hypnobirthing

The idea that pain is the result of anxiety and can be eliminated through relaxation techniques was first aired in the 1930s by Dr Grantly Dick-Read, a British obstetrician often regarded as the founder of the natural childbirth movement. However the origins of the specific term hypnobirthing are associated with a follower of his, American hypnotherapist Marie Mongan, who used the techniques during the births of her own four children in the 1950s and 1960s. Similar principles also underpin a related concept latterly known as freebirth (birth without the help of any kind of medical professional).