CALM BIRTH®
Calm
Birth FAQ
1. Why is meditation very important to childbirth today?
Our age has
been characterized as the Age of Anxiety. Fear is more of a problem
in human function than ever before. Fear of pain in childbirth is a major reason for the
extensive use of drugs in birth,with the many risks that brings. The medical establishment has determined
that meditation is an excellent antidote to anxiety, stress, and fear.
Childbirth meditation has emerged as an important factor in maternal
and infant health.
2. Do
I need to be an experienced meditator in order to benefit from the Calm
Birth method?
No. More than
20,000 people, suffering from a wide variety of serious medical problems,
have importantly benefited from meditation in hospital programs, and very
few of those people had prior meditation experience. This proves that the essentials can be learned
quickly for important uses. More and more people are seeking meditation
experience. Most people are interested in knowing about its use in medicine
and childbirth.
3. What does
the term "calm" have to do with active labor?
If I integrate the Calm Birth method into my birth plan, can I still
make sounds during contractions?
Women giving
birth with the Calm Birth method have learned to not be disturbed by
the sensations of contractions. They have presence of mind during physical intensity.
They have two ways to breathe into contractions and release fear. The women are encouraged to vocalize
and move freely.
4. What levels
of birth professionals support this method?
All the Calm
Birth trainings have had the support of the California Board of Registered
Nursing. The method has been presented twice at a world congress of
Childbirth educators. It has also been presented at the University of
Michigan Medical School and Bastyr University. Among the certified Calm
Birth teachers are: licensed midwives, nurses, OB doctors, doulas, and
childbirth educators.
5. Is there
any benefit to me to use the Calm Birth method during pregnancy if I
plan to give birth in a hospital?
Definitely yes. Calm Birth
is complementary medicine. It helps strengthen the immune system to
lessen the side-effects of birth-related drugs and anesthesia. The Calm
Birth pain management technique reduces the need for drugs, lowering
the risks. And the method helps women and their families experience
the sacredness of birth, even in hospitals. Women often bring the Calm
Birth cd to the hospitals, which allow it to be played during labor
and delivery.
6. Is it
important that my husband/partner do the Calm Birth practices with me?
In more than
90% of Calm Births the husband/partner participates in the practices.
This results in both deeper bonding and even more biological and psychological
benefits for the woman and child.
7. How does Calm Birth differ from regular relaxation techniques?
Calm Birth
offers moment by moment neuromuscular release, a practice of directly
healing the nervous system in preparation for birth, as well as engaging
life force at the cellular level. This gives greater vitality and healing
than ordinary relaxation.
8. How is
Calm Birth different than mindfulness meditation?
It is the
same in its ability to recognize and release fear. Calm Birth is different
in that it uses a deeper sense of the woman's body and potential in
childbirth. And it uses a different kind of breathing than in mindfulness
meditation. Calm Birth uses energy breathing.
9. What is
the difference between Calm Birth meditation and self-hypnosis?
As opposed to creating a
trance state to counter pain, Calm Birth uses profound visualization
to create a fearless state with increased tolerance of pain, and increased
awareness and intuition to make the right decisions in the labor process.
10. How does Calm Birth
differ from Hypnobirth?
Calm Birth
is rooted in the energy body and empowerment. Hypnobirth focuses on
the biology of fear and the fundamentals of natural childbirth. The
key idea in self-hypnosis is to "hold your body limp and numb".
"Limp and numb", contrasts sharply with the Calm Birth image
of the body of the woman in birth: radiant, empowered, and fearless.
In the Womb Breathing method, by cogently distinguishing between mind
and awareness you are able to recognize and release fear in the childbirth
process. We have a profound, proven psychological method for anticipating,
recognizing, and releasing fear, which naturally arises. Because we
offer a realistic, expanded vision of the woman's body in childbirth,
birth in the energy body, we bring a new domain of natural childbirth,
with new potential of human function and development. We use three major practices
that work together, opening dimensions of empowerment in childbirth
never before accessed, based in profound meditation science and mind/body
science. " Breath" has always been mentioned
as a natural concern in childbirth. We've extended the margins and brought
optimal breathing (Womb Breathing) and transformative compassionate
breathing into childbirth as a dual means of labor pain management.
(c)2005-2007
By Calm Birth
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