And Exhale Hypnobirthing, Leeds (2025)

28/01/2022

🔀 Unexpected change 🔀

What if something changes?

Labour is a natural process and sometimes things can change or play out differently to how we expected or imagined.

Here’s some you can help yourself feel prepared, in control and comfortable:

⚽ Consider potential curveballs and how you may deal with them so you feel prepared
✍🏻 Accept your birth plan can flex, some people prefer to call it preferences or wishes to add clarity
🔀 Include alternatives and options in your birth plan, if ‘x’ happens then we would want to do ‘y’
💭 Use calming techniques to keep a clear mind
❔ Utilise questioning & decision-making tools to feel informed & make best choices

Ultimately being aware of potential changes, having some plans and alternatives in mind should they happen and approaching them with a clear calm mind can really improve your birth experience whatever happens along the way.

What helped you face an unexpected change of plan during labour?
Kat x

27/01/2022

★ The difference ★

This is the difference birth preparation can make for you.

I am so grateful to have been a tiny part of Vik’s birth preparation and so happy that she felt like an absolute superhero throughout her little girls birth.

If you’re looking to really make a difference to your baby’s birth then drop me a DM, I’d love to hear from you.

Kat x

18/01/2022

👋 Where have I been? 👋

This little space has been a little quiet the last few weeks. I have been focusing on family stuff, &exhale HQ, some exciting offline plans and overall wellbeing so took a tiny step back from social.

Big hello to my new followers and a lovely thank you to everyone who is still here.

I’m still here for anyone who needs me and please know my inbox is always open. I’m so excited to help and support new parents in 2022.

Watch this space for more of the good stuff and I’d love to hear your plans and hopes for 2022.

Kat x

26/12/2021

✨ Merry Christmas ✨

I hope you are all having a wonderful Christmas and wish you all a healthy and happy new year.

I wanted to say a massive thank you to every single one of you who have let me be a part their family journey, those I have supported and everyone who has supported me. I feel so lucky to have you all.

Lots of love ❤️
Kat x

21/11/2021

💫 Expecting 💫

I ran a lovely session today around expectations of birth and wanted to share a couple of useful points…

💫 It’s a good thing to start thinking about you expect birth to be like and what you hope birth will be like.

💫 If these are two very different things then I think I can help!

💫 No two births, babies or experiences are the same. We shouldn’t expect our experience to be or feel the same as our friends, family or even play out like older siblings’ births.

💫 Sometimes the best thing we can do is prepare, get informed, understand what we can influence and let go of the things we can’t control.

Talking about expectations - here’s a pic of my youngest… exceeding my expectations of feeding and night waking!

If you are expecting your birth to be anything less than empowering and awesome then I’d love to help you feel better! Drop me a DM or have a look at the links in my bio.

Kat x

20/11/2021

💪🏼 Confidence 💪🏼

You’re one day closer to meeting your beautiful baby.

Here’s a gentle reminder to practice your birthing techniques today.

Save this strong affirmation somewhere you can see if often or share with someone on their pregnancy journey.

(If you’re unsure how to build your confidence in birth, then I would love to help)

Kat x

18/11/2021

🙂 Laughter and birth 🙂

Not really two words you usually hear together…

However, here’s some reasons why laughing & smiling during birth can have an awesome effect…

😁 Oxytocin is released when we laugh, and this is the wonder hormone during labour, it literally fuels your surges/contractions

🙂 Early labour can be lengthy and sensations manageable, so doing things that make you smile can make this stage much more pleasant and start that lush oxytocin build up!

😄 Laughing can help bring oxygen into your body, which your birthing organs need to help function more efficiently and comfortably

😆 That feel good giggle can increase endorphins, our natural pain relief – another welcome hormone we can encourage throughout labour

🤣 Some say laughing is contagious, so if those around us can join in then our chuckles may grow

So maybe have a think about what really gets you belly laughing; your favourite comedian, comedy film, funny boxset, silly games or people you know who make you smile!

Kat x

ps. One of my friends went into labour after a night of playing ‘Speak out’ (one for the Christmas list maybe???😄)

16/11/2021

💭 Expectations 💭

I’m so excited to be doing this lovely event on Sunday as part of to help expectant parents get their head around feelings & expectations they may have towards birth.

This short, informative & fun session will help you see why putting a positive & educated perspective on our expectations can be a super power!

We will chat about:
💭 Why we can sometimes feel fearful and nervous

👶🏽 What we expect birth to look & feel like and how we want to feel about it

💪🏼 Why preparing for birth can help you feel confident & ready

💛 How a more informed, calm mindset can stack the odds in our favour of a better birth

❔Plus the opportunity to ask any questions you have

If you’re expecting anything less than a wonderful birth experience, then come join us on Sunday to have a look at why we have so much negative baggage around birth and why working to change these expectations to feeling confident and informed can help stack the odds in our favour of a better birth.

A massive thank you to Baby Week Leeds for letting me be a part of your fabulous event and for being an absolute joy to chat to! You’re doing amazing things for the region & our families.

Any questions please pop me a DM, or link in bio for details and to reserve a free spot for you & your partner!
Kat x

05/11/2021

🎈 Up breathing 🎈
This is such a cool technique to practice!

⬆️ All my buddies who have had babies rant about how ace using this breathing is… and I 100% agree!

⬆️Up breathing relaxes your body and calms your mind. This is incredibly powerful during birth, but also useful throughout pregnancy… and, well, in life too!

⬆️ Relaxing your mind & body during birth helps your body to work efficiently and comfortably.

Follow these steps (or even better ask someone to read them out to you)

Inhale slowly and deeply through your nose for
👃 1…
👃 2…
👃 3…
👃 4…

Breath out slowly and gently through your mouth for
👄 1…
👄 2…
👄 3…
👄 4…
👄 5…
👄 6…
👄 7…

Its so lovely and soothing.

There are loads of other techniques you can use during birth, my course helps you get to grips with these techniques, why they are bloody wonderful and how to factor them into your life (we’re all busy bees right)

Did you use up breathing during labour?

Kat x
ps. I love this stuff so much, I named my business after it 😘

03/11/2021

💭 Visualisations 💭

Did you know that cyclist Chris Hoy uses visualisations to prepare to race?

Well if it’s good enough for a Olympian and World Championship, MBE holding cyclist then it’s good enough for birth right?

He visualised the kilo time trial at the 2004 Olympics in Athens 1000s of times.

Let’s apply some sports psychology to birth:

Be as well prepared as possible
👉🏽 This 100% applies to birth

Be physically capable when facing outside pressures
👉🏿 Your body is designed to birth your baby, believe and trust that you can do this

Don’t be distracted by others or threats around you
👉🏻 Create your birth bubble and protect it (your birth plan & partner can be advocates for this too)

Forget about anything irrelevant, out of control
👉🏾 Focus on what you can influence, your affirmations can enhance this

Some super inspiring words from Sir Hoy:
“Aspire to be able to do what you know you can do, what you are physically capable of doing, under the most extreme pressures”

If you are into sport, this may resonate with you?

Or maybe your partner can relate more to this than some birth related language?
(Why not save or share this with them)

Keep an eye on my socials for tips or get in touch to find out more about how to prepare for your baby's birth.

Kat x

01/11/2021

Happy November
(It’s definitely feeling & looking more wintery isn’t it?)

November two years ago, we started telling people we were pregnant with baby no.2

Some things I remember about that time:
🤰🏻 My bump had popped out much quicker with my second pregnancy
💗 We had made the decision to find out the gender
👯 I was bursting to tell my bestie we had the same estimated due date
🙋🏻‍♀️ I contacted Abby, my Hypnobirthing teacher to tell her the news and arrange a refresher course
🗓️ I spoke to my employer about mat leave & work plans
🏃‍♀️ I researched & prepped for running during pregnancy (all new to me!)
🧒🏼 My biggest asked so many questions about my belly and the baby

I am so grateful for the tools I gained from my birth prep course that helped me to navigate all the above, plus keeping a calm head and a focused mind.

Have you started having similar thoughts or making these kind of plans?

I’d love to hear from you if you’re pregnant this month, pop me a DM to say hi and see how I can help you prepare for birth.

Kat x

29/10/2021

💟 Early labour 💟

For some early labour is sometimes pretty speedy, but for most, this stage can last hours (or in my case days).

Having a think about some of the good stuff you can do in this time can have a really great impact on how you feel in these hours and can impact the rest of your labour.

Here’s some tips to help:

💟 Get comfortable – feel lovely, safe and comfy in your environment. This stage is usually at home so snuggle up on your sofa, chill in bed or relax in the bath (or all of these!!)

💟 Laugh – All the happy feels are so helpful at getting labour moving so do what makes you feel good, what makes you giggle, even better belly laugh. This is also a great distraction while your body does it’s thing!

💟 Eat & drink – If you can, eat slow release energy foods and snacks that you fancy. Keep sipping water to ensure your body is hydrated and feeling ace!

💟 Cuddle – aaah the love hormone is super powerful in birth right now so affection and feeling loved is a really gorgeous way to help your birth progress… kisses & cuddles with your loved ones!

💟 Move – gentle movement like slow walking or dancing can really help baby move into a fab position, ready to birth. If you feel able then any easy, soft exercise will work wonders for your body.

What good stuff did you do in early labour?
Or what plans do you have if you’re preparing for labour?

#

And Exhale Hypnobirthing

28/01/2022

27/01/2022

18/01/2022

26/12/2021

21/11/2021

20/11/2021

18/11/2021

16/11/2021

05/11/2021

03/11/2021

01/11/2021

29/10/2021

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