History of hypnobirthing

HypnoBirthing originated from the work of Dr Grantley Dick-Reid. In his book Childbirth without Fear published in 1933, he stated that:

"There is no physiological function in the body that gives rise to pain in the normal course of health. In no other animal species is the process of birth apparently associated with any suffering, pain or agony, except where pathology exists except an unnatural state, such as captivity".

When we are afraid, our body diverts blood and oxygen to essential defence organs. Dr Dick-Reid hypothesised that when a woman is scared during childbirth, blood and oxygen are diverted away from the uterus and therefore it cannot perform its functions efficiently without pain.

Marie Mongan used the theories of Dr Dick-Reid to give birth to her four children in the early 1950s. She developed the HypnoBirthing program using her skills as a hypnotherapist in order to assist her daughter and two friends to give birth naturally. This was a success and from there the program grew and she established the HypnoBirthing Institute.