Pregnancy & Birth
Search Content
Search Blog Categories
The Power of Breathing: Benefits During Birth
Bringing a new life into the world is a profound experience, and how we navigate this journey can significantly impact both the birthing mother and their baby. One often overlooked yet incredibly powerful tool during labour is breathing. While it might seem...
3 Things to Know About Pregnancy Ultrasound
Become Informed On Routine Ultrasound in Pregnancy Ultrasound is used during pregnancy to check the baby's development and to help pick up any abnormalities. Ultrasounds are only necessary if there is a medical concern. As noted above, ultrasounds enable your...
Self-Care During Pregnancy
The Importance Of Self-Care During Pregnancy Pregnancy is a significant life event that can bring about many changes and challenges for the expecting mother. Self-care is essential during pregnancy to ensure the mother's physical and mental health and the baby's...
How To Massage Your Perineum and Why It Is Important
Protecting Your Perineum For Birth With Perineal Massage This is a pretty hot topic for most women approaching their birthing day. We are all aiming to experience birth without trauma to this area, but there are some great recommendations to assist you to prepare your...
Nutritious Meal Delivery Services for Your Fourth Trimester
Nutritious Meals After Your Baby is Born Can Be Delivered to Your Door!!! It is well recognised that the way you nourish yourself when planning your conception and in pregnancy, shapes your baby's health, and is a key factor in the life long health of mother and baby....
Antenatal Expressing in Pregnancy
Expressing Liquid Gold While You're Pregnant Colostrum is often referred to as “liquid gold” due to its exceptional healing properties and its deep yellow colour. It’s full of antibodies, proteins, white blood cells, vitamins and minerals, which set up your baby’s...
The Hormonal Orchestra of Labour and Birth
Pregnancy is known to come with a considerable shift in hormones in women’s bodies, to adapt to the changes pregnancy brings, while staying pregnant. We still do not know exactly how labour is naturally initiated. Hormones play a major role in the physiology of...
Using Essential Oils for Pregnancy, Birth and Postnatally
The Use of Essential Oils for Pregnancy, Birth & Labour - What's Safe & What's Not? Aromatherapy is a complementary therapy using essential oils that come from plants. These oils not only smell divine, but they have a therapeutic benefit, and are often used in...
Keeping Private, Safe and Unobserved in Birth
Optimising Your Birthing Environment During HypnoBirthing classes you will learn about the powerful hormones at work during labour and birth – Oxytocin (the hormone of love), Endorphins (your body’s natural pain killers), Catecholamines (your survival hormones,...
Baker’s HypnoBirth – A Surrogate Birth
Baby Bakers Birth - A Gift From Anna - Her Surrogacy Journey Anna McKie is one of those rare gifts to the world. A selfless human that had a dream of helping another family (or many families) have the chance to love and raise a child, just like she has been blessed...
Celebrating Motherhood: The Meaning and Importance of a Mother’s Blessing
Goodbye to Conventional Baby Showers, and Hello to Mother's Blessings! You may have heard of the term but wonder what a Mother's Blessing is. A Mother's Blessing is a celebration inspired by an ancient Navajo ceremony to honour and empower the mother before she gives...
Signs Of Labour
What are the signs of labour? A big question on all pregnant mama’s minds is, when will I go into labour and what will it feel like. The interesting thing with labour is that it’s different for everyone. Some women have days of surges on and off and others have surges...
What Every Pregnant Woman Needs to Know About Nutrition
Nutrition in Pregnancy – what you need to know. Pregnancy is often the time where we pay the most attention to our nutrition. But what do we need to focus on? Generally speaking, different coloured foods provide different nutrients. Eating a wide variety of fruits,...
5 Tips to Help You Sleep Like a Baby When Pregnant!
Tips from our In House Sleep Expert - Amanda Bude Most women that are pregnant or have been pregnant are very aware of having interrupted sleep. I lost count of the number of times I ended up on the couch, surrounded by cushions, or for hours on end tossed and turned,...
Will I Poo In Labour?
This daily habit is often a cause for fear in pregnancy when thinking about labour. Generally, something we do in private, the thought of doing a poo in front of your birth team, can be stressful especially if that birth team contains a friend or family member....
Ten ways to achieve a gentle HypnoBirthing
Ten Ways to Achieve a Gentle HypnoBirthing A large majority of women who choose HypnoBirthing as their method of childbirth preparation are able to achieve an easier birthing for themselves and a safer and gentle birthing for their babies. There are several common...
Working Out Your Due Date
Your EDD is a GUESS Date In HypnoBirthing, we highly recommend that you DO NOT focus on an EDD or Estimated Due Date, but focus on a Due Time of Month. EDD is called ‘estimated’ due dates, as they are Guess Dates only. EDD’s have the ability to to put unnecessary...
The Cost of HypnoBirthing
What is the cost of HypnoBirthing? For most people, falling pregnant is a very exciting time. You wonder about this new little baby, will it be a boy or a girl, what will you name them? Maybe in the early days, it’s just a matter of surviving the morning sickness and...
Why choose the 5 session – HypnoBirthing International Program?
Why is the program is run over 5 sessions? Learn why don't we offer the program over an intensive full weekend like some other providers of HypnoBirthing. We understand that expecting couples are busier than ever and time is precious, so being offered to do your...
When To Go To Hospital In Labour
How will I know when to go to hospital in labour? In our HypnoBirthing course we talk about when to go to the hospital in our 4th session but generally someone asks the question well before that – how will I know it’s time to go to the hospital? It is generally the...
Breastfeeding Tips for Partners
Let's work toward success! Removing the barriers to breastfeeding Globally, rates of breastfeeding are far lower than is needed to optimally protect the health of women and their babies. Being well supported in breastfeeding is a key component to establishing...
The One List You Can’t Do Without In Pregnancy
We Want to Share a Secret Pregnancy List with you! The Only One You'll Need! As mothers-to-be we are bombarded by lists in pregnancy. Hospital appointments What you can’t eat Exercise you should be doing Supplements you need to take What to buy for the baby Names for...
Whatever is going to get my labour started?
Time is Up - Let's get this labour started You've been given an EDD (possibly a couple of changes in the EDD as your pregnancy has progressed) and now you are testing all your levels of patience to not spend every waking, and sleeping hour obsessed with your impending...
Induction + HypnoBirthing = ?
Induction of labour is certainly a hot topic especially considering that almost a third of all women are induced. We will be discussing the high rate of inductions in another article shortly. So what is induction? Induction is when your care provider starts your...
Turning a Breech Baby
When a woman is around 32 to 37 weeks pregnant, baby should hopefully start to make their way head down. They do this because their head is heavy and gravity moves them downwards. Sometimes this doesn’t happen and baby is described as a breech baby. This can cause a...
Preparing and Packing your Labour Bag
Let's Get Your Labour Bag Packed! Getting ready for your birth is an exciting and joyous time, and one thing that symbolises that you will be meeting your beautiful baby very soon is preparing your birth space, or packing your labour bag. It is a common suggestion to...
Top 9 Tips for Your Birthing Environment
Your Birthing Environment Should Be Private, Safe and Unobserved When it comes to the labouring woman and what she needs in her birthing environment, there are three little words that pop up time and time again. Private Safe Unobserved Why do we want mum to feel these...
Additional Birth Tools for Labour Companions
Our HypnoBirthing Partners have an important role to play during birth, leading the birthing mother through labour with their voice and their touch. Our aim is to educate partners to be the best support for mum by giving them the toolbox of HypnoBirthing support...
7 Tips for Post Birth Recovery
One of the biggest underestimations that many new parents make when expecting their first baby, is the post birth recovery period which is also known as the fourth trimester. The fourth trimester is based on the concept that after 37-42 weeks of gestation in the womb,...
Beating The Heat When Pregnant
All around Australia pregnant women have been feeling the heat the last couple of months. When pregnant, your body temperature is already a little higher than normal so add in some hot, steamy days as well as a big belly and most pregnant women are feeling really...
To Push, or Not To Push?
Mother Directed Breathing v's Forced Pushing It is interesting that we have been led to believe that the final stage of birth requires a mother to be coached into forceful pushing, when we know that this is counterproductive and potentially dangerous for both mother...
Common Breastfeeding Questions Answered
We were delighted to have Lactation Consultant and Breastfeeding Expert, Naomi Hull answering some common breastfeeding questions from our very own community at our Ask the Expert Segment recently. We have put all the questions and answers into an easy to read blog...
Sex In Pregnancy
With pregnancy comes lots of changes for your physical body and your emotions. It’s not surprising that there can be changes around sex. For some women and their partners, nothing changes. Their sex drives remain the same as what it was before pregnancy and they...
Are HypnoBirthing Classes Worth It?
Are HypnoBirthing classes worth it or can I learn it myself at home? This is a question that pops up all the time from pregnant women interested in HypnoBirthing classes. It may stem from the cost of the course, the time required or the location of the classes. Here...
Your 10 Different Maternity Care Options Compared
Did you know there are 10 different Maternity Care options to choose from? When you fall pregnant there are going to be many decisions you will need to make. One of the first is what type of maternity care is going to be best for your family. Picture this: Me: OMG...
What It Feels Like To Give Birth
We’ve heard all the horror stories so I won’t repeat them here. The stories our ‘loving’ friends and family share with us as soon as we announce we’re pregnant. What’s the deal with that anyway? “Here, let me tell you this terrifying tale about something you’re going...
When Your Birth Doesn’t Go To Plan
Sometimes, despite the most meticulous planning, birth takes a turn that wasn’t expected. When unexpected things happen during pregnancy, labour and birth, this can often lead to disappointment and even trauma. The HypnoBirthing program aims to prepare a couple for...
Why Choose A Midwife?
When you discover you are pregnant, choosing a place to birth your baby and your care provider is a top priority. Here at HypnoBirthing International, we love to see Australian parents getting the very best care, and we love the care and outcomes our parents are...
How to Restart a Stalled Labour
One of the HypnoBirthing Philosophy premises is: Each labour has its own time schedule. It may rest, or it may accelerate. The event should not be externally manipulated or managed if there is no special circumstance requiring it. Labour can stall or shut down for...
What if I decide on care “outside the norm”?
Not Everyone is Looking for the Same Care Your ideal plan for pregnancy and birth, may not be the 'stock standard' care that is offered to most women. Is that okay? Are you able to request care that is 'outside the norm'? Of course, but many couples are not aware that...
3 Ways Doulas Help Dads At Birth
Doulas aren’t just for mums and babies – they’re for dads and partners, too! Darren Mattock from 'Becoming Dad' shares his insight into a Dad's perspective on hiring a doula. Let’s talk just dads in this post and make it all about dads, as that’s my area of experience...
Raising A New Generation of Strong Women
Best Selling Author, Katrina Zaslavsky Shares her Tips on Raising Strong, Empowered Women! We are so thrilled that author and birth advocate, Katrina Zaslavsky has dropped by to share some of her truths and wisdom about growing strong women, and where it all starts....
Why is Perineal Massage so Important in Pregnancy?
What are the benefits of Perineal Massage? In the last 4-6 weeks of your pregnancy your body produces a final surge of Relaxin and other hormones to soften and lengthen your tissues. There are several benefits of working with your body’s new flexibility after 34 weeks...
The Importance of Prenatal Touch and Massage During Pregnancy
Touch & Massage in Pregnancy Effects Our Entire Health & Our Baby As a massage therapist I’m always informing pregnant ladies how important touch is to our entire health, our growing baby & our body. By our entire health I mean our 12 systems. Touch &...
Oils ain’t oils or are they? Which supplements are good for you?
Pregnancy Supplements are Not All the Same. What do you look for? Have you ever gone to the pharmacy and found yourself staring at the great wall of supplements wondering which to choose? Do your eyes get drawn to the ones a celebrity endorses or maybe those that have...
To supplement or not to supplement in pregnancy, that is the question.
What Supplements Do I Need for Pregnancy? In House Nutritionist, Candace Borg, talks on Supplements in Pregnancy! No matter on where you are in your fertility journey or how far along you are in your pregnancy, firstly, you need have blood tests to determine your...
First Trimester To Do List
The Most Important 'To Do List' in the First Trimester! Congratulations on your pregnancy! We are sure you have lots of questions about where you go from here now that you are pregnant. The first trimester is the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, and is jam packed with...
How Affirmations Help Your Mindset in Pregnancy
Affirmations not only influence our mindset, but can have a profound impact on our pregnancy and birth outcome. To realise just how important affirmations are in pregnancy, and how it can influence our mindset, it is important to realise that affirmations are, “…every...
Pregnancy Tests and Screenings
During your pregnancy, your health care provider will offer you the following antenatal tests and screenings. These tests are offered to keep a check that everything is progressing normally, keep an eye on your health, and your baby's health and development. There are...
Benefits of using HypnoBirthing & Yoga in pregnancy and preparing for birth
Movement and positions like those taught in yoga have been passed down for centuries to help women prepare for birth. Many women are now using Yoga in conjunction with HypnoBirthing to strengthen their bodies and increase their physical and mental stamina. The...
Tips to Better Sleep in Pregnancy
Sleeplessness in the third trimester can extend labour and increase risk of C-section and depression. Research shows women who sleep less than six hours per night are 4.5 times more likely to deliver by caesarean. Women report that little prenatal information on sleep...
