Hypnobirthing class 2: Affirmations

To read Class 1 Part 1 and Part 2
Alright first off I have to apologize because I read over my last two posts about my first class and while I found it all incredibly amazing information I am not really sure it was all that interesting to read.  I am going to try to keep the information we learned in the second class just informative for anyone who might want to know before taking the class.   If you read nothing else in this post skip down to the affirmations part.  I feel that this can help every person in all aspects of life!!!
Completely random note: Last night during our break from class Ron and I walked down to his office to get a drink because it is cheaper there and he was working on a fetal monitor so he plugged it in and we got to here little girls heartbeat!  Its such a beautiful sound!  It was a strong heartbeat of 155! 

Hypnobirthing focuses on 4 things.
1.Breathing
2. Relaxation
3. Visualization
4. Deepening relaxation. 

We discussed breathing and relaxation yesterday and practiced some of these methods.  I have been practicing one of breathing methods this past week before I go to bed and I can honestly attest that it always relaxes me and puts me to sleep very quickly.  The funny thing is I learned this particular method when I took voice lessons in high school.  It is a type of belly breath that we used to practice before every single lesson and it would always relax me so I have used it frequently since then to help me get to sleep!  Crazy!  We also worked on a breathing method to do during surges (or contractions).

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There is a few different methods of Relaxation that we also worked on and I have already found that I like one more than the rest.  It works very quickly for me.  We learned something called LIGHT TOUCH MASSAGE that your birth partner can do to help you relax and release endorphins during labor. I found it very effective when we practiced it in class. 

Here is a man using light touch massage on this birthing mom.

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We also discussed the process of breathing down which is used in hypnobirthing in place of pushing the baby out.  This is probably another post for another time but I promise I will talk about it again. 

My favorite part of the class was Affirmations. 
Every thought we have creates a biochemcial reaction.  So when we tell ourselves that we can do something we are more likely to be able to do this. 

One of my favorite affirmations

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My first experience with affirmations was when I was running my first race.  I was struggling near the last mile.  I told my sister that I didn't think I could run anymore.  She started encouraging me and I started to tell myself that I could in my mind.  I started to remind myself that I had worked so hard four this and that I was going to finish this thing and not stop running.  I never stopped running and finished the race because I told myself I could!

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Affirmations are very important in pregnancy and birthing because it is truly the hardest thing that any women will ever experience.  I think another reason why affirmations are so important during pregnancy is that pregnancy changes our chemical makeup and our bodies very very quickly.   I will admit that this time around being almost 40 lbs lighter than my first pregnancy I have an incredible fear of what the pregnancy is doing to my body.  I worked very hard to get my body where it was and its hard to see it change so rapdily.  One of my favorite affirmations that was on the list that we were given last night was

I love the way I look.  I know that what I am doing is amazing and has a beautiful person and I am trying to remember not to focus on my ever growing body!

I decided that I am going to right down my favorite affirmations and place them around the house where I see them every day.  Here are a few others I really like. 

I am involved in a wonderful experience. 
I nourish you with love and take care of my body
I am learning to relax more everday
I am confident about your easy birth
All doubts are put aside as I look forward to your birth
I promise to teach you with love and guidance rather than anger and punishment
Dear little baby, I love you

I will also be putting some affirmations around the house for Ron to help him gain confidence in himself as my birth companion.  He has such an important role in helping me accomplish this natural birth and I want him to know he can do it! 

I truly feel that affirmations can be beneficial to us in all parts of life not just birthing and pregnancy. 
Ron has a lot of new things going on in his life and I will be putting them around the house to help him in these as well. 

Next week in class we are discussing visualizationn and Deepening Relaxations!  WE will be working on self hypnosis.  I cant wait! I
I had someone ask me why I chose hypnobirthing and I will be doing a post on the many reasons why I chose it and also some of my other preperations.