Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Freaking-out remedies…
To be perfectly honest with you, I wasn’t entirely truthful when I said I’m not afraid of labour. It’s more like I’m not scared of the unknown… But quite frankly, last time was no picnic, and I’m not looking forward to that part of it… You know, the whole back labour, forceps and months of recovery part… Even if the doctor says all of it is unlikely the second time around, most of it was pretty unlikely the first time too…
So now I’m doing my best to psych myself up. And plan on how I’ll deal with things if they do happen again. On account of which I’m getting a lot of CDs ready. Cause my best way to deal with stress is to meditate, and I need some sound effects to do it.
There is this one system I’ve been turning to over the past few years. It’s called Hemi-Sync. It’s some kind of special way of recording sound that sends slightly different tones to your ears, creating a soothing effect on the brain. You can read here all about it if you’re interested. I have used it to help me relax during those odd minutes I would get when the first kiddo was born, as well as during some points of last labour. I highly recommend it. Not to achieve Nirvana or anything (though that may be possible, I don’t know…), but just as an effective unwinding tool.
I have also recently discovered something called Brain-Sync, which looks to me like a similar type of thing. I haven’t tested it yet. But it promises to help in things like relaxation and sleep… Which would be ideal… I would really love to sleep through the whole labour process…
Basically I like mind-altering technologies that actually mess with the brainwaves, cause the “new-age relaxing music” by itself does nothing for me…
Do any of you know any other systems? Things that actually work? Or do you have your own method of calming down when you are on the verge of freaking out?
I’d love to hear about it…
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Unfortunately, I have no advice to give here. I'm great a freaking out, bad at calming down. I do think that music helps - it soothed me and I was the savagest of beasts while I was in labor.
l usually go into "The Zone" when I am at the dentist. I imagine I am sailing on the open seas -- just me and God. I actually forget that I am at the dentist and they keep tugging my arm asking if I am okay.
It is a great way of Soul travel and to temporarily leave your body. You can also walk yourself through the experience the way you want it to happen. Mind over matter.
Good luck. Don't worry.
That would be great if you could just sleep through it. You wake up and there's the baby. The labor and anticipation alway made me nervous...and all I had to do was hold my wife's hand.
It's so reassuring to hear a mom say that the thought of labor is stressful - the idea completely terrifies me, and I often wondered how so many women manage to seem unafraid. It's good to know that fear is normal.
I wish I had advice, but I've never been through labor, so I don't have any experience to draw on. At least this time you'll have a better idea of what to expect, and you're preparing yourself for it.