How I made the transition

Autumn 2013, I sat googling what to write in a letter of resignation. I was on my 15 minute break, dreading the lesson ahead. It was year 9 and they were LOUD.

I kept it simple, “Please accept this letter as formal notification of my resignation from my role as teacher of religious studies…”

I’d like to tell you that I’d weighed up all the pros and cons of leaving the career I’d worked so hard for. The one with a great pension and the weeks of holidays that my non teacher friends were so envious of.

I hadn’t though. It was one of those decisions that was driven by my heart. My desire to be home with my baby boy was so strong. My hatred of the weeks leading up to this letter were pushing me to something different.

I didn’t know exactly how things would work out but I knew I couldn’t carry on as I was. It just wasn’t the life I wanted for myself and my family. Yet, the Abby of just a year previously would be so shocked by this move. That Ab...

Your potential client spends her time skim reading.

She scrolls social media seeing over 100 pieces of content a MINUTE!

She browses websites scanning for things that apply to her.

So how do you help her find you and your life changing Hypnobirthing courses?

Simple, you grab her attention with a hook at the start of your posts/ blogs/ videos etc.

A hook is a compelling element designed to grab attention and entice people to engage with your content. A bit like a fishing hook, it’s about reeling them in to your world so that they can benefit for the knowledge that you have that will support them so much.

In the context of social media, it's the initial part of your post that captures the audience's interest and stops the scroll. It could be the first sentence, the text on an image or the title written across a video. On a blog or webpage, this is the title or any bits in bold.

It is useful to know that effective hooks DON’T summarise the whole post, instead t...

I’m a “I need proof” kind of person.

I'd love to be a bit more woo but deep down I'm a bit of a sceptic.

Auras, human design, crystal healing, energetic vortexes etc. I'm not there yet.

Now, don't get me wrong, I've got my fair share of crystals. They are pretty, right?! But I'd love to hear more of the science behind them before I'm fully on board.

I can see my gorgeous woo friends and colleagues rolling their eyes when the read this. I blumming love that they are so into all this, I just need to hear a bit more logic first. (I'm not saying it doesn't exist though)

What has this got to do with Hypnobirthing?

Well, when I first heard of Hypnobirthing, I felt the same about it.

It sounded a bit woo to me. I couldn't quite get that listening to an older women on a CD (yes, it was a while ago) telling me a story with some mantas thrown in, with a background of plinky plonk music was going to make a difference to my birth. I certainly never thought that one day I'd be a voice ...

Take a look on Google Trends data and you’ll see a notable and consistent interest in Hypnobirthing over the years. Searches for "hypnobirthing" also show spikes, especially around certain times of the year, indicating heightened interest likely due to media coverage. 2018 for example saw a spike searches after Harry Kane and Kate Middleton both were in the media talking about how great Hypnobirthing is.

Often the first thing people associate with Hypnobirthing is letting go of the fear of childbirth. For me that was what attracted me to doing a course back in 2012 when I was pregnant with my first baby.

I was dreading giving birth. I was terrified of the pain I might feel, the lack of control and the potential for it to happen in a way I didn’t want it to.

You’d be forgiven for thinking that fear of birth is the only reason women, and their birth partners decide to do a course. In fact, there are many other reasons people seek out these in demand courses, in addition to re...

This is a question I asked myself when I first found Hypnobirthing, 12 years ago, pregnant with my first baby.

‘If I’m Hypnobirthing, will I be able to have an epidural?’

I loved the idea of Hypnobirthing and certainly needed it with the amount of fear I had about childbirth.

Yet, I was scared that if I committed to a Hypnobirthing course, I’d somehow not allowed to have an epidural if I wanted one.

As someone who considered myself to have a VERY low pain threshold, this played on my mind A LOT.

This worry likely came from my association with Hypnobirthing being an alternative to medical intervention. So, I saw Hypnobirthing and epidurals as opposite ends of the scale.

What I found was Hypnobirthing aimed to empower women to have a positive and calm birth experience. Yes, I learnt all about the incredible work of the body during birth and ways I could naturally remain as comfortable as possible AND I learnt that I had choices. What I wanted for my birth w...

Starting a Hypnobirthing business of your own is not only an incredible way of spreading the word that childbirth can be incredible but can also become a flexible way of earning money doing something rewarding.

Where do you start though, when thinking about becoming a Hypnobirthing Instructor?

I’ve broken down 5 steps to launching your own Hypnobirthing business, even if you have never done it before…

1. Get clear on your motivation

Take a pen and paper and list the many benefits of bringing Hypnobirthing to more parents. Think of this for the pregnant women and birth partners you’ll work with, PLUS the benefits to your own life too.

Getting focused on your motivation in this way will decrease the fear that is so natural when doing something new. As I say to my students “Make the mission bigger than the fear”.

You might think about how Hypnobirthing will allow women to enjoy their pregnancies more with decreased fear and greater opportunities to bond with their...

Teaching Hypnobirthing has been part of my life more than 9 years now and it’s been incredible.

There’s been some weird things in that time though…

1. The postman’s reaction

Picture the scene. I’m teaching a couple Hypnobirthing from my living room. It’s 25 degrees outside, so I’ve got the window open.

To post a letter, the postman must walk in front of the window and of course he can’t help but have a peek in. You would, wouldn’t you?

So that’s what he does.

There he sees a woman bent over a birth ball with a man behind her (her partner). He can’t see that he’s simply practicing some soothing strokes guided by me.

He hears her demand “you can do it harder than that”

There I am stood next to the couple, making eye contact with the postman, with an awkward smile.

 2. The clients that say it’s like relationship therapy

Now, I’m a firm believer that there’s some incredible unexpected benefits of Hypnobirthing.

This one I wasn’t expecting tho...

I gave this zero thought when I first trained in 2015. I called myself a Hypnobirthing teacher. If I’m honest this was because others that offered Hypnobirthing also called themselves this.

I’ve noticed these days, women who run Hypnobirthing courses call themselves a variety of things and I think this is wonderful.

It got me thinking about how a title can convey so much. We know language is powerful, right?!

So, I’m writing this blog to get you thinking about which title you choose to go by and what this could do to amplify your brand.

Here are some of the titles I’ve seen…

Hypnobirthing Teacher

Birth Hypnosis Specialist

Birth Coach

Hypnobirthing Practitioner

Hypnobirthing Instructor

Hypnobirthing Facilitator

Birth Educator

Hypnobirthing Specialist

Birth Guide

Pregnancy and birth Mentor

Antenatal teacher

These alternative titles can help get across the focus and expertise of the practitioner while also resonating with their dream potential clients.

 ...

Are you wanting to get bookings on group Hypnobirthing courses this year?

I hear you! When I first started my Hypnobirthing business, as much as I loved working one-to-one with clients, my intention was to have a birth business with consistently full groups.

I wanted that bustling atmosphere that comes with groups and I really wanted my clients to get the extra perk of meeting other expectant parents too. Plus, I knew it would be a more profitable use of my time. As a mum of young children, this was super important to me.

Here are 5 essentials to consider to maximise your chances of filling those groups:

1. Timing

Unless you’ve got a massive following of pregnant women eagerly awaiting your next course you are going to benefit from advertising group courses 6-12 weeks in advance. I honestly wouldn’t go any less than 6 weeks. This gives you time to promote your Hypnobirthing groups and makes it more likely that those that enquire don’t already have plans on your dates.

Teaching skills for Hypnobirthing Instructors

I once heard someone say “Be so good at what you do that they can’t ignore you” and I thought YES, this has been my philosophy throughout these last 9 years of running a Hypnobirthing business.

When you trust that what you offer is so great, you are able to talk about it with certainty and confidence. This magnetises clients. Plus, you benefit from word-of-mouth recommendation that allows bookings to come your way with more ease long-term.

I’m in the anti-more brigade though.

No, I don’t think you need to add a whole new session on biomechanics or baby care or even self-advocacy.

More isn’t more. More can be overwhelming. It can mean you are skimming through things. It can mean you scrape on the things that make your courses more of an incredible experience too.

So, here’s how you can enhance your teaching skills so that your Hypnobirthing courses are even better for your clients, without needing to add more informat...