Birth Affirmations

Through attending yoga (which I have to credit with changing my mindset so much during Robin’s pregnancy), I found myself far more positive for most of the end of the pregnancy. I’m writing this at almost 41 weeks by the hospital dates and I have my wobbles, but am generally positive still. I’ve removed people and groups from my social media feeds for the time being if they cause me to react negatively and I have a list of birth affirmations scattered around the house to keep me positive.

I found them mainly through a facebook VBAC support group and then pinterest. I picked and chose my favourites and then ordered them to make one page in larger print. I printed the list twice, one copy is for my notes so that I can have access to them during my labour. The other copy has two pages in the lounge, one in the kitchen and one in my bedroom near the nursing chair where I often read to Elvis.

I’m not sure if the font will copy over, but I decided on Kristen ITC:

My body knows how to deliver this baby, just as my body knew how to grow this baby.

You cannot stop the waves, but you can learn how to surf.

Every wave brings me closer to my baby.

Women’s bodies were designed to birth. I am designed to birth naturally.

I release anything that is holding me back from birthing this baby.

Millions of women have birthed for millions of years, I can too.

I am a strong and capable woman. I trust my instincts to know what I need for my labour.

My body will relax and allow the birth to happen.

My body will give birth in its own time. I am excited to give birth to this baby.

I do not fight the birth in any way. My body is relaxed.

My body and my baby are the perfect team.

I give thanks for this pregnancy.

I am grateful for my ability to grow this healthy beautiful new life inside of me.

I am deserving of an easy, uncomplicated labour and birth.

I can see my baby moving gently through the birth canal.

My body is made to give birth.

I have courage, faith and patience.

I trust my body.

I trust in my baby’s ability to be born.

I am at peace.

My pelvis is releasing and opening, as have those of countless women before me.

I put all fear aside as I prepare for the birth of my baby.

I feel confident, I feel safe and I feel secure.

I will succeed.

I breathe correctly and eliminate tension.

The toughest opponent of all is the one inside your head.

A due date is an estimate; my baby will come when they are ready.

I use this time to relax and do what brings me joy.

As I am still waiting, 6 days past the Due Date at time of typing the final two are repeated often in my head at the moment. I really do identify with the statements and believe them. It’s just a case of breathing deeply as I read them, to remain positive and calm. Whether these will help during the birth, at the moment, is irrelevant. These are designed to get me to the birth in a calm, happy and positive state.

~ P
Added Note – this os a scheduled post from January, obviously, and I just wanted to add as it posts in April that they did help me get to the birth in a positive state. I read the affirmations, I believed in them. I stayed clear of anything that could bring negativity – facebook, family messages and fights. But I did not reach the birth positively due to work based stress and the rupturing of membranes that I put down to stress.

These affirmations did get me as far as they could. Job done.

40 Weeks Today

An unscheduled post – today is the due date. According to the hospital and their scans. As far as my dates, which are not super accurate, I’m already at 41 weeks. Maybe I’m somewhere in the middle.

I’m starting to feel the pressure. I have a C-section already booked for if I go overdue and I can feel the countdown to that day.

Babies come when babies want to.

I’ve written a list of birth affirmations; I’m going to stick them up around the house later on. I need to keep positive. I’ve been working on removing everything negative in my life. I understand that I have labour envy, I’m not sure it’s even birth envy. I have no regrets about having had a C-section but I do regret how the “labour” went. Or didn’t go!

I will birth this baby.

Whether it’s before the deadline or spontaneously before then – I will birth this baby. Whether it is by natural holes or a repeat C-section – I will birth this baby.

The greatest opponent is the one within my head.

I understand this and have worked on removing everything that my opponent keeps reminding me of. Temporarily I have removed, blocked, deleted friends, family and groups on all social media. I get envious. I get jealous. That is me. It’s quite simple. If those things can make me feel greater jealousy then, at this point, I need them gone.

I am doing everything my body needs me to do.

I am not ball bouncing, doing daily yoga and repeating affirmations to help stimulate labour, to help bring about my baby and a VBAC. I am doing it all for me. I am doing it to help my own pains – physical and mental – not to get the right baby position or to help my waters break. It might all help during birth, whatever way I birth. Or even after birth.

Millions of women have birthed babies, it’s what they’re designed to do.

And I have birthed a baby. I did not have a labour but I still birthed a baby. I still had a recovery whilst being a new parent.

I have still been having niggles. A few tightenings on an evening which do feel more uncomfortable. Early this morning I had some cramping but I had just got out of a warm bed. I never felt these kind of tightenings, these “menstrual” cramps last time. I feel like maybe it is my body preparing and I keep worrying that it might not prepare itself quick enough, but baby comes when baby wants to.

Although with this absolutely awful stomach acid, Baby can hurry up! Haha. During 18 combined months of pregnancy, I have never had acid this bad and awful. My itchy stretched tummy feels better but I keep imagining that this kid has rapidly expanded, putting on loadsa fat and is now squishing my tummy loads!

I will succeed.

I just have to stop equating succeed with spontaneously labouring, with having a VBAC, with being natural and doing it myself/baby led. Success means to birth this baby by any means, whatever means, and to have them be healthy.

~ P