Birth Bubble

On a mission to equip you with the KNOWLEDGE, TECHNIQUES & SUPPORT you need for a calm & POSITIVE bi

24/04/2023

Listening to your MP3 tracks ahead of your birth is one of the most important parts of prep you can be doing! It is honestly as simple as pressing play on an MP3 track before sleep, and drifting off. But as you’re doing so, SO much is going on in your brain.

This is because as you fall asleep, your conscious mind is no longer active/awake, but your subconscious mind is in record mode. So by listening as you go to sleep, your subconscious mind is absorbing the messages and suggestions in the track (which are all about responding really calmly in labour), and therefore creating new neural pathways (aka beliefs), which hugely affects HOW you respond on the big day!

Swipe though to learn more of the science behind how this works and why you absolutely want to be listening to your audio mp3 tracks as part of your prep for birth. It is one of the simplest yet effective things you can do to optimise how you’ll feel and therefore respond on the big day!

Got a question about using mp3 tracks in pregnancy? Please ask in the comments!

17/04/2023

Did you know that women using hypnobirthing report lower perceived levels of pain during labour?

Swipe through for the amazing science on how and why this is the case!

When mothers practise hypnobirthing in pregnancy, through listening to their daily MP3 tracks 👂and by confidently using breath work, visualisations and many other tools, they can effectively dial down the volume 🔇 on the pain signals in response to contractions; they are signalling to their body that there is no need to panic, which in turn helps contractions to feel a lot more manageable.

Hypnobirthing mums have trained their minds to be able to focus on one or several of the following:

👉 their breathing
👉 their mindset mantras
👉 their safe place
👉 their visualisations
👉 their other senses

By doing the above as their response to contractions, they are effectively telling the brain that “everything is ok”!

This means that even when adrenaline is produced in the system, hypnobirthing mums can easily (and often completely instinctively) come back to any of the above tools to feel in control and calm 😌, despite labour being super challenging, hard and painful. It is their RESPONSE to what they’re feeling that is so different thanks to all their prep.

Controlling and nailing how you want to respond to the pain of labour - or whatever life throws your way - is such an empowering practice and becomes a life skill for so many of the parents I teach 🙌

13/04/2023

🏃‍♀️SUPER SPEEDY LABOUR & BIRTH STORY: Swipe through for a very, very fast labour and birth story from first time mama, Grace.

This story you’re going to read describes a “precipitous labour”.

A few notes on this type of labour:

An unusually fast labour is classified as “precipitous” if it is 3 hours or less from the time of labour starting, to baby being born in a first-time mother.

To give this context, most first-timers are in labour for between 8-12 hours!

Precipitous labours are pretty uncommon, accounting for around 3% of births in first time mothers.

Although many of us might really want a quick labour, a labour which is precipitous can be incredibly challenging (the intensity ramps up much fast than usual in this type of labour, so without any tools in place to keep a sense of feeling grounded and in control - it can feel completely overwhelming).

What I love about how Grace recounts her story is that in spite of her experience being so far from what she was hoping/expecting (plus not even having her partner with her!), Grace’s story is so incredibly empowering and inspiring.

Let me know what you think - do you have any experience with a precipitous labour? If so, how long was yours and how did you find it? Let me know in the comments!

05/04/2023

Having a doula means having dedicated, continuous, emotional and practical support during pregnancy, birth and in your initial postnatal period.

My doula support involves: ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣
✅ regular, bespoke and detailed private antenatal education sessions ⁣⁣⁣

✅ a full, practical and obstetrician-approved hypnobirthing course

✅ continuous support and regular check ins via whatsapp - for both you and your partner - I am here for you and available for any questions at any time!

⁣⁣⁣✅ I am then “On-Call” for you 24/7 from your week 38 - week 42 of pregnancy

⁣⁣⁣✅ you then have my support throughout labour of course (at whatever time of day/night things begin!). I come with a bag of tools, aromatherapy oils and lots of ways after years of trainings to make your labour as comfortable as possible!

✅ photographing / recording videos of your birth, should you wish!

✅ once baby is here you’ll have my support with feeding and newborn care

✅ and my support continues until your baby is 4 weeks old!

Having a doula will ensure:⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣
💛 you’re fully prepared, confident and ready for labour ⁣⁣⁣
💛 you’re equipped with practical techniques and comfort measures to feel calm and comfortable throughout ⁣⁣⁣
💛 that your birth partner is relaxed and confident in how to support you during every stage of labour ⁣⁣⁣
💛 you know when is the right time to go to hospital
💛 your space will be protected and you’ll be able to ask questions so you know all your options and can make the right decision for you ⁣⁣⁣
💛 you have a trained childbirth professional with you throughout your pregnancy, labour, and the first 4 weeks of your postnatal period, to support you both as you embark on your new journey into parenthood! ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣
My doula services are reserved exclusively for my hypnobirthing course clients which ensures a great synergy between us!

01/04/2023

If doubt starts to creep in or you begin to question whether you can do this, just remember you are growing a human being, enough said! You are already an incredible mother - whether this is your first baby or your fourth.

You are strong, informed, and capable. Tune in and ask for what you need.

✨ I believe in you, so believe in yourself ✨

24/03/2023

During labour, your neocortex (the logical, thinking part of the brain), needs to effectively switch off (spoiler alert: otherwise it tends to really get in the way, most often slowing labour down or playing a big part in labour stopping altogether!)

For the hormones of birth to flow, your limbic system - the deep mammalian part of the brain - needs to be taking the lead! This part of the brain uses our senses, emotions and all relevant previous experiences/images/stories to read any situation and ensure your safety.

As your senses are all heightened in labour, incorporating helpful cues for them can help you to feel relaxed and safe is a really useful part of your prep.

Swipe through for some ideas, which might sound simple - but it is the combination of them which creates a relaxed labouring environment, which can really help those birthing hormones to flow.

Save to come back to this when you are getting close to your labour and planning how to make your environment as relaxing for you as possible!

20/03/2023

If you are expecting to be screaming and suffering beyond anything in labour - please pause to read this❗

If you take one thing away from this post, let it be this: the unbearable, unmanageable pain causing intense suffering in labour is not normal! That sort of pain indicates that something IS wrong!

There are actually only 3 things that cause this kind of pain - the unbearable suffering kind - in labour, and these things are:

✔️ Psychological Fear - triggering the Fear-Tension-Pain cycle (swipe through this post!)

✔️ A Biomechanical Issue/Problem

✔️ Interventions which disrupt the physiological birth process

If the above elements are NOT at play, then labour pain WILL feel painful, challenging, crazily intense, hard - BUT - it should not cause you to feel like you are suffering in pain. The distinction between a physiological pain vs a pathological pain is a crucial one to understand in labour.

I will never say that labour is not painful - because for most women, it IS painful (myself included!). The key is that the pain you experience in labour, should feel super intense, but manageable.

If at any point something feels very wrong / you are suffering in pain and it feels totally unmanageable, then something probably is deviating from normal, so it could be worth running through the above 3 elements, to figure out what might be causing this type of pathological pain.

Knowing that the impact that the brain plays in how labour pans out is why I am so passionate in educating the parents I work with in HOW the system works and what you can do to optimise your physiology through effective education, mindset and mental preparation, and tools/support to best work WITH your birthing brain and body on the big day.

If you found this helpful, please do share!

13/03/2023

What are Endorphins?

Endorphins are our body's natural pain relieving neurotransmitters. 🧠

During labour we naturally produce endorphins - they are always produced whenever we exercise, and put very simply - labour is the exercising of a big muscle - your uterus!

In labour, endorphins are produced on a high level, which both relieves pain and alters your state of consciousness. Endorphins also create the “on another planet” feeling that many women experience in established labour.

By understanding birth physiology, the impact of your brain/mindset/hormones, and the processes involved, you’ll know exactly what to do on the day, and how to work WITH - and OPTIMISE - your (amazing!) birthing hormones. This ensures that you respond calmly and feel totally in control come the big day!

Save this post to come back to these tips as your due time approaches ✌️

09/03/2023

This birth story is from second-time mama, Cassie who I had the pleasure of helping to prepare a few month’s ago. 🫶

In a Refresher Course for second/subsequent babies, the first step we go through is always debriefing your first birth - how it went, how you felt, what went well, and what was difficult.

From there, we can then ensure you have the practical plans/solutions/support to feel really ready, well-prepared and mentally in a great place ahead of a second labour and birth experience.💕

I wanted to share this feedback from Cassie, because so often we can get caught up in focussing just on the big day. But as Cassie explains, having a positive birth is so much more than the event / the day itself. It directly impacts the postnatal experience and those early weeks too - having positive implications for mum, baby and partner. It all comes full circle!

If you are pregnant 🤰with either your first or a subsequent baby and would like to feel confident, informed, calm and ready for birth, send me a DM and we can chat about some course or support options that could be right for you!

05/03/2023

This is one of my favourite quotes by the legendary midwife, Ina May Gaskin 🙌💫 (Her book, Guide to Childbirth, is a classic and must read for those of you who really want to understand how physiological birth works and why relationship-based care so vastly improves outcomes)

Anyway - back to this quote above... It is so important to think about this. If we break it down, the only difference between other animals and us, is our ability to think, our capacity for language, logic and rational decision-making. Whereas animals, who do not have a "neocortex" (the thinking brain) that we have, instead have to be led by their mammalian brain, and therefore by their hormones and bodies.

My mission is to help you to optimise your chances of having a positive birth experience, and that really does start with up-to-date, evidence-based, practical knowledge and a load of seriously useful tools to help you feel calm and in control in both pregnancy and birth 🤰

When you have these elements, you can and will build so much self-trust in yourself and confidence in your decisions.

Let me help you build trust and confidence in the birthing process 🙏. You can do this 💪

I’m here to support you, to educate you and empower you as you prepare your mind and body for birth. So if you’re ready to get informed, feel prepared and excited for birth, at whatever stage you are at, drop me a message here to discuss the course options, or hit the "Email" button in my profile ‌if you prefer to connect that way!

01/03/2023

Testimonials like this: what it’s all about!

I do what I do because I love helping YOU be and to feel calm, confident, full of knowledge, controlling the “controllables”, and fully surrendering to everything else, because you’ve got the trust and support you need so you feel able to do just that

15/02/2023

You may think this is an odd question 🤔, but we actually have a lot in common!

As mammals, the only difference is the fact that we have a
conscious awareness; we know we are 9 months pregnant, we know the baby's there and we know it will have to come out and we will have to give birth🤰!

For all other animals, however, they don't have this conscious awareness and knowledge, which means when their body starts labouring, the way to move, react and respond is completely instinctive. If you have ever seen a mammal giving birth, they will find a safe spot (often in the corner of a room or away from the herd if they are a herd animal), they get comfy, move about, they naturally get into positions that use gravity, they even have little snacks 😋! It's just a normal physiological process and they are going with how their body is telling them to move.

Why is this relevant to you? Because the hormonal process involved in how a mammal gives birth is the same for us all! Across all my courses, we always start by understanding HOW the processes of labour/birth work, so you can in turn really get behind WHY all the prep and techniques you’re learning are going to be so helpful!

You can take a look the courses I run via the link in my bio or if you would like to chat about the options, drop me a message.

11/02/2023

Oxytocin is your best friend! ✨

Oxytocin is the main hormone that underlies our feelings of love, trust and connection.

And when it comes to labour, it is oxytocin that is the driving force! It is this hormone that contracts the uterus (the oxytocin in your bloodstream binds to the oxytocin receptor sites on your uterus). The levels of this oxytocin in your bloodstream also controls the power, length and strength of your contractions. (This is part of the reason why labour can slow down or stall if your environments or interactions change a lot and cause you to feel less safe/relaxed. If and when this happen, your levels of oxytocin decrease - this can be a very common reason behind labour dystocia (ie labour stopping / slowing!).

For oxytocin to flow optimally in labour, just like all placental mammals, we need to feel emotionally calm, safe, relaxed and supported. And, most of us also need to feel undisturbed and unobserved...

Oxytocin will flow in full force when the conditions are right. The conditions being right involves both what is going on in your brain and how you are feeling, AND how you perceive your environment to be 👌

🧠 My courses are about showing you HOW to get your mind ready so you can go into birth knowing how to work WITH & OPTIMISE your (amazing!) birthing hormones ✌️Please DM if you’d like to know more!

07/02/2023

"Giving birth is an experience you will remember for the rest of your life. Make it the happy memory you deserve"

Teaching hypnobirthing was something I just couldn’t seem to shift after my labour and birth experience. I guess this was my calling! 💫

My reason for doing what I do is simple👇
⁠
✨I am here because giving birth is life-changing and how you feel during the process, stays with you forever.

✨However your birth unfolds, good preparation, support and understanding ALWAYS has a positive impact 💛

To find out more about how I can support you, please visit my website or email Elise@birthbubble.co

02/02/2023

DID YOU KNOW...

The cocktail of birthing hormones you will be releasing during labour are common to all female mammals. These hormones are designed to make labour efficient, effective and comfortable.

They key hormones responsible for labour are pretty shy - and as such, they need certain conditions to flow easily.

It all starts with how you are feeling...

Your hormones will flow best when you are feeling:

✔️ Safe
✔️ Relaxed
✔️ Unobserved
✔️ Undisturbed

Your environment also plays a big role in ensuring you feel all of the above!

Understanding your physiology and hormones well ahead of labour is such a key part of your prep.

🧠 My passion is in showing you HOW to get your mind ready so that you can go into birth knowing how to work WITH & OPTIMISE your (amazing!) birthing body and hormones

Any questions about this or upcoming courses, please DM!

22/01/2023

Did you know...

There’s so much you can actively do to help optimise your chances of your labour unfolding more easily. It’s all in the prep! ✨

As humans, we learn best through doing and practice, so below are just some of the ways you can practice hypnobirthing ⬇️.

Every single technique I teach you in my hypnobirthing course is backed up by science (and will take you just 10 minutes of practice daily!). If you'd like more info, send me a DM!

17/01/2023

🌟 Meet Becca - this gorgeous mama pictured here (and her wonderful husband) is sharing her amazing birth story...

💖 I absolutely loved working with Becca - she always came to the course with Qs, a willingness to learn, practice and a desire to build her confidence ahead of her birth to optimise her chances of coming out the other side feeling in control and positive. She did it, and this story is just such a lovely read that made me lol several times! 🥰

If you’re pregnant - please read this!

Why?

📖 Because real, positive birth stories are a big part of your birth prep and slowly but surely will help to change the way (for the better!) your subconscious mind views childbirth.

👉 Tag a pregnant friend below and check out my next complete hypnobirthing & birth preparation course: https://www.birthbubble.co/inpersongroupcourses🤰💖

12/01/2023

1️⃣ Oxytocin, 2️⃣ Melatonin and 3️⃣ Endorphins.

Did you know that your 3 best friends 👏🏻 in labour are these hormones (they are really on your side). This cocktail of hormones works so well together to make birth as efficient and comfortable as possible. ✨

You can learn everything you need to know about your hormones and how to really optimise them through my signature hypnobirthing and birth prep courses. Wherever you are planning to give birth, you are welcome to book your course with me at The Portland in London.

More info on upcoming courses over on my website: https://www.birthbubble.co/inpersongroupcourses or drop me a message!

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http://www.birthbubble.co/

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Birth Bubble: Our Mission

Lovely to meet you! I’m Elise, certified hypnobirthing practitioner with Katharine Graves Hypnobirthing (KGH) and I have completed further training with Hollie de Cruz, becoming a Yes Mum Birth Project affiliate teacher too!

I’m on a total mission to equip you with the knowledge & techniques you need for a calm, confident & POSITIVE birth experience, no matter how your baby enters the world.

There’s only one problem with hypnobirthing, and that’s word “hypnobirthing”. I for one rolled my eyes when I was pregnant and first heard this weird word, but I assure you, there is nothing strange about this course. It’s logical, science-based and everything you’ll learn is SO USEFUL! During the course you will learn how your body and mind work when you are in labour, and then with this knowledge, you will be taught LOADS of practical techniques, so that on the big day, you have so many tools at your disposal.

Hypnobirthing is made up of lots of little things, that together help couples to experience a positive pregnancy and birth. All births are different and of course unpredictable, however I have seen first-hand the benefits hypnobirthing tools and knowledge brings to all births.

This truly is the birth preparation and education that you need!

Birth Bubble offers the most MODERN hypnobirthing courses out there.

No hippie dippy stuff, just science-based education about birth and loads practical tools for you and your birth partner to have with you on the big day!

We hold:

Monthly Group Courses (of 4 couples max, based in Whetstone, N20)

Private Courses (London-wide, run from your home or mine)

Hypnobirthing Essentials Courses (for those of you who have left it a bit late but would still like to learn the key techniques!)

Refresher Sessions (for those of you who have done hypnobirthing before and would like a speedy refresh ahead of a subsequent birth)

Please do get in touch - it will be a pleasure to work with you at this special time!

Elise xx

Artful Nurturing
2 Harley Street Therapy Center, London