What are guided meditations?

Guided meditations are mental exercises to help relax your brain and body. It is one way to use hypnosis, aka meditative states. You experience meditative states all the time. Scrolling through social media for “10 minutes” and looking up to find 2 hours have passed, or driving home from work or somewhere else you are familiar with and feeling like you get there in the blink of an eye. Ever heard of the advice to count sheep to help you fall asleep? That is a meditation. Thinking of something nominal your mind goes numb to.

Well, guided meditations are a step or two above counting sheep. It’s not an arbitrary thing your brain can do. They are carefully instructed visualizations or externally navigated processes, like focusing on breathing or on manually relaxing each and every muscle.

*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. This means that, at no added cost to you, I may receive compensation for products you purchase through links found on my blog. (Thank you, thank you!) This in no way affects the products I recommend (I only recommend the best)!*

*Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional, so please consult your physician before attempting any of these suggestions. Use your best judgment. What worked for me may not work for you. Each body is different and unique. Do what you feel is best at your own risk. I am not liable for any consequences. I am a blogger. This is a blog meant to provide opinions, suggestions, experiences, and information. Not medical advice. I am human and make mistakes, so information may not be 100% complete or accurate. Thank you, and enjoy!*

Do guided meditations go against my beliefs?

I am a strong Christian woman and was wary of chakras and hypnosis, but I have realized it’s like being wary of hand washing. What might have been heretical before, is not anymore. Developing my meditation abilities has brought me closer to God. Prayer and scripture study are meditation. Meditation brings you closer to whichever higher power you believe in. It connects you to the universe and all that surrounds you. It helps ground you into the present and brings peace & calm about the past and the future. It’s pretty awesome.

What are chakras?

Chakras are like the circulatory system for our energy. God breathed life into Adam. He gave Adam breath, or energy. This energy flows through us, and sometimes becomes turbulent. Chakras help dissect what might be affecting our energy, and give solutions for helping it flow freely again. Similar to how arteries get blocked or become weak, our energy can get strangled and tangled. Guided meditations help unblock energy by releasing fears, replacing negative thoughts with positive ones, and providing soothing music we otherwise wouldn’t listen to. However, it takes practice and frequent effort. You don’t build abs with one crunch. It takes consistent work over time. It took a long time to build up these blocks, so it might take a while to break them down.

Guided Meditation During Pregnancy

Pregnancy can bring out a lot of fear and worry. As Pam England, author of Birthing From Within said: “Worry is the work of pregnancy.”

Pregnancy after a C-Section can bring up more than fear and worry. It brings up negative personal experiences. It brings up memories. Trauma. This is especially true if no professionals have been involved in the postpartum recovery (postpartum therapists or counselors). Guided meditations help soothe those fears and affirmations help replace negative thoughts with positive ones (but you have to believe them).

I listened to these three guided meditation videos every single night the last few weeks or months leading up to my VBA2C. I made a YouTube playlist I would pull up on my phone next to my bed and let play (yeah, my screen stayed lit all night, but download a blue light filter app that extra dims your phone screen, and it’s okay).

These meditations are perfect to have deep, healthy sleep while also preparing your mind for labor and birth. If you want to go deeper, there are even guided meditations to help induce labor, and guided meditations to listen to while in labor. All I wanted to listen to while I was in labor was my Savior, Redeemer of My Soul Pandora station. So I can’t testify of the effectiveness of labor meditations. I definitely want to try it out next time.

Without further ado, here are…

The 3 Best VBAC Pregnancy Sleep Guided Meditations

1. Relaxation for Pregnancy and [VBAC] Childbirth by Tracy Holloway by Life Upgrade TV

2. HEAL While you SLEEP ★ Chakra Balancing and Clearing, Healing Guided Meditation by Progressive Hypnosis

[Release C-Section trauma and clear up blocked energy)

3. Aura Cleansing Sleep Meditation: 7 Chakras cleansing meditation music, sleep meditation by Nu Meditation Music

[Relaxing music to prepare your body for the relaxation required during labor and birth]

Get ready for deep sleep and relaxation. Enjoy.

~Kimberly