1. Understand your Birth Imprint

Something I speak to my Doula clients about very early on in their journey, is how their birth shapes their inner dialogue and deep subconscious beliefs. A birth imprint shapes a baby’s brain chemistry, how they perceive the world, and their default nervous system imprint (parasympathetic or sympathetic). If possible, it is worth hearing your story, as it can impact how you perceives birth & how your child perceives birth when they are older.
For more information, check out this fantastic Blog Post by Grace & Ivy (2022) https://graceandivy.com.au/birth-imprinting/#:~:text=Birth%20Imprinting%20or%20Limbic%20Imprinting%20is%20the%20process,birth%2C%20and%20the%20first%20few%20years%20of%20life.

2. Choosing your care provider & model of care

Preferably a private midwife or a continuity of care model, like a midwifery group practice (MGP). Establishing rapport with a midwife allows you to cultivate a strong relationship, built on a deep understanding and trust. For your best chance at having a vaginal birth, perhaps consider a homebirth which is statistically linked to a 95.2% increased chance of success (Australian Mothers & Babies Report, 2021). In circumstances where continuity of care isn’t possible, the support of a doula can be invaluable, in fact Doula support is linked to better birth outcomes across the board including higher chances of spontaneous labour, vaginal birth, decreased epidural use, decreased risk instrumental birth, and a decreased risk of caesarean. In addition, mother reported far less negative feelings towards birth and experienced a shorter labor by 40 minutes. For more more info about Doulas visit https://evidencebasedbirth.com/the-evidence-for-doulas/

3. Don’t skimp on childbirth education

Understanding the physiological process of birth and the various options available to you is key to informed decision-making. I highly recommend Hypnobirthing Australia’s Positive Birth Program, it is jam-packed full of all the information you need to have a positive and empowering birth experience.
Almost all of my Doula clients choose my middle package that includes Hypnobirthing classes, currently I offer group classes, private 1:1 virtual, and private 1:1 in-home classes.

4. A Birth Plan is a good start, but a Birth Map is even better!

In contrast to The Traditional Birth Plan, which is often includes a narrow set of expectation/wishes or preferences, The Birth Map includes several different pathways, including the expected, fast birth and contingency pathway. Think of it like a “if not this, then what?” approach, if/when you reach a crossroad throughout your birth, where you are faced with having to make a decision, you can do so confidently and calmly, understanding the risks/benefits it presents to you and your baby. I love helping my Doula client’s create their Birth Map, they find it really helps to better communicate with their care provider, and to gain all of the information they require to make true informed decisions that feel good to them.

5. Energy + setting boundaries

Before inviting anyone into your birth space, consider the energy that they are going to bring, and how that feels to you. Don’t be afraid to clear boundaries and say no if the energy doesn’t feel good.
Any stress or fear that is projected can penetrate your atmosphere and affect you deeply, choose your birth team wisely and remember – this is your birth!

6. Chill out babes!

Hopefully you’ve attended some childbirth education classes by now and learnt some relaxation techniques for labour. As a Doula & Hypnobirthing Educator, I recommend daily relaxation and self-hypnosis practices to cultulivate a strong and positive mindset. In addition, your relaxation practice also positively influences your baby and their brain development. To read more on how maternal stress affects child development long-term, refer to this link https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10837967/

7. Consider a Doula

Having a Doula on your team can help foster the calmness, confident and self-trust you need to birth like a Queen. As a Doula, I provide educational, physical, emotional, and spiritual support from bump, birth and beyond, to make certain that you’re feeling loved, supported, and nurtured all throughout your journey. Doula’s can provide a crucial form of support know as Bystander intervention, this involves advocating for your informed decisions, human rights & birthing rights.

8. Stop asking everyone else what they think you should do. Instead do this…

Listen to your intuition, she’s so smart. Intuition might come in the form of an emotion, a physical feeling like goosebumps, or instinctually you feel that something is just “off”. Don’t ignore these warning signs, instead turn inwards, and ask yourself “What do I actually want?” and/or “How do I actually feel about this?”.

9. Let’s get real about your perception of pain

Right now, I want you to reflect on how your inner dialogue speaks about birth, what subconscious messaging is she passing on? Does these messages make you think positively or negatively about birth.
Our western culture has a less than ideal perception of pain and tends to lump pain into the same category as pathological pain (think healthy functional pain Vs illness, injury & disease).
We’ve all heard stories of trauma from friends, family and colleagues and negatively portrayed images of birth through mainstream media and television. Over time when our subconscious hears this repeated messaging, it stores it as fact and create a whole new belief system. As a Hypnobirthing Educator, I help client’s to tap into their subconscious via self-hypnosis techniques, so that they can release their fears, and embed new and positive messages.

10. Intentional Movement

With a background in Personal Training & instructing Pilates, I am very passionate about teaching women how physical exercise can help them build mental strength and resilience. The purpose of intentional movement is to gain body-awareness, in other words to listen to what your body is trying communicate to you. For Example; Are you being instructed to move more, rest more, or even move into a different position?. In addition, challenging yourself with some form of exercise can also improve your physical strength and endurance, which will help you immensely during labour.