Mama Bear Hypnotherapy

26/07/2025

25/07/2025

✨️New blog post on my website✨️

You cannot manifest a certain type of birth, and it can be harmful for expectant parents to believe they can.

Link in bio

21/07/2025

✨️Surviving instead of thriving as a new parent✨️

Or to put it another way, stuck in survival mode after having a baby...

New motherhood puts us into a state of constant high alert and hyperarousal so that we are better able to keep our children safe. This is made worse in modern society when we tend not to have a village supporting us and keeping US safe.

Survival mode for new mums can mean we experience:

❗️Feeling on edge
❗️Feeling ‘tired but wired’, and have difficulty sleeping
❗️Overwhelm when stressors increase
❗️Feeling as though it’s not actually safe to relax and come out of survival mode

Practising relaxation after baby is born will help regulate your nervous system, leading to...

😴Improved sleep
🤱🏾Feeling more present with your baby
🫀Healthier immune system
🧘🏾‍♀️More time in ‘rest and digest’ state, so you are better able to heal emotionally and physically from pregnancy and birth

18/07/2025

✨️A birth partner's story today✨️

17/07/2025

✨️A C Section birth story today✨️

This has been written by a previous client of mine. She came to me because of her birth trauma - not because of the C Section itself, but because of the ECV she had to try and turn her breach baby.

16/07/2025

✨️A lovely home birth story✨️

I thought I’d share the story of how my second baby came into the world. This time I’d chosen a home birth — something I’d dreamed of for years but hadn’t been able to have with our first, after being transferred to hospital.

Our midwife, Laura, arrived at 9:30, calm and smiling, while my husband got things ready. I was listening to my hypnobirthing tracks and bouncing on the birthing ball. Our toddler was still asleep upstairs!

The birth pool was ready. I got into the warm water, each surge growing stronger and closer together. My husband comforted me by combing my hair or rubbing my back.

The pushing stage was very quick this time! I had thought I might breathe baby down, but the urge to push was so strong. Laura checked and told me I was fully dilated, then after a few focused pushes, there he was. I was able to lift him out of the water and straight onto my chest. He let out a small cry, then nestled in.

The placenta didn’t come straight away, and Laura said that I’d probably need to be transferred in order to deliver it in hospital. I so badly didn’t want to leave home, so I went to the loo and delivered it on the toilet!

I finally feel like I had the peaceful birth experience I wanted and I know that I’m so lucky. It was peaceful. Powerful. Home.

14/07/2025

I am kicking off this with the story of my eldest child's birth. The part that I wanted to focus on was my becoming a mother, or my matrescence. I found this transition incredibly difficult, as I know so many women do.

I remember a feeling of absolute shock and fear the moment my first baby was born. I had spent so much time preparing for her birth, then felt completely overwhelmed by the responsibility of having to keep her alive. I hadn’t really thought this far ahead. I’d been told that I’d feel a rush of love for her, but I didn’t. I was actually a bit scared of her. She was unpredictable and I didn’t really know what to do if she cried. And her cry caused me immediate anxiety. I was also scared that I might accidentally hurt her. She was tiny and so delicate. I was frightened of being left alone with her for a couple of weeks, and made my husband do all the nappy changes with me during that time.

I felt very ashamed of these feelings for such a long time. I was terrified people would think I was an unfit mother and take my baby away.

I hadn’t been warned that I might feel lost at the beginning, or that my motherly instincts wouldn’t immediately kick in. That the day she was born wouldn’t necessarily be the happiest of my life. That the early weeks would be messy, chaotic and full of self-doubt.

I’m sharing this part of my story because when a baby is born, so is a mother. I think it would have helped me to know that I wasn’t the only one who found matrescence hard. So by sharing, maybe another new mum will read this and know she’s not alone.

14/07/2025

✨️Birth Trauma Awareness Week✨️

14th-20th July 2025

The first thing I want to say is, if birth trauma-related content could be triggering or upsetting for you, and you don't feel ready to see it, please protect your wellbeing this week. It's okay to mute accounts (including mine) or step away from your phone for a while. I’ll be here when you're ready.

For Birth Trauma Awareness Week this year, I'd like to focus on sharing ALL types of birth stories, no matter how the birth went, or how you felt about it. Without fear of judgement or of making others uncomfortable. I believe that an important part of healing from a difficult birth is knowing that you're not alone.

When I had my first baby, I was encouraged to share my birth story, but only the positive bits - the bits that wouldn't scare pregnant women, or didn't fit with the notion of positive birth experiences. That censoring of my experience told me that there was shame to be attached to my birth. I don't want any other parents to feel that way, and that's why I am using the hashtag

09/07/2025

✨️About me and what I do✨️

07/07/2025

Hypervigilance is very common in motherhood, and can leave you constantly on edge and unable to relax.

In hypnosis, we can lower the arousal level of your amygdala (the part of the brain responsible for emotions), so that you are better able to relax, leading to better sleep, feeling more present, and able to enjoy motherhood.

04/07/2025

02/07/2025

“I didn’t realise my birth was traumatic at the time”

For many parents who experience a traumatic birth, they won’t actually be aware that they are carrying that trauma with them until months or even years later.

This could be because:

✨️They are in survival mode for the early part of their child’s life, and are unable to consider their feelings about the past
✨️Returning to work could trigger anxiety
✨️A subsequent pregnancy could bring back feelings of fear,
✨️Or they could be triggered by a friend or family member becoming pregnant
✨️Trauma can be stored in the body for years, and they might be experiencing chronic pain or even a chronic illness like fibromyalgia or chronic fatigue syndrome

It’s never too late to seek treatment for birth or perinatal trauma. You deserve a regulated nervous system, to feel healthy, calm and happy, and to get the most out of parenthood.