Hypnosis for Childbirth Research

(Jenkins and Pritchard 1993) 

This study found a reduction of 3 hours for prim gravid women (from 9.3 hours to 6.4 hours) and 1 hour for multi gravid women (from 6.2 hours to 5.3 hours) for active labour (262 subjects and 600 controls). Pushing was statistically shorter for first time mothers (from 50 mins to 37 mins). These women were more satisfied with labour and reported other benefits of hypnosis such as reduced anxiety and help with getting to sleep. 

The Abramson and Heron (1950) & Gallagher (2001) study, found a shorter first stage of labour for 100 women trained with hypnosis (by 3.23 hours) compared to a control group of 88 women. 

Forty-five Hypnosis for childbirth clients (first time mothers) had an average of 4.5 hours of active labour, a significant reduction comapred to the usual 9 hours.

(Harmon, Hynam and Tyre 1990)

In a British study, 55% of 45 patients (first and second time mothers) required no medication for pain relief. In the other non-hypnosis groups, only 22% of 90 women required no medication. Two research pieces reported 1,000 consecutive births: 850 women used hypnotic analgesia resulting in 58 per cent of no medication. Five other research pieces reported an incidence of 60 to 79 per cent non-medicated births.

  

(Mehl, 1994)

One hundred pregnant women who fetuses were in breech position at 37-40 weeks gestation and a matched control group. 81 % of breech babies were successful conversations to a vertex position compared with 48 % in the control group. The success was thought to be down to psychophysiological factors which may influence the breech position.