Photos are so special. Whether they’re candid snaps or professional portraits, they capture a moment in time. Did you also know photos can have a really powerful, positive impact on your birth? If you’re pregnant, read on to find out how photos can help to reduce pain in birth and increase your chances of labour progressing as normal.
First, let me introduce myself. I’m Rhi and I’m a hypnobirthing teacher. I offer 5-star rated, award-winning hypnobirthing courses in Leeds and online to support women and their birth partners to approach their births calmly, confidently and feeling empowered. I also teach pregnancy relaxation classes and plan events for expectant parents in Leeds.
I firmly believe that knowledge around birth is power. Knowing how the body works and how you can best support it is a really powerful way of improving your birth experience and outcomes. For this reason, one of the key topics on my course is birth hormones. Who knew your GCSE in biology would come in handy when giving birth?! I wonder if you know of any of the hormones present in birth. Not many of my clients do before coming on my courses.
The main hormone that fuels labour is oxytocin, which is sometimes referred to as the ‘love hormone’. This hormone fuels your contractions and keeps labour progressing naturally and smoothly. The more we can boost this, the better. Another hormone that will be present is adrenaline. You might know this as the ‘fight or flight’ hormone. Some adrenaline is perfectly natural in labour but too much of it and your body will protect you by going slowing everything down (you don’t want your baby to be born into a dangerous place, where it will be eaten by a bear now, do you?). The third hormone that we talk about are endorphins. These are the body’s natural pain killers and can be really beneficial in reducing pain and discomfort.
On my course, you will learn lots of practical ways to limit your adrenaline in birth, but today, I’m here to talk oxytocin and how you can boost it. Here are 3 practical tips to boost oxytocin in birth:
1. Create a birth playlist. Sit down with your birth partner and make a playlist of all your favourite songs. Listen to it as often as you can while relaxing in pregnancy to create a strong anchor between those songs and a feeling of relaxation. Make sure it’s on your birth plan to play the playlist throughout labour to help boost your oxytocin through anchoring you back to that feeling.
2. Use scents. Smells have an amazingly powerful way of transporting you to times and places in your life and making you feel the way you felt when you first experienced it. Building a favourite scent (a room spray/diffuser oil or aromatherapy roller) into your relaxation practice will help you to develop an anchor so you associate that scent to a feeling of relaxation. Using that scent in birth in turn will boost your feelings of calm, happiness and relaxation and therefore boost your oxytocin.
3. Create a ‘happy times’ photo slideshow. Take photos of all your favourite happy memories and pop them in an album on your phone and have them playing as a slideshow during labour. These can be any photos, whether they’re stunning family photos taken by Claire or silly, candid shots taken on your holidays. The memories these pictures will evoke will serve as a double whammy of pain relief by boosting your oxytocin as well as distracting you from the discomfort you’re feeling – perfect!
The more oxytocin you manage to have flowing, the more likely your labour is to progress normally. These simple, easy-to-do tips will have a real impact on your birth.
Wishing you all the best of luck for your pregnancy journey.
Rhi x
For more pregnancy tips, make sure you’re following me on IG: @birth.beyoutifully.with.rhi
For more information about my upcoming courses and events please visit my website www.birthbeyoutifullywithrhi.com
