IVF Belief CD

I mentioned last week that I'd decided to try a hypnotherapy CD during our IVF cycle. After a lot of searching for other IVF blogs I couldn't help but notice more than a few people recommending them, so last week, after a bit of searching and comparing reviews on Amazon, I decided to go for IVF Belief by Helen McPherson.

I picked this one over the other one that caught my eye partly because it had more reviews; twenty as opposed to eight. The other one got mostly five star reviews as well but as there were fewer of them I felt like I had a better idea of what to expect from this CD.

This one has three tracks each designed for a specific stage in the IVF treatment process. The other one I was considering also has three but the first is an introduction that you only listen to once. I'll admit I liked the logic of having a separate track for each stage, the fact you listen to each one more than one seemed like better value for money (even if this CD was slightly more expensive).

It arrived on Thursday (I placed the order on Sunday) and I couldn't wait to actually listen to it. I had to wait though because we had First Aid that night. I contented myself with reading the inside of the case which explains a little about how the CD should be used. Basically this amounts to when in the IVF cycle each track should be listened to. It also says that it should not be played in a vehicle or where anyone operating heavy machinery can hear it.

I thought perhaps I should wait to start listening to it until this week. I don't start my medications until this Wednesday so I thought this Tuesday would really be the earliest I could try it. But curiosity got the better of me and that night I ripped it to my phone and Kindle so I can listen to it wherever I am (in doing this I appear to have uncovered a fault on my Kindle, but more about that some other time).

So far I've only listened to the first track. At the beginning it says that this can be used at any point during fertility treatment if you're feeling a bit stressed. So I don't think I'm breaking any rules by listening to it early.

I've been listening to it first thing in the morning before I get up and last thing at night before I go to sleep. It's just over twenty minutes long and I was dubious about finding time to listen to it twice a day but as I'm doing it when I'd otherwise be tossing and turning or trying to dose it's not really time I'm missing.

Track One is for the Down-Regulation phase of treatment and it seems to be focused on getting you to relax. The first bit of the track is all about relaxing your body as much as possible; the second bit is visualisation exercises; the third is positive affirmations.

I'll admit I was a bit sceptical about it the first time I tried it. But there's a bit during the relaxation phase where it says you couldn't be bothered to move and almost every time I've done it I've been totally still by that point. Only once have I found myself fidgeting after that bit.

The visualisation exercises are good too and I actually surprised myself with them the first time. I enjoy them though and find it really easy to picture my 'Serenity Spot' now. I'm looking forward to the visualisation exercises that will be on the next two tracks.

The bit before you 'emerge' from the trance is always a bit fuzzy for me, which I guess means it's kind of doing the trick. On Friday night I must have completely spaced out during this part because I suddenly came back to myself and realised it was nearly over and that I could remember anything since the first bit of the visualisation. It was a strange sort of feeling but I was kind of disappointed that I couldn't replicate it the following night because I'd gotten to sleep so much quicker after it; like my mind had been totally cleared.

I've come to really enjoy listening to this track each morning and night. More than I was expecting in fact, I was expecting to get bored listening to the same thing over and over again, but there are different bits I notice or remember each time I hear it so even though it is the same track, it doesn't always feel that way.

They have been several times when I've come to the end of the track and felt disappointed that it's over. I realise that at just over twenty minutes it's just the right length and any longer would make it tricky to find time to do, but all the same I feel so peaceful and relaxed by the end of it that I can't help but kind of go 'aww' every time I get to the emerging bit.

This is something I'm still trying to work on because it's basically designed to bring you back to yourself but it does say that if you want to stay sleepy you can just ignore the counting. I really struggle to ignore that so sometimes I find myself more awake than I'd like to be. As I've been listening to it on my phone with my earphones in I've just taken to turning the volume right down so I can't hear the counting. It's hard to ignore a voice you've been totally focused on for the last twenty minutes!

The voice was the main thing that I was worried about. Mr Click used to have a relaxation tape with the most annoying voice in the world on it. It made it feel kind of sinister to me. That was another reason why I picked this CD over the other one, there were lots of positive comments about the voice on the track.

There's gentle music playing in the background with a clear female voice talking over it. She has a British accent which I'm glad of because I think an American one would be too distracting. In fact the voice is sort of Standard English/Estuary English so it's fairly bland, I mean you can focus on the words rather than the way they're being said.

Overall I am finding it useful, I do feel like I'm sleeping a lot better and I'm waking up from my morning doze feeling more refreshed and less sleepy. As for the actual IVF, well we'll have to see how that goes, but I like to think I'm feeling more positive about that too, I certainly had a good day at work after my first time listening to it, so hopefully something's sinking in.