Birth is a Mental Game!

Birth is a mental game but… weirdly your brain doesn’t have a very important role in your birth. Your body absolutely does though! So why do I say it’s a mental game?

Because even though your brain doesn’t have that much to do (not consciously anyway), it gets in the way a LOT.

OK, let’s go back to your body.

Your body is incredible, and it already knows EXACTLY how to grow and birth your baby without you learning anything. It has literally grown your baby’s eyelashes and fingernails, probably while you were asleep or watching Real Housewives!

That means it doesn’t really need any birth preparation during pregnancy.

No hypnobirthing. No NCT. No reading. No podcasts. Nothing.

Without all the above, your body still knows how to give birth.

Do you think your great great grandma did any birth preparation? I doubt it.

But if birth preparation is technically not important, then why do we plug the benefits of it?

Because even though our body does most of the work… our brains get in the way of birth a LOT.

We are the only mammals that doubt our ability to give birth.

By learning about birth, it’s not really the case that – unless you know what the body does, the body won’t do it.

It’s more that learning about birth chills our brain out. It gives us confidence. It awakens our belief in the power of our bodies.

It takes away our doubts, and replaces it with feelings of power, gratitude, awe.

When you understand the magic of birth, and how incredible the body is, and how it’s got you covered with hormones, endorphins, phases of rest…

You can stop overthinking, stop panicking, and instead let go, and let your brain and body surrender to the magic of birth.

Birth preparation is more about unlearning all the nonsense our brains have been filled with.

And re-learning to trust the process.

You don't need birth preparation because you “know nothing”.

But it can be helpful to remind you that you and your body are incredible.

Your body knows how to birth.

Your baby knows how to be born.

When you truly believe that your body can birth, your brain can switch off and relax.

When your brain can switch off and relax, your body is free to birth.