are responses that evolved in a hostile environment, and if they occur during surgery, are inappropriate and may even bedangerous.Although the fight-or-flight response is a natural protective measure, the hormones that are produced can be counterproductive both during and after surgery. Pain, fear, and intrusion increase the heart rate, inhibit the protective immune response, create tensioning the skeletal muscles, and affect blood flow. These changes are counter to what the body needs. After surgery, the tension may continue—bringing the body to exhaustion and therefore seriously reducing its capacity to heal itself. Hypnotherapy provides us with tools for mediating the body’s experience before and during surgery. Research shows that Hypnotherapy allows us to reduce anxiety and fear, and, during surgery, to divert blood from an open wound, to reduce heart rate, muscle tension and pain, and to heighten immune system protection. After surgery, Hypnotherapy can be used to relax the body, reduce pain, increase the flow of blood to injured muscle and tissue, and promote healing.
In an interview conducted with Dr. Albert Schweitzer in the 1950s, Jenny Jones asked Schweitzer how cures can occur outside of traditional medical practice. Schweitzer answered, “Each patient carries his own doctor inside him. They come to us not knowing that truth. We are at our best when we give the doctor who resides within each patient a chance to go to work.”•
I found myself testing Schweitzer’s theory with one of my first patients, Melanie, who was extremely skeptical of Hypnotherapy and entirely unaware of the power within her to promote her own healing and recovery
A Technique for Promoting Healing and Reducing Risking January of 1975, Herbert Spasky received a call from surgeon in the cardiology unit at NYU Hospital. Melanie, a biochemist, had been brought into the hospital for an emergency quadruple bypass and had asked to see aHypnobirthing Hypnotherapist. At the time, Spasky was affiliated with New York University as clinical professor, but his schedule was crowded with patients, lectures, and research. He told the surgeon I was at New York and that he should bring me in. After discussing the case with Spasky , I went tithe university library to review the literature on these of Hypnotherapy in surgical situations, where I was particularly struck by an article in the International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnotherapy by Dr.Frank Lissom. Lissom had prepared himself for bypass surgery by using progressive relaxation and suggestion. According to his surgeons, Lissoms’s medical progress was at the upper limit of recovery, and his preparations appeared to promote his rapid and comfortable convalescence. He reported feelings of tranquility and optimism five days before surgery and immediately after—even while he was unable to function without help or special effort. The article gave me some ideas. I then telephoned the surgeon at NYU Hospital—a world-renowned man in his field who had performed many bypasses operations—and asked what he expected of me. He said, “You do your thing, I’ll do mine, and we won’t get in each other S way. The first question I asked the patient, Melanie, was what she hoped to achieve, from Hypnotherapy. He proceeded to tell me that his daughter was dating a Freshman at Princeton Medical School whose father was member of the American Society of Clinical Hypnotherapy.
Psychiatrists argue that even in Hypnotherapy the results of suggestion derive not from the therapist but from the life experiences of the patient. “Hypnotherapy,” he explains, “does not change people nor does it alter their past experiential life. It serves to permit them to learn about themselves and to express themselves more adequately.
”Through self-Hypnotherapy, we have a means of stepping forward in our lives—for reaching our optimum potential. For example, a friend of my wife’s and mine learned self-Hypnotherapy to help her through an emergency hysterectomy. She had been bleeding for a number of days and was in poor shape. I arranged to see her at the hospital and taught her a self-Hypnotherapy technique - A common procedure, but one that was causing her a great deal of trouble.
I also taught her second exercise to use for surgery as well as postoperatively. She was operated on the next day and made an excellent recovery. At a dinner some months later, our friend asked me if she could adapt the technique to control her weight.
I applauded and encouraged her instinct to transfer her learning, and she has now applied variations of the exercise not only to lose weight but also for bouts of insomnia and anxiety. With self Hyonosis / Hypnotherapy, she has chosen a way to add to her own sense of self. Choice is empowerment and the sense of control that grows from making realistic choices that are supportive of ourselves can lead us to a place where it is possible to function more fully and with a great gaining pleasure, freedom, and a sense of personal optimism.
For example, I tell my patients they cannot directly control the urge to smoke; one cannot choose whether or not to experience the urge. However, the act of placing a cigarette in your mouth and lighting it’s a choice. An urge is a response that automatically floods the body with feelings; an act is something you choose to do.
You can choose to smoke or choose not to smoke. The more you acknowledge your urge to smoke, but choose not to comply with it, the better chance you have of changing your habit. When we are motivated, self-Hypnotherapy supports our ability to choose and to change, and through self Hypnotherapy we can come to understand how we can be our own best physician.
Most mothers tend to feel frumpy from time to time. This is especially true for mothers who give up their jobs and careers to be stay at home mums. The thought of you giving up a lifestyle where you hung out at resorts and night clubs regularly and now are home doing nappy changes tends to hit you like a heavy sack of potatoes. But do not fear there are a few tips that will make you feel like you are on top of the world again.
The first thing you need to do when you begin to feel sad is to look at your baby and all your sorrows will vanish. The thought that you brought this little life into the world will definitely drown your sorrows for sure.
You need not feel like a maid just because you are at home; dressing well will definitely lift your moods. Invest in good clothes that make you feel god about yourself as well as in a good make up kit that you can dab on quickly will be an asset. As a mom you will never have hours to fuss over yourself in the mornings so choose clothes that you will be comfortable in. Keep your make up light so as to avoid having to do regular touch ups.
Use a fragrance that you can layer, one that comes in a bath and shower gel, deodorant, body mist as well as a perfume. This helps to use lesser perfume that may irritate the child and cause allergies yet make you feel fresh.
As a mom you need to be extremely practical. If you are feeling down wear a few pieces of jewelry to perk up your mood. Avoid long earrings that may tempt your toddler, instead opt to wear a trendy necklace or bracelet. Do not wear beads or pearls as your child may choke on it if he manages to break it.
Try and get a friend to baby sit your child while you spend a few hours by yourself. Do simple things like take a walk, read a book or simply go out for a cup of coffee.
Lastly speak to your spouse about the way you feel. If you are feeling unloved or neglected; let him know about it. There is no better person in the world to make you feel better than the father of your child.
Obese pregnant women should be encouraged to limit their weight gain or even lose weight, experts say, as evidence builds that shedding kilos may not only do no harm to mother and child but might benefit them.
The advice reverses the long-held view that mothers-to-be should not diet as there was a risk that cutting food intake would lead to the loss of essential nutrients to help the baby’s development and growth.
Excess weight makes conception less likely but the huge increase in obese women of reproductive age over the past decade means even morbidly obese pregnant women have gone from being the exception to “commonplace”, a specialist obstetrician at Goulburn Valley Health, Glyn Teale, said.
Associate Professor Teale told the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists annual scientific meeting that one in 18 women attending an antenatal clinic in rural Victoria in 2007 was morbidly obese.
Of 3211 women who presented between 2005 and 2007, 62.5 per cent were overweight, 31.2 per cent were obese and 5.1 per cent were morbidly obese .
Professor Teale said the health system was struggling to keep up with this growing group of women who need intensive antenatal care, bariatric-sized beds and who are difficult to physically care for in labour.
Ultrasound scanning is more difficult in obese women, meaning foetal anomalies are less likely to be picked up.
Their chance of having a vaginal birth is less than 50 per cent, yet a caesarean section is not a straightforward alternative as obese people have a much higher risk of potentially deadly complications after any surgery.
“We’ve always had concerns about weight loss or lack of weight gain during pregnancy but the latest evidence suggests this may be quite sensible,” he said.
Women are recommended not to gain more than 12 kilograms during pregnancy but an Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of Auckland, Lesley McCowan, said obese women should limit weight gain to between 0 and 6 kilograms.
“We can’t be afraid to address the issue so that women who start pregnancy very overweight can set goals and limit their weight gain because it will significantly reduce the risks to mum and baby,” she said.
Annabel Campbell, who gave birth to Freddie four months ago, managed her weight during pregnancy with pilates and exercise sessions four times a week, and a sensible diet. But the former dancer with the Australian Ballet said even with the activity, her weight gain ballooned to 17 kilograms in the last few months.
“I put on a lot of weight even though I was eating sensibly and exercising regularly, but I could never have imagined dieting. But I don’t like to think what would have happened if I wasn’t as active,” she said.
A personal trainer, Nathan Maurice, who runs pre- and post-natal exercise classes, said the main role of exercise during pregnancy was to prepare for the birthing process and set the body up for recovery.
“If you wanted to lose weight during pregnancy, it would have to be nutritionally based, but it is imperative that you consult a nutritionist who would take your personal situation into account,” Mr Maurice said.
“It is essential that you supply proper nutrients to the baby - it’s not something you can gamble with by going on the latest diet.”
An investigation has been started into how a heavily pregnant Samoan woman was able to gain a travelling visa, board an aircraft to Auckland and give birth mid-flight without anyone noticing.
The 30-year-old, who boarded a flight from Apia to Auckland early on Wednesday morning, was yesterday facing police investigations after it was found that she had given birth during the flight and dumped the child in a rubbish bin.
The Herald has learned that the baby was found abandoned in a rubbish bin inside Auckland International Airport.
Earlier reports said the newborn was found in a rubbish bin in a toilet on the aircraft.
Immigration New Zealand said an investigation was being carried out into how a heavily pregnant woman was able to board the flight.
Local airline policies state that women more than five months into their pregnancy cannot travel, unless they are New Zealand citizens.
The woman is said to be a Samoan citizen, who was possibly travelling with a group of up to 70 labourers connected to the recognised seasonal employment scheme, under which labourers from the Pacific are brought in for seasonal work, such as apple picking.
“Immigration New Zealand has asked its Apia branch to piece together the facts of the woman’s visa processing - in particular, what was declared on her application form and whether or not she appeared to Apia staff to be heavily pregnant,” an Immigration NZ statement said.
Pacific Blue’s website says pregnant women need medical clearance to board a flight if they’d had complications or were more than 36 weeks pregnant.
An Auckland International Airport spokeswoman said it was not known if crew or passengers had noticed the woman in labour.
TVNZ last night reported that Auckland Airport staff became suspicious when the woman, who had misplaced her passport, approached a staff member, looking pale and blood-stained.
She was later admitted to Middlemore Hospital - with the child. Police were understood to be at the hospital last night. They were waiting for the woman to recover from surgery before speaking to her. Both mother and child were said to be healthy.
Yesterday, a meeting was held with the New Zealand Samoan consul general, Fa’aolotoi Reupena Pogi, and staff at the consulate general.
Consul and trade commissioner Va’atu’itu’i Apete Meredith said the consulate had been in touch with Middlemore Hospital.
“We’ve tried to contact her, because that is our duty - to look out for the wellbeing of our citizens,” Mr Meredith said.
“But at the same time, it’s a police matter and we’re waiting for the police to call us and then we’ll be able to go visit her.”
Mr Meredith said the consulate was in contact with Samoan authorities and a representative or group from the Samoan consulate is set to visit the woman in the next few days.
I know most you have children already, but there is a chance someone might be looking for some suggestions about pregnancy books — if only to give as a gift to their good friend who is expecting for the first time.
To tell you the truth some people I know go through pregnancy (even the first) without reading anything but the NHS leaflets, and it’s perfectly fine! But if you are like me than you might want one or two (or three) books that tell you in depth what’s going on inside you.
So here we go, this is what I read:
1. What To Expect When You’re Expecting: This must be the best-seller pregnancy book ever. It’s easy to read and it contains loads of information. Although I read the revised UK edition it felt a bit too much focused on the American system.
2. The Rough Guide to Pregnancy and Birth: This could be a good companion to any other more “serious” pregnancy manual you choose. It does contain loads of advice and information, but the week-to-week progress is narrated in a semi-fictitious weekly diary. Really funny — this will not allow you to take yourself too seriously.
3. Birth and Beyond…: This is definitely my favourite. I found it reassuring and empowering, something you badly need during your first pregnancy. It covers pregnancy and the first 9 months of the baby’s life. Written by one of the world’s leading obstetricians, it takes a holistic approach covering aspects regarding both parents and the baby. It also includes an extensive reference section.
For today’s mother, methods for natural birth include so much more than Lamaze class! The Lamaze method of natural child birth is probably the most recognized name in methods for giving birth, but mothers-to-be wishing to prepare for a natural birth have so many programs to choose from. To find a great child birth class or teacher, you may have to look beyond the standard hospital class.
The secret to a satisfying and pleasant natural childbirth experience is preparation. When giving birth, many mothers seek drug relief for childbirth pain because they believe that natural birth means painful birth. What some women fail to realize and what most doctors won’t tell their patients is that when giving birth, women can reduce and control the discomforts of labor with natural techniques and methods that don’t involve drugs which may interfere with the natural process of labor and lead to multiple interventions. A childbirth class taught by an independent instructor is the best place to learn about the natural process of birth and the techniques and methods that will empower you in your journey through pregnancy and childbirth.
Second to Lamaze, the Bradley Method is probably the most recognized name in natural child birth. The Bradley Method is known as “husband coached childbirth”. It is likely that you can find a Bradley certified instructor in your area. Birthing From Within is a best selling book on natural childbirth that emphasizes self-knowledge, information and personal preparation rather than a specific method for natural childbirth. Birthing From Within classes are quickly gaining in popularity. Independent childbirth educators are certified by a variety of excellent organizations including Birth Works, ALACE, CAPPA, DONA and ICEA. Many childbirth educators are also doulas and are certified by the same organizations.
Another alternative in childbirth education is to use a self study program. Many parents-to-be like the camaraderie and shared experience of going through a class with other couples, but self study is a valid option for many. Using hypnosis for childbirth is a natural method that lends itself well to self study. Hynobabies, HypBirth and HypnoBirthing all offer self study programs. Mothers can also find hypnotherapists and/or doulas in their area who are certified in various childbirth hypnosis methods.
Any article on natural child birth would be incomplete without mentioning water birth. Water, sometimes referred to as “nature’s epidural” is a wonderful way to relieve the discomforts of labor. Many women labor and birth their babies under water. If water birth is an idea that appeals to you, find a doula or midwife who is comfortable and familiar with water birth. Waterbirth International is the best source for information and waterbirthing supplies.
Natural childbirth is a wonderful, safe and satisfying experience for mothers, babies and families. With adequate preparation and supportive labor assistance you will go through childbirth armed with knowledge and empowered to make the right choices for your birth, no matter what the circumstances. Most women who prepare for a natural childbirth, even if it becomes prudent to utilize certain medial interventions, are happy with their decision to be informed and educated about this most life transforming and life fulfilling event that we call birth.
Mention Labor and Delivery to an expectant mom in her last trimester, and chances are good that her heart will begin to race, her mind floods with concern and in some cases, panic. She knows that the day is coming when a force much bigger than herself will take over and her body will govern itself completely. For some women, this is a very fearful event, but for Hypno-moms, it is merely a challenge.
These wise women use hypnosis to eliminate pain and fear from the birthing experience. In the past, the word “hypnosis” conjured up images of stage hypnotists re-creating Elvis, or mesmerizing others into embarrassing situations. Now it is common for hypnosis to be used therapeutically in many areas of medicine, dental anesthesia and personal therapy sessions. Even so, there are many misconceptions regarding hypnosis that can dissuade those contemplating this powerful tool. Here are a few FACTS: (see our page on hypnosis for more information)
* All hypnosis is self-hypnosis; the hypnotherapist is only the guide. A person chooses to enter into a hypnotic state, stay in and come out at will.
* Approximately 90-95% of the population can be hypnotized. Willingness, belief and motivation have great influence over hypnotizability.
* During hypnosis you are neither asleep nor unconscious, and will always “come out” when you wish.
* Stronger-minded and stronger-willed people are easier to hypnotize; not the other way around as is usually assumed.
* You cannot be made to divulge information or do anything against your will while in hypnosis.
*Hypnosis is not Satanic or religion-oriented at all, just a way to direct your inner mind toward the positive.
What about Hypnosis for Childbirth?
Hypnosis is used in medical and dental procedures with great success by patients who have life-threatening allergies to anesthetics, allowing them to undergo surgeries with no drugs and no pain. We know therefore that the mind can be trained to experience discomfort as only pressure, and that is what is achieved in childbirth hypnosis as well. In addition, with labor, the more relaxation the mother experiences, the more comfort she will have, and the depth of relaxation necessary can easily be achieved with hypnosis, as physical relaxation is learned and practiced daily in preparation for birth using guided visualizations followed by positive hypnotic suggestions. When the critical conscious mind is by-passed with hypnosis, the inner mind can literally be reprogrammed to believe that birth will be comfortable, easy and joyous. Software for your mind!
Fear and Expectation
In other cultures, childbirth is regarded as a natural, normal event in a woman’s life. The birthing women are given support from other women, and children are often present to witness the event. In this way, birth is celebrated and honored. Young girls then grow up with the belief system that birth is a positive event and their expectations of childbirth reflect this attitude. As a result, their births are similar to their predecessors; without pain and fear. They have a positive expectation of childbirth. In our culture, it is very much the opposite. For many generations we have been told that delivering a baby is many hours of painfully agonizing work, to be faced with fear and trepidation. We have heard stories from well-meaning friends and family that send shivers up our spines, and so the legacy continues. We experience pain in childbirth, in part because we very much expect to!
When learning about how the mind controls the body, the expectant couple is taught to surround themselves with only positive people and messages, to create a positive view of childbirth and the expectation that their birth will be the beautiful, peaceful experience that they want. Fear Clearing Sessions are integral to this process, as they allow each person to address fears they have, work through possible solutions and then release them. Fear in labor can create tension, which creates pain, then more fear, and the cycle continues. Fear and anxiety can also create adrenaline production in the body, causing the labor to become dysfunctional, a common reason for Cesarean Section surgery. Freedom from fear can make a huge difference in the birthing experience.
Hypnosis for childbirth teaches a woman how to enter into self-hypnosis instantly, and create her own natural anesthesia whenever and wherever she needs it. This is important as any drugs taken by a laboring woman can be dangerous for her, and especially her baby. She has total control over her body, and is an active participant in her birth process. As labor progresses, she relaxes even more, goes deeper inside herself, trusting in her body’s natural ability to give birth with ease and comfort. Her mind is programmed to give her exactly what she needs.
Too good to be true?
Can women give birth without experiencing pain? They can, but there are many variables in labor and birth that can affect the outcome, and couples need to have a positive but realistic view of hypnosis for childbirth. Each pregnant woman and her partner must take responsibility for the choices they make while in labor and how they can affect the dynamics and outcome. Many a wonderful birth has been thwarted by not realizing how to make positive, informed choices, yet these issues are easily addressed and learned in a good consumer oriented childbirth class such as Hypnobabies, or by doing research.
Without a doubt, women using hypnosis are much calmer and more relaxed during labor, which automatically creates more comfort, as well as having *powerful* post-hypnotic suggestions to actually eliminate pain and fear. How effective is this? Statistics will vary by the program and method chosen, depending on the length and number of hypnosis sessions, the materials used in each, and the skill of the hypnotherapist or teacher, as well as the dedication and compliance to the program of each birthing couple. Ideally, hypnosis for childbirth instructors will have backgrounds in both hypnotherapy and childbirth education, and be able to address each woman’s personal needs. With adequate preparation and trust in the natural process of birth, most women can have much more relaxed and comfortable births, with many actually free of pain. It is important to know that the childbirth hypnosis program you choose to use will directly affect your success in having a comfortable birth, so educate yourself before choosing.
Benefits of using hypnosis for childbirth:
* Fewer drugs or no drugs at all means less risk of side effects on mother and baby.
* Shorter labors - resistance of the birthing muscles as a response to pain is minimized or eliminated.
* An awake, energized mother, due to total relaxation throughout the birthing process.
* A calm, peaceful birthing environment.
* Breech and posterior babies can be turned using hypnosis.
* Fewer interventions and complications during labor.
* Babies who are better sleepers and nursers due to fewer drugs in their systems.
How to study: Where do you start?
There are choices open to couples who are ready to begin their hypno-journey, and it will benefit each one to research all of their options to find one that allows them to achieve their goal. They include:
Choice # 1: You can seek out a Hypnobabies class in your area. Some are taught at local birth centers, holistic offices or the instructor’s homes. The backgrounds of Hypnobabies Instructors always include hypnosis training and childbirth education, both necessary for excellent results. You can find a Hypnobabies Instructor by visiting www.hypnobabies.com and look under Professional listings.
You may want to ask a prospective Hypnobabies Instructor the following when you contact them:
• If they have a background in hypnotherapy. (Many of our instructors are certified or clinical hypnotherapists. This is helpful as they will be able to help you with individual issues)
• What is their background in childbirth education: midwifery, doula training, childbirth teacher, nursing etc. (A childbirth training background is necessary for all of our Hypnobabies Instructors so that all of your pregnancy and childbirth questions and concerns can be addressed adequately in class.)
• How long they have been teaching Hypnobabies classes, and where they teach the class?
• How many classes do they teach and how long is each one?
• What materials do they provide with the class? (All Hypnobabies Instructors need to give out exactly the same Hypnobabies materials: The Hypnobabies Workbook, 6 CDs for the Hypno-mom and 1 for the Birth Partner, The Birth Partner’s Guide, The Quick Reference Guide, The Hypnobabies Scripts Booklet, a Perineal Massage booklet, and the book, Back Labor No More.)
• How much is the class fee, and is it a group class or private?
• Do they attend births as a Hypno-doula, and if so, how many have they attended? If not, have they trained any local doulas for this?
• Ask them about why they became a Hypnobabies Instructor. You will find that all our instructors have a passion for working with pregnant couples and a love of natural, unmedicated birthing!
Choice # 2: You can choose a home study course, of which there are many. To find one, you can do a search on the Internet for: “hypnosis, childbirth, home study.” An adequate home study program will have detailed information on hypnosis and how to use it in childbirth, and hypno-tools for you to achieve your goals; books, tapes, CD’s, handouts, hypnosis scripts. As you will be studying on your own, it is your responsibility to gain as much knowledge as possible, so choose well.
Choice # 3: Seek out a qualified Hypnotherapist in your area for office sessions. You will want to make sure to interview them beforehand and ask what type of program they have for childbirth using hypnosis, since not all of them already have an effective program in place in their practice. A good one will include at least 4 sessions in the office, (6-7 are optimal) with the last one done one week before the estimated due date. It should also include at least one tape or CD to listen to at home by yourself, and one or more cues for the birth companion to learn and practice that helps you to relax and go deeper into hypnosis. Many hypnotherapists have developed their own childbirth hypnosis programs that are very effective, and some will use and modify already existing ones, such as Gerald Kein’s Painless Childbirth Program.
The attraction to this kind of program is that it allows the hypnotherapist to adapt the program to fit the needs of their own practice, creating their own scripts and tapes from the original program sessions, and fully modify them to the needs of each expectant mother. This helps tremendously with women who have personal issues that need to be resolved, such as VBAC moms, those who have had a past negative birth experience, or those who have specific deep-seated fears about childbirth.
It is well worth the time to look into hypnosis for childbirth as an option, both for yourself and for your baby. It is important to remember that most drugs are given in an adult dose to women in labor and will reach her baby in less than 5 minutes with effects ranging from respiratory depression to breastfeeding problems, and using hypnosis techniques can greatly help to avoid them. The deep relaxation learned in Hypnobabies has even helped many a nervous dad to cope as they prepare for their child’s birth! In addition, the skills you will learn for relaxation and hypno-anesthesia will benefit you for the rest of your life!
Hypnosis has been used for quite some time to help in numerous health-related issues, from relieving IBS symptoms to preparing for surgery to alleviating fear of dental procedures. Many pregnant women are now enjoying the benefits of hypnosis, allowing them to experience natural births with little to no pain.
In order to better understand how hypnosis can help pregnant women, it helps to gain a better understanding of hypnosis itself. To put it in simple terms, hypnosis is intense focus and concentration. Many people have likened the concentration with getting lost in a good book or television program. Utilizing that intense focus, hypnosis can actually slow down your brain waves.
Right now you’re probably in your waking state, which is Beta consciousness. But, by altering your conscious state through hypnosis, you are able to enter Alpha consciousness, where your brain waves actually slow down. And, when you slow down your brain waves you lose the “critical chatter” of the conscious mind and are able to slip in positive suggestions to the subconscious mind. These positive suggestions can be about any behavior you’d like to change, or any outcome you’d like to see take effect, such as having a natural, easy birth.
In addition, when you’re in a relaxed stated and imagining a desired outcome, the brain can’t tell the difference between reality and fantasy, and reacts as if the desired outcome was a reality. This phenomenon can be seen in pain management, when hypnotherapists use hypnosis and imagery on pain sufferers to help them lessen the intensity of their pain.
Hypnosis can aid pregnant women in so many different ways and in so many different stages of their pregnancies.
Hypnosis Can Aid in Fertility
Where inability to become pregnant is not due to a medical condition, many women have found relief with hypnosis. There are many who believe that if you can imagine it you can create it, and hypnosis is often paired with imagery to “visualize” oneself becoming pregnant and imagining a baby coming into one’s life. Hypnosis is also used to alleviate stress, which may be inhibiting a woman from becoming pregnant. Of course, women aren’t the only ones whose stress and anxiety may be inhibiting pregnancy. Many men feel the pressure to help their partners conceive. This stress can affect men’s sperm quality.
Hypnosis Can Aid in Helping a Woman Become More Comfortable
Many women experience discomfort from being pregnant, such as morning sickness, the intensity of which can be lessened through hypnosis. In women with high blood pressure, hypnosis can be helpful in helping them to relax, which in turn can help control the symptoms.
Hypnosis Can Help in the Actual Birth Process
Many women are now using hypnosis to help them have their baby naturally with no drugs. Utilizing hypnosis, women can help themselves relax during the baby’s birth. Since pain responses are greatly enhanced with fear and anxiety, creating a sense of calm helps in reducing the sensation of pain. The women will be awake and aware of everything that’s happening, including the contractions, but will be able to dictate to a great extent the intensity of the sensations she feels.
There are numerous hypnosis tapes and CDs available which can help reduce the fears and anxieties associated with pregnancy and the birthing process. If at all possible, it’s preferable to meet face to face with a hypnotherapist who can tailor the hypnosis to your specific fears, anxieties or needs.
How to Find a Hypnotherapist
Whether you plan on a natural birth or not, hypnosis can still help you relax more about the entire birthing process. Becoming more relaxed can help you gain control over your pregnancy, rather than have your pregnancy gain control over you.
Whether your SAT test preparation consists of working on your own, in a group or class, or one-to-one with a qualified SAT tutor, a good attitude will help you get a higher score. Of course a positive attitude doesn’t give you more knowledge but it does make taking the test less stressful. Stress makes you too tired to think clearly. Stress can actually make you forget what you know.
Play the SAT game
Playing a game is less stressful than taking a test. Games are usually great attitude boosters. So thinking of the SAT’s and PSAT’s as games helps you keep the pressure off yourself. In fact, if you think about it, doing SAT / PSAT questions is a lot like doing puzzle games like the ones on placemats in fast food restaurants. It goes without saying that you’d rather be eating your burger than doing placemat puzzles, but other than that, they’re interesting, and maybe even fun.
Play the SAT sport
Maybe thinking of the SAT’s as a game isn’t quite enough. If you’re still getting upset when you miss a bunch of questions, think about your favorite sport. Now think of the SAT game as your latest favorite sport. When the questions get really hard, you can consider them a move in your sport as opposed to a difficult question.
Here’s how it helps. While winning in a sport is important, it wouldn’t be fun for you to play against a team of 4th graders. You’d always win. Too little challenge and the game’s not fun anymore. Fun games are those where you get some points, then your opponent gets some, then you. If you can get into this mindset, missing a question isn’t so awful.
The sport mindset helps keep you from dragging yourself down when you miss questions. Remember, negative thoughts cause stress which can cause you to miss questions you know. So instead of being mad at yourself, think about your loss in more positive ways. Praise your opponent–he guy who wrote the question. Think to yourself, “Good for you. You got me on that one.” Certainly a better choice than thinking “I’m so stupid.” You can even give your opponent a not-so-polite nickname.
Boost your attitude
Professional educators write the SAT and PSAT questions. Don’t believe the rumors that test questions are written by high school and college kids for summer jobs. It’s not true and only makes you feel worse when you miss questions.
One last attitude booster: Get plenty of rest the night before the test. Eat breakfast that has more protein than donuts and drink lots of water. If you’re sleepy, hungry, or dehydrated, your attitude can go right down the drain.
Women who stop smoking by week 15 of pregnancy are no more likely than nonsmokers to give birth to premature or low-weight babies, according to a study published online by the British Medical Journal.
Women who kept smoking after the 15-week deadline tripled their risk of delivering prematurely and were twice as likely to have small babies compared to nonsmokers and women who stopped smoking early in their pregnancy, the study found.
March 27 (Bloomberg) — Women who quit smoking early in their pregnancies have the same low risk of premature birth and small babies as non-smokers, according to new research.
Women who failed to stop smoking by 15 weeks were three times more likely to give birth before their full 37-week term, said lead author Lesley McCowan, an associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Auckland in New Zealand. Smokers were twice as likely to have relatively small babies as women who stopped, the researchers found.
Previous studies have shown that women who smoke during pregnancy have an increased risk of miscarriage, stillbirth and premature birth and are more likely to have smaller babies. The research published today in the British Medical Journal is the first study to determine whether babies may develop and grow normally in the womb if their mothers quit smoking early.
“The adverse effects of smoking on these late pregnancy outcomes may be largely reversible if smoking is stopped early in pregnancy, offering an important incentive for pregnant women who smoke to stop,” McCowan wrote.
The costs of maternal and infant complications due to smoking during pregnancy were estimated to exceed $1.4 billion in 1995 in the U.S., McCowan wrote, citing data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. More than 90 percent of the costs for infants are attributable to care for those with low birth weight during the first year of life.
2,500 Mothers
McCowan compared birth weight and prematurity in infants born to 2,500 Australians and New Zealanders who smoked, quit smoking or didn’t smoke. In addition to the benefits for babies, mothers who quit weren’t more stressed, anxious or depressed than those who continued to smoke.
Providers of maternity care need to emphasize to women the major benefits of giving up smoking before 15 weeks in pregnancy, McCowan wrote. Still, the results don’t justify relaxing efforts to assist pregnant women to quit smoking later in pregnancy, she added.
“Improved pregnancy outcomes have been reported in women who stop by as late as 32 weeks’ gestation,” McCowan wrote. “Moreover, stopping smoking at any gestation in pregnancy, if sustained in the postpartum period, has enormous additional benefits on newborn and child health.”
Children’s health campaigners called on companies selling baby bottles in Britain to follow developments in the US and move towards avoiding a controversial plastic.
The National Childbirth Trust (NCT) said six major manufacturers in the US were reported to have agreed to stop selling hard plastic baby bottles made with the controversial plastics chemical bisphenol A (BPA).
A spokeswoman said the Trust was asking companies selling baby bottles in the UK to follow the USA lead and move to producing baby bottles using non bisphenol A (BPA) plastics.
She added: “The chemical BPA is controversial and currently used in many baby bottles sold in the UK.
“There is evidence to suggest that the chemical mimics the effect of the hormone oestrogen in the body and interferes with healthy growth and body functions.
“Babies are particularly vulnerable to hormone mimicking effects as they grow rapidly in the early months and years.”
NCT chief executive Belinda Phipps said: “The NCT welcomes the news that six USA companies have agreed to stop selling plastic baby bottles made with BPA within the United States.
“The NCT would like to see the same steps being taken within the UK. There are now viable alternatives to BPA that can be used to produce clear plastic baby bottles.
“There is no reason to continue using this chemical when there is concern about its potential risks to newborn babies.”
The Trust advised parents to seek out bottles clearly labelled ‘BPA free’ if they were not sure whether the bottles contained that chemical.
NEW YORK — Research shows that for about half of women who give birth, memories of the intensity of labor pain decline over time. However, for some women, their recollection of pain does not seem to diminish and for a minority, their memory of pain increases with time.
The study also shows that the memory of childbirth pain is influenced by a woman’s overall satisfaction with her labor experience.
Department of Woman and Child Health at the Karolinska Institute, Stockholm and colleagues queried 1383 mothers about their memories of labor pain at 2 months, 1 year and 5 years after giving birth. Women who elected to have a cesarean section were excluded.
Five years after the women had given birth, 49 percent remembered childbirth as less painful than when they rated it 2 months after birth, 35 percent rated it the same, and 16 percent rated it as more painful.
“A commonly held view,” she noted in an email to Reuters Health, “is that women forget the intensity of labour pain. The present study…provides evidence that in modern obstetric care, this is true for about 50 percent of women.”
However, a woman’s labor experience was an influential factor. Women who reported labor as a positive experience 2 months after childbirth had the lowest pain scores, and their memory of the intensity of pain had declined by 1 year and 5 years after giving birth.
“Memory of labor pain declined during the observation period but not in women with a negative overall experience of childbirth,” the team notes in the journal BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.
Roughly 60 percent of women reported positive childbirth experiences and less than 10 percent reported negative experiences. For women who said that their childbirth experience was negative or very negative, on average, their assessment of labor pain did not change after 5 years.
“A woman’s long-term memory of pain is associated with her satisfaction with childbirth overall,” she said, summing up. “The more positive the experience, the more women forget how painful labour was. For a small group of women with a negative birth experience, long-term memory of labour pain was as vivid as 5 years earlier.”
The researchers also found that women who had epidural for pain remembered pain as more intense than women who did not have an epidural, suggesting, they say, that these women remember “peak pain.” However, their perception of how painful labour had been also declined with time.
Kathryn Mora said her first experience giving birth wasn’t at all what she had hoped.
The Los Angeles native, who now lives in Waltham, said she was left alone in a hospital room, except for a nurse who showed up once in a while, yelling at her to “relax” while reminding her she’d be there for several more hours.
The doctors in the delivery room, she said, barely acknowledged her.
“The doctors were talking about their golf game when I was experiencing the most important day of her life,” Mora remembered.
Mora said she received an injection in her spine. Numb from the waist down, her baby was yanked out with forceps and rushed away quickly. She wouldn’t see her newborn son, Scott, for 10 hours.
“I said then, ‘this is never going to happen to me again’,” she said.
That was more than 40 years ago. About two years later, in preparation of the birth of her next child, John, Mora and her husband, Luis, took classes to help her to relax. They also found a doctor who performed natural childbirth.
“It just went so beautifully,” Mora said of giving birth naturally. That experience led Mora to dedicate much of her life to educating women on the benefits of natural childbirth.
“I became a certified childbirth educator and started my own program in Los Angeles,” she said.
Mora, a journalist who has written a number of articles on the subject, and now has ventured into filmmaking.
Mora will screen her first documentary, “BIRTH” on Thursday, at the Center for Digital Imaging Arts at Boston University, 274 Moody St., Studio C.
During the 30-minute film women who, like Mora, gave birth with drugs and medical intervention, and then gave birth naturally, share their experiences.
“My approach is that women who have had the experience are sharing he experience,” Mora said. “They are the narrators of the film.”
After the screening, a panel discussion will take place involving some of the film’s participants.
Mora she hopes the documentary will replace women’s fears about natural childbirth with education. Many women are concerned about the pain, but Mora said during her natural childbirth she actually experience less discomfort than when she gave birth first son.
Mora said this won’t be her only foray into filmmaking on the subject.
“I’m planning to make a full-length film,” Mora said.
Imagine a pain free child birth without the help of medication. One woman is instructing expectant mothers on a technique she says can offer that and more.
“It was really painful. I felt really out of control. I couldn’t deal with the contractions towards the end especially,” she said.
After one painful childbirth, Press was terrified of what was to come when she heard she was expecting again.
“When I first got pregnant in the first couple of months even the thought of going to the hospital just really made me want to cry,” Press said.
Then she found a video of a woman using hypnosis during childbirth on the Internet.
“I was like wow that’s completely amazing. She didn’t appear to be in pain she wasn’t screaming she was actually smiling,” Press said.
The woman was using a technique called hypnobirth.
“Complete physical comfort and relaxation. The deepest relaxation you can possibly get to,” she said.
“With the first two I had instrumental delivery and I tore and it was not a fun experience,” she said.
Then she used hypnobirth for the delivery of her daughter.
“I went on to have a completely pain free birth,” she said.
Now she instructs other women, on how to relax by reprogramming.
“Things that have a negative association we replace those like instead of labor it’s your birth instead of contractions it’s pressure waves,”
The technique uses music, thoughts and phrases to reach extreme relaxation.
“It kind of feels like being in a tub of warm water.”
Believe it or not, Phillips says the techniques may actually have you asking for more.
“I really wished it would have lasted a little longer because I was enjoying it so much,” she said.
A Japanese doctor has apologised after saying that people should smoke themselves to an early death to save the country money on elderly care, according to his hospital.
“It is clear that medical costs will increase if non-smoking spreads,” the doctor said last week, according to Ida Hospital in Kawasaki City. “It’s better that people smoke a lot and die early.”
The man, whose name has been withheld, made the comment at a gathering of doctors, the hospital said.
“The hospital president has reprimanded him severely,” said Tetsuya Yamamoto, a public relations official of the hospital.
“He said it was a careless remark and sincerely regrets it,” the official said, adding that he was being sarcastic as the doctor is a smoker himself.
His comments angered activists.
“It was an outrageous remark that should not come from a doctor who is supposed to protect people’s lives and health,” Bungaku Watanabe, who heads an anti-smoking group, said in a statement.
Japan’s overall smoking rate is declining.
The rate for men was 39.5 percent, still high among developed countries but half of the rate of four decades ago, according to a 2008 survey by Japan Tobacco Inc. The rate for women was 12.9 percent, down from 15 percent in 1968.
Several municipalities in central Tokyo and across Japan have banned smoking in public places except in designated areas.
Kawasaki City is located in Kanagawa prefecture, where authorities are studying whether to ban smoking in all bars, restaurants and other public places in what would be a first in the country.
It used to be the case that you’d grab a bottle of water from the fridge to sip on the way to work, pack your leftovers in a plastic container, and give your baby some milk in a plastic bottle – all without thinking twice about your health. Then we started to hear about plastic containing Bisphenol A (BPA). But what it is, and why are plastics containing BPA so harmful to your health?
According to information from the NSF International and the Centers for Disease Control, Bisphenol A is “an industrial chemical used to make polycarbonate plastics.” These plastics can be found anywhere and in products we use on a daily basis such as refillable beverage receptacles, protective linings in food cans, CDs, plastic serving ware, impact resistant safety equipment and epoxy resins.
For the most part, we wouldn’t go a normal day without encountering at least a few of those on the list. However, people are generally exposed to BPA when it seeps from materials that are in contact with food or drinking water.
About plastics and pregnancy
Now, ladies, listen up. According to the National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals by the CDC: “When laboratory test animals are dosed during pregnancy, BPA has been shown to have hormone-like effects on the developing reproductive system and neurobehavioral changes in the offspring.
“Scientists continue to debate whether effects could possibly occur in people who are exposed to low environmental levels of these chemicals. More research is needed to assess the human health effects of exposure to these chemicals.”
However, it is known, though an analysis from the CDC published in 2007, that scientists detected BPA in nearly 93 percent of people tested (age six and older), which “indicates widespread exposure to BPA in the U.S. population.”
Protect yourself - and your baby
It doesn’t hurt to be extra vigilant when it comes to your health and that of your unborn baby! Here are a few tips to help you avoid BPA-contaminated products:
Look for the BPA-free symbol when purchasing new plastics. Ditch the water bottles (they are bad for the environment anyway) and purchase a high-quality BPA-free refillable stainless steel vessel.
Switch baby from regular plastic baby bottles to the BPA-free variety or old-fashioned glass bottles. If he’s taking formula, choose the powered variety, which may not have BPA in the packaging versus the liquid kind, according to the Environmental Working Group.
Rinse canned fruit or vegetables with water before heating and serving to hopefully lessen BPA ingestion.
Avoid microwaving food in plastic containers — use microwave-safe glass or ceramic instead.
Last Monday my fiance and I attended a Hypnobirthing class at the University of Utah. This was the first of 5 classes explaining and teaching the Mognan Method of the style.
It boasts that less than half of the normal amounts of c-sections are required when using this method, and that 70% of vaginal births are unmedicated when using it. Those are great statistics as far as I’m concerned. Birthing vaginally is supposedly better for the baby, and creates a better connection. Mothers tend to be more in tune with the birth.
From what I’m used to hearing about births, they are painful and dreadful experiences. If Rachel can do this without extreme agony, and the methods and tools work, then I will be a very happy man, and I’m sure she will be a very happy woman as well. This will also allow me to be a bigger part of the birth experience. I will not only be able to catch the baby, but I will be responsible for keeping the peace and keeping her relaxed. I can do that!
The concept of HypnoBirthing is not new, but rather a “rebirth” of the philosophy of birthing as it existed thousands of years ago and as it was recaptured in the work of Dr. Grantly Dick-Read(odd name for an OB), an English obstetrician, who, in the 1920s, was one of the first to forward the concept of natural birthing. The method teaches you that, in the absence of fear and tension, or special medical circumstances, severe pain does not have to be an accompaniment of labor.
When I think of hypnosis, my mind flies towards the old hypnotist with a swinging pocket-watch, telling people they are getting sleepy. They describe the effects as less of a trance and more that it will be similar to daydreaming, or focusing that occurs when you are engrossed in a book or a movie or staring into a fire. I’ll admit that at first I was a skeptic. And I still have these feelings like, well what if she forgets to use the methods or it all just goes out the door and she reverts to being afraid of the pain. I think the class will quell my nervousness and will expand both of our abilities to deal with pain in general. I could see myself using the techniques if I ever broke a bone in the backcountry orif I was with someone that was seriously injured, maybe I could help ease their pain a bit.
I will update more as the class progresses!
there are a few great videos on youtube if you just search for hypnobirth.
he is not afraid to deeply question practices in obstetrics, medicine in general and even our cultures in order to attempt to ascertain what could lead human kind to optimum health. His approach is thoroughly scientific- all his ideas and conclusions he supports with research, yet he has a lovely winding story-telling manner.
the main argument in this book is that the primal period (as he calls it) - from conception through to a baby’s first birth is crucial in shaping human health. He covers various topics including humans as mammals and their need for privacy during labour, the foetus ejection reflex, the old and new brain, the history of colostrum and what role oxytocin plays in our world. He looks forward to the “post-electronic era” and discusses why changes in childbirth care are urgently needed.
Study shows that exposure to perinatal environment, the period around childbirth especially the five months before and one month after childbirth, has a significant impact on aggression in children.
The research team led by Sylvana Cote, a professor at the Universite de Montreal Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, has found that pregnant mothers exposed to adverse conditions such as poverty, stress, malnutrition are likely to have aggressive kids.
“We know that when the mother faces adverse conditions such as poverty, stress, malnutrition, family conflicts or tobacco use during pregnancy, it will directly influence the size and weight of the fetus,” said Cote.
“These conditions are also correlated to heart disease, diabetes and child obesity.”
“The education practices of the parents, as well as the transmission of a genetic profile predisposing aggressive behavior are also contributors to atypical violent development,” she added.
Cote also said that perinatal environment also influences DNA methylation.
The study showed that young adults who had a hyper-aggressive profile as children and teenagers have a surmethylation of the active immune system genes that regulate the nervous system.
DNA methylation is a process that aims to protect the genome from microbes. But it can be affected by eating habits, stress, tobacco use and exterior factors such as pollution and parent care.
Pregnancy is an important phase in a woman’s life. To make it a soothing experience and preparing for a healthy child by your side, sleeping in time of pregnancy is essential in all three trimesters. Earlier there was a belief that less sleep was beneficial for the expecting mother. Later, it has been proved medically that good amount of sleep improves the expecting mother’s as well as the baby’s health inside.
Rest well and enjoy dreaming of your baby that you will cuddle with after a few months. Proper rest will allow your body to secret necessary hormones that take care of your body. As a result, your baby inside the cavern of your womb gets nourished. It is obvious that many negative thoughts and anxiety will come to play in your mind.
However, you should not allow these thoughts to steal your sleep. Boost yourself with positive thoughts, sharing your feelings with your family members and reading good books on children and topics that make your mind peaceful.
Your night-time sleep must be undisturbed. However, short naps in daytime also do wonder for your body’s comfort. In the first trimester, sleep is more required because the body undergoes a lot of changes everyday. Your desire to urinate increase and you lack energy the more you need to wake up to go to bathroom.
Keep your way to bathroom free from any blocks to avoid any chance to stumble and fall. Drinking water frequently throughout the daytime and taking less water before bedtime at night is good for your health.
Your sleeping position may need to be changed as your tender and sore breasts may put hindrance for regular pattern of sleeping. Doctors say that sleeping on your left side allow the blood circulation to be good. Also, there is no restriction; your body will wake you up to change position if it needs. You may buy differently shaped pregnancy pillows that make yours sleeping really comfortable.
Take bath before sleeping in the third trimester and wet your feet before sleeping. This phase is for getting ready for the childbirth gradually. A light exercise or swimming or a brisk walking in the afternoon makes your bedtime sleepy and comfortable.
A caution – never allow yourself to lie on your back for long time, because it may put pressure on your spine, back muscles and intestine. Sleep well with your baby inside and have a sweet dream to see him or her sleeping by your side very soon.
A hormone that prepares pregnant women for the strain of childbirth could help explain why some women suffer postpartum depression. Researchers from the University of California, Irvine, found in a study that 12 out of 16 women who had postpartum depression also had high levels of corticotropin-releasing hormone circulating in the placenta midway through pregnancy.
The hormone, known as CRH, normally is produced in very small amounts by the hypothalamus near the brain in response to stress. The placenta in pregnant women, meanwhile, produces 100 times more CRH than the hypothalamus.
Postpartum depression strikes those who experience the biggest changes in hormone levels, said researchers, who noted 20% of women are affected by postpartum depression four to six weeks after childbirth, and 7% of new mothers suffer from major depression.
New CDC Report Says Teen Births on the Rise; Alaska Showed Biggest Surge Among States
Although 18-year-old Bristol Palin has made headlines in recent months for her pregnancy and the birth of her son, Tripp, she has a lot of company — in her state and in the rest of the nation.
According to the newest numbers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, teen births increased by 3 percent nationally in 2006, reversing a 15-year decline of more than a third. And Palin’s home state of Alaska — one of 26 states to see a rise — led the way, with a 19 percent increase in the teenage birthrate from the previous year.
“It’s concerning because there was so much effort made to encourage teenagers to avoid pregnancy starting in the early 1990s,” said Stephanie Ventura, an author of the study and director for natality statistics and the The numbers showed a 3 percent increase in births among women of all ages — an increase in every age group — as well as the first decline in the average age of mothers giving birth (from 25.2 to 25) for the first time since the CDC began tracking it.
The reversal of the trend in teen births is what most concerns experts.
“It may be that one of the nation’s most extraordinary success stories of the past two decades is coming to a close,” said Bill Albert, chief program officer for the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy. “What you have is a serious, profound change in an issue where we had nothing but good news to report for almost two decades.”
While Albert did not equate every teenage pregnancy with failure, Albert said the issue is a major concern.
“There are, of course, many great success stories,” he said. “But the fact of the matter is that many of them don’t fare well. And importantly, their children don’t tend to fare well.”
Only three states — North Dakota, Rhode Island and New York — and the District of Columbia saw significant declines in their teen birth rates. Alaska, Mississippi, Montana, Hawaii, Kentucky, Nevada, Louisiana and Oklahoma each saw double-digit increases.
Katie Holmes is allegedly on a “detox diet” to prepare to get pregnant with her second child with husband Tom Cruise. Sources say Holmes’ diet was the reason behind her and Cruise’s absence from the Academy Awards as the herbal drinks and purification procedures left her too tired to attend.
“Katie has almost rid her body of toxins but sometimes it makes her lethargic. Tom’s encouraging her to stick to the diet because they are hoping to conceive baby number two,” says a source.
The couple are already parents to 2-year-old Suri. Cruise also has two adopted children with ex-wife Nicole Kidman, who is rumored to be pregnant with her second child with husband Keith Urban.
All women worry about how they will cope with the pain of labor and delivery. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, childbirth is different for everyone. So no one can predict how your spouse will feel. The amount of pain a woman feels during labor depends partly on the size and position of her baby, the size of her pelvis, her emotions, and the strength of the contractions.
Natural Pain Relief
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, many women choose to deliver their babies without using medicine for pain relief. Other techniques that some of these women use to help them include:
* use breathing and relaxation techniques
* take warm showers or baths
* receive massages
* have the supportive care or a loved one, nurse, or doula
* find comfortable positions while in labor (stand, crouch, sit, walk, etc)
* use a labor ball
* listen to music
Building a positive outlook on childbirth and managing fear may also help some women cope with the pain. It is important to realize that labor pain is not like pain due to illness or injury. Rather, it is caused by contractions of the uterus that are pushing the baby down and out of the birth canal. In other words, labor pain has a purpose: this is to help your spouse feel positive about childbirth:
* Encourage her to take a childbirth class. Call the doctor, midwife, hospital or birthing center for class information.
* Get information from her doctor or midwife. Write down her questions and encourage her to talk about them at her regular visits.
* Share her fears and emotions.
Waterbirthing
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, more and more women in the United States are using water to find comfort during labor and delivery. In waterbirthing, laboring women get into a tub of water that is between 90 and 100 degrees. Some women get out of the tub to give birth. Others remain in the water for delivery. The water helps women feel physically supported. It also keeps them warm and relaxed. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, this eases the pain of labor and delivery for many women. Plus, it is easier for laboring women to move and find comfortable positions in the water.
Waterbirthing is relatively new in this country. So there is very little research on its benefits. Even so, some women say giving birth in the water is faster and easier. Plus, women may tear less severely and need fewer episiotomies in the water. Waterbirthing may be gentler for your baby too. It may ease the baby’s transition from the womb to the new world. The baby is born into an environment that is similar to the womb. Plus, the water dulls the lights, sound and feel of the new world.
Once the baby is born, it is brought to the surface of the water and wrapped in blankets. Ask your doctor or midwife if your spouse is a good candidate for waterbirthing. Water birth is not safe for women or babies who have health issues. Medical Pain Relief While your spouse is in labor, her doctor, midwife or nurse should ask if she needs pain relief. It is her job to help your spouse decide what option is the best for her. There are many different kinds of pain relief. Not all options are available at every hospital and birthing center. Plus your spouse’s health history, allergies, and any problems with her pregnancy will make some options better than others.
Types of pain relief used for labor and delivery include: Intravenous or intramuscular analgesic A doctor gives your partner pain medicine through a tube inserted in a vein (intravenous) or by injecting the medicine into a muscle (intramuscular). These medicines go into her blood and help ease the pain. Opiods including morphine, fentanyl and nalbuphine are usually used for this type of pain relief. This option does not get rid of all the pain. Instead it usually just makes the pain bearable. After getting this kind of pain relief, she can still get an epidural or spinal pain relief later. Some disadvantages of getting intravenous or intramuscular analgesics include:
* They make your partner feel sleepy and drowsy.
* They can cause nausea and vomiting.
* They can make her feel very itchy.
* These medicines cross into the baby’s bloodstream. So they can affect the baby’s breathing, heart rate and cause him/her to be very sleepy after birth.
Epidural anesthesia
A doctor injects medicine into the lower part of your partner’s backbone or spine. The medicine blocks pain in the parts of the body below the shot. During a contraction, the feeling of pain travels from the uterus to the brain along nerves in the backbone. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, epidurals block the pain of contractions by numbing these nerves. Epidurals allow most women to be awake and alert with very little pain. Many women who get epidurals do not feel any pain during contractions and childbirth. Medicines used in epidurals include novocaine-like drugs that block the pain in that region combined with opiods like fentanyl. Some disadvantages of getting an epidural include:
* It can make your spouse shiver.
* It can lower her blood pressure.
* It can make her feel very itchy.
* It can cause headaches.
* It many not numb the entire painful area. So women continue to feel pain in an area of the abdomen and back.
Pudendal Block
A doctor injects numbing medicine into the vagina and a nearby nerve called the pudendal nerve. This nerve carries sensation to the lower part of your partner’s vagina and vulva. This is only used late in labor, usually right before the baby’s head comes out. With a pudendal block, you have some pain relief but remain awake, alert and able to push the baby out. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the baby is not affected by this medicine and it has very few disadvantages.
Spinal anesthesia
A doctor injects a medicine into the lower part of your backbone. This medicine numbs the body below where the medicine was injected. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, spinal anesthesia gives immediate pain relief. So it is often used for women who need an emergency Cesarean section. Spinal anesthesia uses numbing medicines similar to novocaine combined with opiods like fentanyl. Some disadvantages of spinal anesthesia include:
* It numbs the body from the chest down to the feet.
* It makes one feel short of breath.
* It can lower one’s blood pressure.
* It can cause headaches.
This may be a good time during the pregnancy for your spouse to give a thought to the manner of delivery she wishes to opt for. The options-natural, induced, or cesarean-all have their pros and cons.
Natural delivery
• This is the most common method of childbirth.
• It does not involve an extended stay in a hospital.
• The risks associated with major surgery are avoided.
• This method of delivery makes breastfeeding easier.
• The mother can actively participate in the childbirth.
Induced delivery
• In this method, labor is artificially induced rather than spontaneous.
• It avoids complications in post-term babies.
• The pregnant mom, or her doctor, can decide when to go in for labor.
• Studies report that women who have induced labor are less likely to develop chorioamnionitis, an infection of the placental membranes.
If your spouse’s pregnancy extends beyond her due date, her doctor may decide to induce labor. In fact, there some everyday activities, natural labor inducers, that are popularly believed to induce labor. Find information on common natural labor induction when your spouse’s pregnancy extends beyond her due date.
Cesarean section
• In this method, delivery is surgically carried out through an incision made by the doctor in the abdomen and uterus.
• It is required if labor does not progress normally.
• It is also required in case of a complication in the pregnancy.
• It is useful in cases where the fetus has been diagnosed with a developmental problem.
• It is helpful in cases of women carrying twins, triplets, or multiples.
• Cesarean is also used in the cases where the mom has herpes or similar infections, to prevent the baby from contracting these infections.
As many as 13 percent of new mothers are depressed after giving birth.
The National Women’s Health Information Center offers these suggestions to help ease postpartum depression:
* Don’t worry about making sure you’re doing everything perfectly. Do what you can, the best you can.
* Don’t be afraid to ask for help from your spouse or partner, friends or family.
* Sleep as much as you can. Take advantage of your baby’s nap time to catch up.
* Plan dates with your partner or outings with your friends to have some time to yourself.
* Talk about what you’re feeling with friends and family, as well as other new moms
going through the same thing.
* Join a support group for new mothers.
* Keep life as simple as possible after the baby is born. Now is not the time to make major decisions or life changes, unless you must.
Women who move miles away from their families and hometowns for work reasons feel ‘ignorant and ill-equipped’ to cope with pregnancy and childbirth, the results of a new study indicate.
According to the findings, many women do not have the support and advice they need when they have a baby because they live too far from close family members.
Dr Angela Davis of the University of Warwick in the UK interviewed over 90 women about their experiences of pregnancy, childbirth and childcare. She found that today, women are more likely to live further away from their families, ‘which means they are less likely to have relatives on hand’.
“Also most births take place in hospital so very few women have been present at childbirth before they have their own child,” she noted.
Part of the study focused on motherhood from 1930 to 1970 and according to Dr Davis, the results were surprising, as she discovered that there has always been ignorance surrounding sex education and childbirth, but for different reasons.
She noted that issues surrounding sex and childbirth in the 1930s, 40s and 50s were considered taboo and were not often discussed in the home. She also noted that while women now seemed better informed about sex, there was still far too little information given to them about the development of pregnancy, childbirth and infant care.
Dr Davis said that many of the women she interviewed had tried to be more open with their own children about sex education. However she found that ‘they did show some level of ambivalence on the subject, and many were not sure that this increased knowledge was entirely a good thing’.
The study found that women today often feel unprepared to look after their child. A number of the women interviewed said that while they do feel a natural instinct to care, they have no idea how to actually go about providing this care.
When I went into labor with my first pregnancy, I tried to find comfort in one of the mantras I’d been repeating to myself for weeks in preparation for this very moment: My body knows what to do. It was meant to soothe my creeping anxiety as labor pains increased.
It was supposed to help me take control of my situation, to help me feel less like a hospital patient and more like, well, a mom.
To prepare for giving birth, I had signed up for a class in hypnobirthing, a class that focuses on deep relaxation and self-hypnotism as a way of coping with labor pain. My midwife suggested it, thinking it might do this Type A mom-to-be a little good to learn to relax.
Hypnobirthing is aimed at helping women through a process they’re often unfamiliar with and deeply afraid of. It can be used by women who don’t plan to ask for pain relief during labor, as well as women who are planning a c-section
“If it is important to them that they can be as calm and in control as they can be and that birthing gently, birthing joyfully and calmly — if that is something they are working toward and they don’t mind committing to practice, then it is a wonderful class,”
If you know you are planning to use an epidural to help you manage pain during childbirth, you may not be thinking about natural childbirth techniques. In contrast with an epidural which almost always provides good pain relief with no effort from the mother, natural childbirth techniques take time to learn, time to practice and you don’t know which ones will help you most until your labor begins. But as is so often true in life, there is great value in the things you have to work harder for.
1. Your labor may move faster than you expect - the typical labor may start slow, and slowly build to active labor, but not all do. About 2% of women experience a precipitate labor, one in which the early stages pass so easily they are unnoticed and the mother suddenly finds herself dealing with a fast active labor. If your labor starts fast, the natural childbirth techniques you learn will not only keep you comfortable, but also help you stay calm and as relaxed as possible until you get to your birth place.
2. It can take 20 minutes to an hour or more from the time you request an epidural to the time you get pain relief. Instead of being a specific medication, epidural and spinal are advanced anesthetic techniques. This means you need an anesthesiologist or nurse anesthetist to administer one. Unlike simpler, less effective pain relief methods which your midwife, doctor or nurse could administer, when you choose an epidural you need to wait for the anesthesiologist to be available.You could have pain relief in as fast as 20 minutes if everything was already set up and the staff ready, or you could be waiting for another woman to have an epidural administered first, or waiting for an anesthesiologist to finish assisting a cesarean surgery or come to the hospital. In some smaller hospitals, epidurals are not available ‘after hours,’ the staff relying instead on simpler methods of pain relief which are not as effective. Natural childbirth techniques will be your only choice for pain management until things are ready for an epidural to be administered, and can be helpful if you receive a less effective pain medication.
More at: http://www.doulasanantonio.com/5-reasons-to-learn-natural-childbirth-techniques
A company in Silicon Valley, California has launched a new product that bundles a pregnancy test with a kit that can tell the mother whether she’s carrying a boy or a girl. Consumer Genetics, based in Sunnyvale, has developed a direct-to-consumer genetic testing product that reveals a baby’s gender early. It’s called the “pink or blue” test. The super-sensitive test requires that no men be present while the pregnant woman pricks her finger to draw a blood sample for the lab card.
Anna Vitebsky, Consumer Genetics: “The way the pink or blue test works is by detecting small amounts of male DNA in the woman’s blood, so the only way she would have male DNA in her blood is if she’s pregnant with a baby boy.”
Consumer Genetics claims an accuracy of 95% or greater. However, because the pink or blue test is classified as non-medical, it’s not regulated by any federal medical guidelines.
SUNNYVALE, CA (KGO) — A Silicon Valley company has launched a new product that bundles a pregnancy test with a kit that can tell the mother whether she’s carrying a boy or a girl. It tests fetal DNA from the woman’s dried blood sample and has sparked a new ethical debate.
Pink or blue, girl or boy — find out early — as early as seven weeks into the pregnancy.
“This is about the joy of knowing,” said Terry Carmichael, Consumer Genetics.
And so a Sunnyvale-based company, Consumer Genetics, is capitalizing on that desire with the development of a direct-to-consumer genetic testing product that reveals a baby’s gender early - it’s called the ‘Pink or Blue’ test.
“The way the ‘Pink or Blue’ test works is by detecting small amounts of male DNA in the woman’s blood. So the only way she would have male DNA in her blood is if she’s pregnant with a baby boy,” said Anna Vitebsky, Consumer Genetics.
To avoid any possible contamination of male DNA giving an in-accurate result, this super-sensitive test requires no men be present while the pregnant woman pricks her finger to draw a blood sample for the lab card. Consumer Genetics claims an accuracy of 95 percent, or greater.
Dr. David Magnus, a biomedical ethicist at Stanford University, says accuracy rate is not his only concern.
“One of the questions that this technology raises is why? What’s the market? What’s the value?” said Dr. Magnus.
He believes consumer tests like these could lend to gender disappointment, upsetting a woman who isn’t carrying the gender she desired. But ethically even worse, it opens the door for gender selection — leading to abortions, which is a cultural issue in some countries and can skew sex ratios.
“We know that in China or India that actually more men are born than women and that could have very serious social consequences,” said Dr. Magnus.
“We do not sell our products to China for example. We do not sell our product to India,” said Carmichael.
“Our consent forms and policies clearly state you should not be using this for gender selection, or even for medical reasons,” said Vitebsky.
Consumer Genetics insists its product was never designed for gender selection purposes. Since first launching in 2006, its lab has processed results for more than 6,000 women worldwide. Because the pink or blue test is classified as non-medical, it’s not regulated by any federal medical guidelines, but ethicists will be watching.
“If we see some of the technology like this taking off, and we start to see it having an impact on sex ratios, that might be the point where it makes sense to start to think about putting stricter regulations or even a ban in place,” said Dr. Magnus.
Obese women should try not to put on too much weight in pregnancy
A new study has underlined the high risks faced by obese women in their first pregnancy.
Scientists at Kings College in London analysed data from the pregnancies of 385 first-time obese mothers.
They found that obese women had higher rates of eclampsia and premature births compared to women inside recommended weight guidelines.
Obese women were nearly twice as likely to give birth to a low-weight baby, weighing less than 5lbs 8oz (2.5kg).
Experts say it is a huge issue for all maternity units in the UK.
The researchers, who report their findings of the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology study, also took blood samples taken from 208 of the women for further analysis.
High risks
At birth, 18.8% of their babies were classified as having a low birth weight - they weighed less than 2.5kg.
This compares with 10% of babies born to women of prescribed weight - known as the “healthy population”.
Babies who were deemed to be of a particularly large weight made up 13.4% of those born to the women studied, compared to 10% in a healthy population.
Rates of pre-eclampsia were higher, with 11.7% of obese first-time mothers developing the condition compared to 6% of obese women with one or more previous pregnancies and 2% of the healthy population.
The risk of pre-eclampsia increased according to how much weight the women put on in pregnancy.
Premature births were almost twice the national average at 11.9%.
PREGNANCY RISKS FOR OBESE WOMEN
Small babies
Large babies
Pre-eclampsia
Diabetes
Premature births
Stillbirth
Instrumental deliveries
Postpartum haemorrhage
Caesareans
The lead researcher, Professor Lucilla Poston of Kings College Hospital and St Thomas’s Hospital, said: “The large proportion of small babies was particularly unexpected as obesity is more often associated with the birth of overweight babies.
“The high number of cases of pre-eclampsia found in this group was very concerning as this is a serious pregnancy complication which, in extreme cases, can result in maternal and/or foetal death.
“We must now start to consider first-time pregnancy as an additional problem in obese pregnant women, who we know are already more likely than thinner women to have a complicated pregnancy.”
The risks associated with prematurity and low birth weight include brain damage, difficulty with breathing, learning problems and greater susceptibility to infection.
Professor Postin said the reason why obesity causes these problems is not known but it’s believed that insulin resistance may be the problem.
Insulin resistance is when normal amounts of insulin can’t completely breakdown sugar in the diet.
“Normal pregnancy induces a mild form of insulin resistance and we know that obese people become more insulin resistant and that promotes diabetes, pre-eclampsia and macrosomia or bigger babies.”
Increasing burden
The researchers say the women in the study had a high rate of Caesarean sections and warn that increasing numbers of obese pregnancies could make a major contribution to the rise in the number of caesareans in the UK.
They also point out that the women stayed longer in hospital, 4.6 days compared to a national average of three days or fewer.
Professor Jane Norman, professor of maternal and foetal health at the University of Edinburgh, said: “This study underlines and emphasises the pregnancy risks for obese women.
“It shows that women in their first pregnancy run a particularly high risk and that the issue about obese women is not just their weight before pregnancy but how much weight they gain during it.
“Obstetricians are just starting to wake up to this.
“Previously their concerns were twin pregnancies, diabetic mums and older women.”
We need to ensure that women get early access to a midwife so that they can get lifestyle and weight management advice as soon as possible
Mervi Jokinen, Royal College of Midwives
Professor Norman has set up a clinic for obese pregnant women at the Royal Infirmary in Edinburgh.
There are only two such clinics in the UK.
They try to encourage obese women not to gain too much weight during pregnancy.
Professor Norman said the extra costs of treating them were not just down to a longer stay in hospital: “We’ve had to buy in lots of new equipment in order to treat obese people properly.
“New operating tables and even new blood pressure cuffs because the ordinary ones give wrong readings on an obese person.
“This is a huge issue for all maternity units including our own.”
Mervi Jokinen, from the Royal College of Midwives, said: “Obesity is an issue that is becoming increasingly prominent in maternity care and midwives are aware of the complexities and potential problems that obesity brings into pregnancy.
“We need to ensure that women get early access to a midwife so that she can get lifestyle and weight management advice as soon as possible, and that this continues throughout the pregnancy and after the birth of the baby.
“This survey also reinforces the need to tackle obesity not just as an issue for maternity services but as a much wider public health issue, because this is a health problem that affects men as well as women and children as well as adults.”
Pregnancy news: Obesity, smoking bad, and how to lose the weight after
Obese mom tied to higher infant mortality
Babies born to obese mothers are more likely to die, particularly in their first week of life, than are babies born to moms of normal weight. A study from Creighton University School of Medicine looked at medical records from more than 4,000 babies who died and 7,000 surviving babies. Of the babies who died, 8.8 percent had obese mothers, compared to 5.9 percent of the surviving babies.
Researchers found that babies of obese women were at higher risk of death no matter how much weight they gained during pregnancy, but moms who gained a pound or more a week were nearly three times more likely to have a baby who died in the first year of life. The second-highest risk group was obese women who gained the least amount of weight during pregnancy, who had a 1.75 times great risk of infant death than normal weight women.
The same pattern was also seen in overweight women, with those who gained the most weight having the highest risk followed by those who gained the least.
Obesity a problem for teen moms, too
Teenage mothers who are obese when pregnant have a similar risk of pregnancy complications as do obese adult women, a report in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology says. Researchers from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, looked at 458 births to teen mothers, many of whom were African American.
The girls who were obese before getting pregnant were four times more likely than thinner girls to develop gestational diabetes and were about four times more likely to require a Caesarean section, about the same rate as older women who are obese during pregnancy.
Smoking while pregnant cuts baby’s blood flow
Most people know that smoking while pregnant isn’t a great idea, and new research shows that doing so limits blood flow to the baby, which could slow his or her growth. It’s been known for half a century that smoking while pregnant often leads to lower birth weights, but it wasn’t known why.
Researchers at Gentoffe University Hospital in Hellerup, Denmark, studied 266 pregnant women and found that the smokers had babies who were shorter, had smaller heads and weighed less than the non-smokers’ babies.
Smoking was associated with a 47 percent reduction in a protein that helps blood flood and blood vessel relaxation, as well as an 18 percent reduction in levels of HDL or good cholesterol in the blood of the fetus.
Whether you were of normal weight or overweight before getting pregnant, most new moms are interested in losing some weight after delivery. But it’s important when trying to lose weight after having a baby to be patient with yourself and not compare yourself to celebrities who seem to lose their baby weight in a flash (who’s taking care of their kids when they’re spending six hours a day in the gym, anyway?).
Instead, don’t diet, because it will make you more stressed than you already are caring for a new human; eat foods full of nutrition; breastfeed if you can (definitely don’t try to cut calories if you’re breastfeeding, by the way); drink a lot of water; get some exercise; and try to get some sleep, OK?
Additional blood flow during pregnancy can cause spider veins to develop below the skin
That so-called pregnancy glow is not a myth – women do “glow” thanks to a combination of factors
Heat rash and acne breakouts are not unusual for pregnant women
Discolored skin patches on the face – known as the pregnancy mask – can develop in the middle of the pregnancy
When a woman is going to have a baby, her body is obviously going to go through a lot of changes. She’ll put on weight, go through morning sickness and constipation, have cravings and mood swings. But mothers-to-be also notice changes in their skin during pregnancy. Below are five of the most noticeable pregnancy skin changes. 1. Heat Rash
While not necessarily visible to other people, a heat rash is one of many skin changes during pregnancy. Because of the other body changes, pregnant women are going to produce a lot more heat and perspiration. These factors combined with skin rubbing against clothes can cause an irritating skin rash to develop, especially under the breasts, under the lower abdomen, and on the inner thigh.
2. Spider Veins
When you’re pregnant, you actually are pumping a higher volume of blood through your body and that can put a stress of your capillaries. As a result, you might end up developing unsightly spider veins on your skin. These look like reddish or purple lines just under the skin. As the pressure builds, they can get longer or branch out like a river. Unfortunately, spider veins don’t always disappear after pregnancy so you may need to have them removed by a dermatologist using a process known as sclerotherapy. With this treatment, a small needle is injected into the spider vein causing it to collapse.
3. Acne Breakouts
One of the main reasons acne is so common during adolescence is the increase in hormone activity which causes your oil glands to start working over time. And guess what? When you become pregnant and your hormones go back into overdrive, the same phenomenon is going to lead to breakouts. The good news is that once your hormones go back to normal so will your oil glands. Until then, you’ll want to maintain a good skin care routine including daily cleansing with a mild, non-drying soap (drying too much will make the problem worse). Don’t squeeze, scratch, or mess with the pimples either or you could end up with scars that will last long after the pregnancy skin changes.
4. Pregnancy Mask
Of all the possible skin changes during pregnancy, women tend to worry about the pregnancy mask the most. During the second trimester, some women develop discolored patches on their faces, usually around their forehead, cheeks, and chin. These patches are caused by an increase in melanin production in the skin thanks to the overworking hormones. There’s nothing you can do to stop the dreaded pregnancy mask from developing. If you do develop these patches, your physician may be able to recommend some safe bleaching products that can help. You can also minimize the problem by reducing your exposure to ultraviolet light which causes more melanin to be produced.
5. Pregnancy Glow
If you’re pregnant now, you’ve probably already had at least one person remark on that pregnancy glow which is usually attributed to the happiness of the expectant mother about her soon-to-arrive bundle of joy. Although most moms are probably very happy about their pregnancy, the glow has a more physiological cause. The extra blood flow being pumped through the body and the increase in oil secretions combine to form that glow which, interestingly enough, you’ll also notice on women’s faces after any period of high emotion. So maybe linking the glow to happiness isn’t such a stretch after all.
Cardiff researchers have for the first time studied whether smoking during pregnancy can directly make children more likely to behave anti-socially.
The unique study by scientists at the University Schools of Medicine and Psychology examined the records of 779 children born by in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) whose prenatal environment was provided by either a related mother or an unrelated mother.
They found a link between anti-social behaviour in children whose mothers smoked in pregnancy – but only when the mother was genetically linked to the child.
When the child came from a donated egg and donated embryo – egg or embryo donation or surrogacy - there was no link, suggesting factors other than smoking during pregnancy influence anti-social behaviour.
The results of the study, funded by the Wellcome Trust, have been published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
It is well-established that smoking during pregnancy, whether the mother is genetically related to the baby or not has an adverse effect on birth weight.
But links between what mothers do in pregnancy and how it may affect the mental health and behaviour of children are less researched. While mothers who smoke during pregnancy are more likely to have anti-social children, it has not been clear if this is a direct result of the smoking.
The researchers were able to study IVF children, with differing degrees of genetic relation to their parents, to disentangle the effects of genetic influences and the prenatal environment.
The study is the first of its kind in the world to allow these effects to be separated. In the published paper, the researchers looked at effects of mother’s smoking in pregnancy on the child’s birth weight and the child’s behaviour, paying particular attention to mothers not genetically related to their unborn baby.
Professor Anita Thapar, clinical child psychiatrist and Principal Investigator on the study said: “What we have been able to confirm is that cigarette smoke in pregnancy does lower birth weight regardless of whether the mother and child are genetically related or not, but the link with children’s behaviour is different.
“It is now clear that offspring anti-social behaviour is more dependent on inherited factors passed from mother to child, as our group of children with mothers who smoked during pregnancy with no direct genetic link showed no increased signs of anti-social behaviour.
“This suggests that other influencing factors such as the mother’s personality traits and other inherited characteristics are at play during the development of a baby.”
Professor Thapar believes this unique approach opens the way to tease apart the effect of genes and environment on a variety of other conditions in the future and has significant policy implications.
She said: “This type of research is able to tell us what sorts of interventions in pregnancy are the right ones to focus on in order to improve the physical and mental health of children.”
The paper’s other authors include Dr Frances Rice, formerly of School of Medicine, and Professor Gordon Harold, formerly School of Psychology, Dr Jacky Boivin and Professor Dale Hay, School of Psychology and Dr Marianne van den Bree, School of Medicine.
The Study received £125,000 from a Wellcome Trust Showcase Award for novel research, and a further £385,000 Project Grant to conduct the study.
We need to ensure that women get early access to a midwife so that they can get lifestyle and weight management advice as soon as possible 
