Hypno-WHAT?! Modern Hypnobirthing with Claire.
Hypno-WHAT?! Modern Hypnobirthing with Claire is a podcast hosted by Claire Smith, a doula and hypnobirthing teacher based in Edinburgh. The show aims to demystify hypnobirthing, explaining it as a practical approach similar to sports psychology for birth. Claire focuses on helping listeners understand how their brain impacts the birth process, promoting informed decision-making and confidence. The podcast provides evidence-based information to prepare expectant parents for a positive birth experience.
Episodes
34. Identity struggles + motherhood
In this episode, I’m talking about identity and how it’s shifted for me as I've gone back to work and what it means to find myself beyond motherhood. Lately, I’ve been feeling the contrast between the confidence and contentment I found during matrescence, and the self-doubt that’s come with stepping back into my family business where I no longer feel like the expert.I share some personal momen
33. Allow me to reintroduce myself!
Welcome back to The Hypno-WHAT podcast.This episode is a little reintroduction to your host, Claire, and an overview of what The Hypno-WHAT podcast is.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy
32. Motherhood + Changing Family Dynamics
A little musing on my life as a mother to twin toddlers and a six year old.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy
31. Musings from a beautiful VBAC
After attending a beautiful, totally hands-off, zero-intervention VBAC on the labour ward at the weekend I felt drawn to share my thoughts. This is a little debrief of my experience of birth on the labour ward.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy
30. How to have a Hypnobirth
Today we're exploring the idea of 'having a hypnobirth'; what the stereotypical idea of a hypnobirth is and how useful I think that is! Spoiler - I don't think a hypnobirth is a thing.Keep up to date with all the goings on by following me on instagram.If instagrams not your thing you can also get in touch via email, my address is claire@birthingparentsclub.com. I really do love hea
29. Three Distractions for Labour
Welcome to Summer School! Summer holidays can be hectic; kids off school and generally life is just busier with holidays, weddings etc. But you still want to try and squeeze in some birth prep?! I hear you! My summer school episodes will be a maximum of 15 minutes long, hopefully meaning you can cram them at some point.Episode 6 in the series explores three different distractions for labour: TENS
28. How Does Labour Start?
Welcome to Summer School! Summer holidays can be hectic; kids off school and generally life is just busier with holidays, weddings etc. But you still want to try and squeeze in some birth prep?! I hear you! My summer school episodes will be a maximum of 15 minutes long, hopefully meaning you can cram them at some point.Episode 5 in the series looks at the different ways your labour might begin.Kee
27. Why Calm Matters
Welcome to Summer School! Summer holidays can be hectic; kids off school and generally life is just busier with holidays, weddings etc. But you still want to try and squeeze in some birth prep?! I hear you! My summer school episodes will be a maximum of 15 minutes long, hopefully meaning you can cram them at some point.Episode 4 in the series explores why being calm matters for birth - one of the
26. The Importance of Environment
Welcome to Summer School! Summer holidays can be hectic; kids off school and generally life is just busier with holidays, weddings etc. But you still want to try and squeeze in some birth prep?! I hear you! My summer school episodes will be a maximum of 15 minutes long, hopefully meaning you can cram them at some point.Episode 3 in the series explores the importance of the birth environment, creat
25. How Birth Works!
Welcome to Summer School! Summer holidays can be hectic; kids off school and generally life is just busier with holidays, weddings etc. But you still want to try and squeeze in some birth prep?! I hear you! My summer school episodes will be a maximum of 15 minutes long, hopefully meaning you can cram them at some point.Episode 1 in the series explores a very brief outline of how birth works, looki
24. Why Prepare for Birth?
Welcome to Summer School! Summer holidays can be hectic; kids off school and generally life is just busier with holidays, weddings etc. But you still want to try and squeeze in some birth prep?! I hear you! My summer school episodes will be a maximum of 15 minutes long, hopefully meaning you can cram them at some point.Episode 1 in the series discusses why you should bother preparing for birth in
23. Guided Breathwork Practice.
This bonus episode is a guided breathwork practice and accompanies episode 4 of The Hypno-WHAT Podcast, where I teach you about the ways in which your breathing affects the functioning of your body.Keep up to date with all the goings on by following me on instagram.If instagrams not your thing you can also get in touch via email, my address is claire@birthingparentsclub.com. I really do love heari
22. Breathwork for labour & birth
This week we are talking about breathing and why it’s one of the most well-known hypnobirthing tools. Our breathing can help us to take control of how our body is reacting to a situation and how you breathe really does impact on the chemistry of your body.We briefly look at different techniques to use in labour & birth and alongside this episode there is a bonus episode with a guided breathwor
21. Preparing for Chest & Breastfeeding
This episode will be discussing how to prepare for chest or breastfeeding your baby and we are going to be mostly discussing what normal newborn behaviour looks like for babies who are not bottle fed. This is something I think is super important to understand before baby arrives, because with the UK’s breastfeeding rates being amongst the lowest in the world, very few of us actually know what that
20. Unpicking preconceptions about hypnobirthing with Jade & Alix from The Birth Uprising
Warning - this episode contains a bit of swearing, so if that's not your vibe maybe give this episode a miss.The very first guests on The Hypno-WHAT Podcast are my brilliant pals Jade & Alix who run The Birth Uprising, who I trained with back in 2021. The TBU approach is 'no fluff, no bull'; Jade & Alix tell it like it is, there's no pretension with this pair at all, and th
18. Guided Relaxation - Pregnancy Body Scan
This 10 minute body scan is designed to help you find softness and stillness whenever you need to.Keep up to date with all the goings on by following me on instagram.If instagrams not your thing you can also get in touch via email, my address is claire@birthingparentsclub.com. I really do love hearing from you, so whether it’s podcast feedback, episode ideas or your birth story please don’t hesita
19. Estimated Due Dates
The Estimated Due Date... that magical day your hit 40 weeks and fully expect your baby to arrive then or shortly after. As does everyone you shared the date with. The texts flood in - Have you had the baby yet? How long are they going to let you go? Get a sweep. Eat 14 pineapples.None of it is ill intended but it can sow the seeds of doubt and have you questioning your body - why hasn't it go
17. Water Birth - what does the evidence say?
In this episode I’ll be discussing using water during your labour - and that doesn’t necessarily mean you plan to birth your baby in the pool. Birth pools & showers can be brilliant tools for relief during labour, even if you want to birth your baby out of the water.There are lots of big claims about birth pools - they make labour less painful and can reduce your risk of intervention... but wh
16. Guided Relaxation - Connecting with your pregnant body
Never tried a guided relaxation before? The short tracks on this podcast are a great place to start. This track is just over 6 minutes long and designed to be used wherever & whenever you need a quick reset and to check in with yourself & baby.The intention of this practice is for you to connect with your body & baby, recognising where you are at the present moment, acknowledging that
15. Your Amazing Uterus & It's Powerful Contractions
Today's episode is going to be focusing on contractions - what are they? And how does our uterus actually work?Most people in the beginning know very little about what contractions are. They just think 'Right I’m going to have contractions, whatever they are, and they will get bigger and harder until my baby is born' ...and that’s just not true for everyone. Not all contractions are ma
14. First Steps to Feeling Better About Birth
It’s all very well to be told about the importance of building a positive mindset for birth, but how do you actually get to a place where that feels realistic?For some people, they hit pregnancy feeling pretty neutral about birth, others even feel good and excited about the experience of giving birth, however, there are a great many people who don’t fall in to either of those camps. If that is you
13. Tailoring Your Birth Environment
Today we are talking all about how to tailor your environment for birth. In the previous episode of the show we looked at choosing where to give birth, now we’re thinking about the considerations for how to make that environment supportive of birth.We talk about the importance of remembering that the majority of birth begins at home - unless you are having a caesarean or induction then you will be
12. Why Should You Write A Birth Plan & Where To Start!
Today’s episode I’m introducing you to one of my favourite aspects of birth preparation - and what I also think is the most important thing to make sure you do - and that’s get yourself some birth plans sorted out! Yes plural!!!There is definitely an element of being able to ‘go with the flow’ when it comes to your experience of birth, but the process of writing and researching your birth plans is
11. Choosing Where To Birth Your Baby
In today’s episode I take you through a bit of the process of choosing where to birth your baby and explore your options for midwife led units, labour ward, theatre & home birth. There's quite a bit to get through, and it's a bit juicy! Hence why I'm chatting for a bit longer than usual this week.We also touch on your right to choose where you give birth, and this right is protecte
10. Listener Q&A
This episode I’m answering some questions from the listeners. The topics we cover today are:My experience of hypnobirthingWhat to do with your placentaWhen to book your birth prep coursesHow to know when to go to hospitalIs it really bad to birth on your backI’ll be doing regular Q&As so if you want to make sure your question makes it on to the next one then please fire me an email at claire@b
9. Getting Your Birth Partner Involved & The Role of a Doula
No one wants to be a crap birth partner do they? Today I discuss with you why your birth partner is important, as well as how to get them on board. I also introduce the idea of doulas and what they can bring to the party.Keep up to date with all the goings on by following me on instagram.If instagrams not your thing you can also get in touch via email, my address is claire@birthingparentsclub.com.
8. Creating a Hypnobirthing Practice with Anchoring (& no pressure!)
Creating the perfect practice and fitting it in to already busy lives is something that can put a lot of people off exploring hypnobirthing. Today I want to give you a few tips on how to go about getting your Hypnobirthing practice in without having to carve out hours every night creating the perfect place for it.We also explore the idea of anchoring - tools that you can use to help your brain &am
7. Guided Relaxation - Affirmations to Build Self Trust
Never tried a guided relaxation before? The short tracks on this podcast are a great place to start. This affirmation track is designed to be used in the evenings as you're getting yourself settled down, ready for bed. Don't worry if you fall asleep. Your brain is still listening and relaxation is what we're after, and asleep usually means relaxed, so the track is doing it's job!Th
6. Self Hypnosis, Visualisation & Affirmations
When we believe that we are safe, we are far more likely to enter birth feeling calm & in control as well as being far more likely to feel positively about the experience afterwards.Hypnobirthing tools, such as the 3 we will go through in this episode, can be an incredibly powerful way of reframing birth for your brain, creating a positive belief system and kicking out bad vibes.The birth phot
5. The Science Behind Hypnobirthing: How Your Nervous System Impacts Birth
In this episode I take you through the science behind hypnobirthing, exploring how our nervous system works to try and keep us safe and the impact that can have on birth.I also share my favourite every-day breathing technique to help with regulating the nervous system.This episode is relevant for everyone, pregnant or not. We all have an autonomic nervous system and I really believe that appreciat
4. How Your Hormones Make Birth Happen!
Hormones are your body's toolkit for birth - interacting with one another to prepare your body for labour; coordinate effective contractions; and ensure the sensations of labour are manageable for your body.In this episode we'll be going through 5 of the main hormones involved in birth: oxytocin, endorphins, adrenaline, melatonin & prostaglandins. There are many more but I had to draw
2. Guided Relaxation - Worry Stones
Never tried a guided relaxation before? This short track is a great place to start. It's designed to be used in the evenings as you're getting yourself settled down, ready for bed. Don't worry if you fall asleep. Your brain is still listening and relaxation is what we're after, and asleep usually means relaxed, so the track is doing it's job!The intention of this practice is fo
3. The Fear-Tension-Pain Cycle & Building a Positive Mindset
In this episode we'll be looking at the concept of the Fear-Tension-Pain cycle and exploring the impact being afraid can have on birth. I'll also be talking you through my thoughts on the language we use to describe the sensations of labour.To accompany this episode I have released a wee bonus for you: a guided relaxation focussing on releasing fear & anxiety. It's nice & short
1. What is Hypnobirthing?! Debunking some myths!
Welcome to the very first episode of Hypno-WHAT!Hypnobirthing is hippy-dippy nonsense; it's JUST breathing; it's only for homebirth/water birth/natural birth - we've all heard them before. People have a lot of preconceptions about hypnobirthing.Let me tell you what hypnobirthing is with Claire and The Calm! I'll be debunking these myths along with giving you a bit of an introductio
