How You Can Visualize the Easy Birth of Your Child

The silence is deafening as you crouch low, impatiently waiting for the signal to go.

You move; your legs powering semi-instinctively forwards beneath you, your eyes held high and towards the finishing line, your mind sharp, focused and effective. The preparation of months or even years is finally coming to fruition right here and right now. You’ve eaten the best and most nutritious diet possible, trained diligently day after day, month after month, and absorbed every detail you possibly could about technique and posture, and you have also dedicated hour upon hour to visualizing how it will actually feel to win and achieve your dreams.

You can do it, you just know you can..

Running a race like this, or taking part in a sporting event is widely accepted to be 50% physical and 50% mental. Our top athletes eat nutritiously, train efficiently and employ the power of visualization to help them break through any challenges that could arise, and triumph.

Then why do we expect our bodies to simply ‘perform’ during the birth of our children without paying due attention to the way we are feeling inside and the challenges that we might encounter along the way? We do all of the good physical stuff but hide away how we really feel inside.

If we continue to behave like this and ignore our inner thoughts, emotions and bury any self-doubt or fear, we run the risk of jeopardizing our abilities to have the birth experience that we desire and deserve.

But it doesn’t have to be like this.

Using the power of visualization, we can experience the easy birth of our child. We can overcome those fears that haunt us, grow hugely in confidence and enjoy the arrival of our child.

Let me show you how.

Let’s Talk About Childbirth

The birth of your child is such a transformative moment in your life, and it’s enormously exiting too. You can’t wait to meet your beautiful newborn, start your journey as parent and child, and to ignite that loving relationship that will accompany you both for the rest of your lives. You’ve been doing all of the right things to nourish your child and prepare for the birth- eating wholesome and nutritious food, getting plenty of rejuvenating sleep and avoiding all of the things that they tell you to.

But you can’t help feeling scared and unprepared. There’s that certain degree of dread lurking that you keep pushed down deep inside and you can hardly bear to acknowledge. Come to think of it, you’re petrified and you’re not sure how you will come through it.

You’re not alone in feeling like this. Far from it.

This fear arises from decades of exposure to negative and exaggerated ideas about childbirth and the mother’s experience, from the media, our friends and family, and the wider world. People just adore to share their own stories of childbirth- the more dramatic, painful and eventful the better! Just as long as they, themselves, are painted as some kind of long-suffering hero. But unfortunately you don’t have your own experience to help filter the good information from the bad, and so you end up swallowing it all, whether it’s true or not.

It’s also the impending journey into the unknown that causes us to feel so afraid and apprehensive. The path towards parenthood is a packed full of uncertainties just like this: How will my body change? What will labour feel like when it starts? Will it really hurt? Will I know what to do with a baby? Can I really do this? And so on….

The Effect of Fear Upon the Birth Process

Here’s the thing. If we continue to deny that fear and allow it to slowly creep up behind us, it could potentially ruin our birth experience and could even result in an increase in medical intervention and more discomfort. Don’t believe me? Here’s how it works.

Let’s pretend for a moment that you’re on a wonderful, relaxing camping trip in the wilds of North America. It’s the dead of night, cricket song echoes on all sides, and you’re lying in your tent reading quietly by torchlight. Suddenly, you become aware of heavy footsteps approaching, and the cracking sound of wood canvas alerts you to the fact that you are soon to come face to face with a huge, nasty, hungry brown bear. It’s just on the other side of that painfully thin layer of canvas…

Step back from our story for a moment and check in with your body. What is it doing right now? What are you experiencing? There’s no denying that the incredible power of your mind alone has shaped your physical experience. In other words, your body has reacted to what is going on inside your head. As a result, your body has closed off from the world: your shoulders are hunched up towards your ears, your muscles are tense, your breathing is more rapid and your heart is beating erratically, preparing for fight-or-flight.

Could you happily and easily welcome your child into the world when you are feeling like this? The obvious answer is no.

Negative emotions such as apprehension, fear, negative thought and self-doubt all have a similar effects upon our bodies, and can have horribly detrimental effects upon childbirth. These emotions cause levels of fear hormones to spike in our bloodstream, causing stress hormones to overpower those vital birth hormones, blood flow gets routed away from our reproductive organs towards the limbs and heart, and our muscles become tense and ready to react.

So, as you can see, if you experience fear and negative emotion during labour, your body will stop responding effectively to the natural birthing process and things are will get challenging.

How Visualization Will Empower Your Birth Experience

Visualization will use the power of your mind to help you to believe in and trust the incredible natural power inside and allow your child to enter the world easily. You will relax and approach the birth of your child calmly and feeling completely in control. It will give you the confidence to choose what is right for yourself and your child during labour and will help you to perceive birth differently. You will feel peace, understanding and joy. And it might reduce the discomfort you experience too.

How Does Visualization Work?

Visualization is the creation of an image in your mind, whether this is a concrete visual image or more of a vague ‘feeling’. It’s not about just imagining winning a race, or giving birth, and leave it at that. When you visualize, you evoke everything that might be present at the event itself- the sights, the smells, the sounds, the textures of the fabrics against your skin, and the sights and feelings about the other people who are present. Think of it like a highly realistic dress-rehearsal.

Additionally, you will also be able to visualize your own reaction to these things, as well as any challenges that you might come across. You will feel confidence and comfort and will react naturally to your surroundings.

As a result, levels of stress hormones will decline allowing the birth hormones to work their magic and your entire body will relax and accept the wonder of birth.

Visualization really is the key to achieving the birth you’ve always wanted and empowering you to feel confident and trusting in the power of your body. Don’t waste this beautiful time feeling afraid- instead use your inner power to prepare, relax and enjoy the final moments of waiting for your new arrival.

Would you like to personally discover the magic of visualisation and its effects on your own labour? I have many years of experience guiding and helping women just like you and I’d love to empower you to have the easy birth that you deserve. Contact me to find out more.