Suzanne Shaw opens up about her “pain-free” hypnobirth labour

Suzanne Shaw recently gave birth to her second child, in her kitchen without any pain relief.  The 34-year-old and her fiancé Sam Greenfield opted for a home birth and used the Katherine Graves’ KG Hypnobirthing method for a pain free birth with her son Rafferty.

Suzanne already has an 11-year-old son, Corey, from her previous relationship with Darren Day.  She admitted that her second birthing experience was completely different than with her first son.  She said  “I had the whole medication package with my first son Corey and that was a painful process”.

Suzanne explains how she felt before her homebirth experience “I was frightened beforehand. I kept thinking I’m actually going into this without any pain relief in my own home.  We did have a backup plan if I wanted it but I didn’t need it. The combination of the hypnobirthing and the pool was medication enough”.

Suzanne was in labour for a total of seven hours, she described five of those hours as close to pain free.  It was only the final hour when she needed to push where she felt like she was in labour.  “It was fantastic. I prepared myself, my breathing was in the right place, my mind was in the right place, my thought process was in the right place. I just went with it.  Afterwards I just felt this overwhelming sense of empowerment and that I could actually do anything. I felt like a superhero.”

It seems like the effects of Suzanne’s birthing experience will have a lasting effect. “Its changes my whole outlook on life and what kind of mother I am. The positive way I approached my birthing experience has made me approach life differently now.”

Hypnobirthing is a self-hypnosis technique that is gaining in popularity. It helps mums-to-be mentally prepare themselves and relax during childbirth.

Suzanne isn’t the only celebrity to use the technique for labour. Towie star Sam Faiers was shown using the technique in her recent reality show, The Baby Diaries.  Fearne Cotton and  Kate Middleton are also rumoured to have used aspects of hypnobirthing in their labours.

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