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Blissful Birth
Our body is designed perfectly to experience what one would describe as a blissful birth. Our body is blessed with a hormonal blueprint for ease and ecstasy that is magnificently orchestrated. The delicate hormonal interplay during labour however can be so easily disturbed by medical interventions, turning what could be a potentially blissful experience, into something complicated and even traumatic. In this article I will briefly outline the physiological foundations of a blissful birth, the medical interventions that may disturb this process, the psychological aspects needed for birth to unfold effortlessly, and the environment needed to optimise the physiological process of a blissful birth.
According to the online Dictionary.com, the definition of the word blissful is:
1. Extreme happiness; ecstasy.
2. The ecstasy of salvation; spiritual joy
If we use the above dictionary’s definition of blissful, then basically we are talking about a spiritual and/or ecstatic experience. I have clients who have experienced what they felt was both of those things from following the information in this article.
Dr. Sarah Buckley, an Australian Doctor and Obstetrician writes that:
When a woman labours and gives birth without disturbance, her body produces peak levels of birthing hormones. These include oxytocin, the hormone of love; beta-endorphin, hormone of pleasure and the body’s natural analgesic...the author argues that an undisturbed birth creates maximum ease and safety for mother and baby, as well as making birth a potentially ecstatic experience (2003, p.261).
Our body is designed to give birth naturally and blissfully when as Buckley describes it is undisturbed. An undisturbed birth does not mean a pain free birth, nor does it mean an easy birth. The hormones released are equivalent to those released during an athletic event. Birth is a huge event. However, when a woman is allowed the space, respect, support, and time to allow her body and her baby to work harmoniously together without any unnecessary interruptions, her body will produce peak levels of beta-endorphins and oxytocin which are Nature’s way of helping her through the experience (Buckley, 2003). In addition to that, when a woman enters birth without fear, and is confident enough to be able to express herself through breath, sound and movement, any pain that may be felt becomes a small part of the bigger transcending event (Buckley, 2003).
Hormones of labour
Here I will discuss beta-endorphins, oxytocin, and catecholamines (adrenalin and nor-adrenalin), the hormones of transcendence, love and excitement, respectively. These hormones are produced in the mammalian brain; build during labour, peak during birth, and decrease after birth over a couple of days. For birth to unfold freely, the mammalian brain must take precedence over our rational brain called the neocortex (Buckley, 2003).
Beta-endorphins
Beta-endorphins have a similar nature to pethidine, morphine and heroin, and are up to 200 times stronger than morphine (Buckley, 2005). They produce a feeling of pleasure, euphoria and cause the woman to enter an altered state of consciousness which is typical of a natural, undisturbed birth. Beta-endorphins are released during times of stress and pain. High levels are present during pregnancy, birth and also lactation. Buckley (2003) writes that:
Beta-endorphin also facilitates the release of prolactin during labour, which prepares the mother’s breasts for lactation and also aids in lung maturation for the baby (p.269).
Oxytocin
Oxytocin is known as the hormone of love because of its release during love making, orgasm, birth and breastfeeding. It is thought to be responsible for the rhythmic contractions of the uterus in labour. It is also thought that the baby is the first one to release this hormone, which in turn stimulates the mother’s oxytocin. This point will be crucial in future studies in relation to the initiation to birth. My personal belief based upon my work with adult clients in hypnosis who regress back to their birth, is that we each initiate labour when we are ready to come. I believe there are too many inductions performed unnecessarily, thus causing detrimental effects on both the baby and the mother on various levels.
The powerful contractions at the time of birth are due to peak levels of oxytocin. The stretch receptors in the lower vagina are stimulated by the baby’s descending head and cause oxytocin to be released from the pituitary gland (Buckley, 2003). This is known as the fetal ejection reflex which allows the baby to be born quickly and easily. After birth, oxytocin is released by nuzzling, licking, suckling, and eye to eye contact between the mother and baby. This then causes the uterus to clamp down and protects her against post-partum haemorrhage (Buckley, 2003).
Renowned natural birth advocate Dr. Michel Odent believes that when the foetus initiates his own birth, it is teaching him to secrete his own love hormone and in turn his ability to love self and others. Odent is passionate about the link between our current society’s inability of self love and traces this back to the time of birth and in particular to interference with the oxytocin system.
Catecholamines
The group of catecholamines (CA) are released in response to fear, cold and hunger. They stimulate our sympathetic nervous system for fight or flight. The role of the sympathetic nervous system is to activate and arouse. Carroll (2001) says that:
It is activated by any stimulus over an individual’s threshold (and the threshold can vary enormously), including feelings, and by noise, light, drugs and chemicals (e.g. caffeine). In response to the stimulus an immediate anticipatory state is generated by the release of adrenaline. This causes the heart to beat more quickly and strongly, increases blood supply to the muscles, raises blood pressure, dilates the bronchi and increases the breathing rate, raises the blood sugar level for increased energy, speeds up mental activity, increases tension in the muscles, dilates pupils and increases sweating (p. 1).
In the first stage of labour, high levels will inhibit the release of oxytocin causing the contractions to slow or cease. Blood flow is redirected away from the uterus to the muscles of the arms and legs. This decreased blood and oxygen to the baby can cause the fetal heart rate to drop. This program is a defence mechanism wired into our mammalian system so that labouring mammals in the wild can flee to safety if they are sense impending danger or a predator. Buckley (2003) writes that “In humans, high levels of adrenalin have been associated with longer labour and adverse fetal heart rate patterns (p.269).” During the moment of birth however, high CA levels play an important role in the fetal ejection reflex where she may express fear, anger or excitement and feel a rush of energy. Noradrenalin has been linked according to Buckley (2003) in instinctive mothering behaviour. Mice without this hormone are known to not care for their young until they are injected with noradrenalin (Buckley, 2003). The baby also benefits from the increased levels of CA by contributing to their metabolism of free fatty acids and glucose, respiratory adaptation, responsiveness, tone and heat production.
The psychological attitudes to support blissful birth
In the HypnoBirthing® course I teach, I talk about the fear-tension-pain syndrome which was coined by Dr. Grantly Dick-Read. When a woman has fear leading up to her birth this will hinder her birth by putting her into the fight or flight state, therefore causing tension in her body and thus pain. For a blissful birth, a woman needs to trust her body and her baby, feel positive and relaxed throughout her pregnancy and especially during her birth. She needs to have total faith and belief in her ability to be able to birth naturally and be surrounded only by those who support her beliefs in natural birth. Without these essential ingredients, blissful birth is unlikely. The mind is connected to the body, you cannot separate them. If you are feeling safe, private and unobserved (Buckley, 2003), your body responds by being able to produce higher levels of beta-endorphins and oxytocin and therefore a more comfortable, easier and even blissful experience. If you feel fear toward your upcoming birth, either participate in a HypnoBirthing® course, or find a birth psychologist to help you release your fear.
How the birth environment contributes or hinders blissful birth
I love how Buckley writes that for a woman to have an undisturbed birth, she must feel safe, private and unobserved. The obstetric profession and all their practices however, all revolve around the observation of the labouring woman. Rather than leaving birth alone, they are trained to “do things” to the woman. This disturbs birth. Due to lack of room in this article, I am forced to keep this explanation short. To summarise Buckley (2003), augmentation, induction, pethidine, epidural, caesarean surgery, and early separation of mother and baby can adversely disturb birth, the hormonal interplay thus causing complications for mother and baby physically, psychologically, emotionally, or socially.
Buckley’s (2003) suggestions for undisturbing labour and therefore increasing chances of a blissful birth include:
1. Take responsibility for your health, healing and wholeness during your childbearing years
2. Choose a model of care that enhances your changes of a natural and undisturbed birth (eg. Home birth, birth centre, one on one model of midwifery care)
3. Engage in a loving, supportive birth partner as well as a doula or personal midwife if in a hospital
4. Choose an environment where the mother can feel safe, unobserved and private; free to follow her instincts
5. Reduce neocortical stimulation by avoiding bright lights, talking or loud noises. Instead only soft talking with minimal words
6. Cover the clock and other technical equipment
7. Avoid procedures and observations unless absolutely necessary
8. Avoid giving “advice” unless absolutely necessary
9. Avoid drugs and caesarean surgery unless absolutely necessary
10. Don’t separate mother and baby even if resuscitation is needed. This will be more affective with the cord still attached.
11. Breastfeed after birth, continue long-term and enjoy it.
In conclusion, I would like to say that our intuition about the safest way to birth has been cloaked by the fearful programming of society’s and obstetric horror stories. Fear has caused us to believe that a hospital birth is the safest place to birth in case of something going wrong. In the case of a woman in a high-risk category, I would agree. With a healthy woman carrying a healthy baby however, I strongly disagree. After researching this topic in my unfinished PhD in prenatal and perinatal psychology, I have come to understand that a homebirth or birth centre birth provides the most ideal environment where birth is least likely to be disturbed. Not only does the research point toward these places as the safest places to have your baby, but also places which enable the mother to experience a blissful birth. When you take responsibility for achieving a natural undisturbed birth, you are setting yourself, your baby, and the relationship between you both up for long term success. Do your research, keep yourself informed about the physiological process of birth and you will clearly see there is nothing to be afraid of; only to look forward to and embrace with your mind, heart and spirit.
Buckley, S. (2003). Undisturbed birth: Nature’s blueprint for ease and ecstasy. Journal of Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology and Health, 17 (4), 261-288.
Buckley, S. (2005). Gentle birth, gentle mothering: The wisdom and science of gentle practices of gentle choices in pregnancy, birth, and parenting. Australia: One Moon Press. 