What Are Hormones & How Do They Work?
Understanding hormones is the foundation of everything else that I talk about and teach to do with labour, birth, breastfeeding and babywearing!
Your hormones aren’t just little chemicals floating around doing their own thing.
They’re messengers, constantly translating how you feel, what you think, and even your environment into real, physical responses in your body.
Once you understand how they work, you’ll start to notice how your emotions affect your body — and, even better, how simple actions like breathing, resting, or connecting with others can influence your hormones to support a smoother, more straightforward pregnancy, birth, and postnatal experience.
Why Is This Important?
This knowledge helps you:
Make informed decisions
Feel more confident and calm in labour
Support breastfeeding and postnatal recovery
Recognise the mind-body link and use it to your advantage
By the end of this course, you’ll not only understand how to support your hormones through pregnancy, birth, and parenting — but you’ll see how these principles can be used in everyday life too.
Hormones: The Vital Link Between Mind & Body
Hormones are how your body and mind talk to each other.
When you feel something — whether it's love, excitement, stress, or fear — your brain tells specific glands to release hormones into your bloodstream. These hormones then trigger physical changes:
Your heart rate might rise
Your muscles relax
Milk lets down
Labour progresses (or stalls!)
Here’s the brilliant part: it works both ways.
Simple actions like deep breathing, dimming the lights, gentle touch, or even visualising something calming send signals to your nervous system. Your body responds by dialling down stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol, and encouraging the release of hormones like oxytocin and endorphins.
This is one of the key takeaways of the course
Your emotions influence your body.
But your actions can influence your emotions and hormones too.
📝 Journal Prompt:
Let’s pause and tune in.
Hormones are incredible chemical messengers — tiny but powerful — shaping how our bodies grow, adapt, and respond moment by moment. They influence everything from mood, energy, digestion, sleep, to how we connect with others. Pretty amazing, right?
Have you ever taken medications or treatments designed to mimic natural hormones?
Maybe you’ve been induced, used hormonal medications, or perhaps encountered these stories through others or on TV.
Take a moment to reflect:
How did it feel physically or emotionally?
What thoughts, feelings, or questions arise when you think about hormones or synthetic hormones?
Any particular memories, experiences, or curiosities you’re carrying?
You might like to:
✨ Add some color to paper.
✨ Jot down words, feelings, or questions.
✨ Scribble freely — there’s no right or wrong here.
And don’t forget — share your thoughts in the comments below!
💬
Whether it’s a personal experience, something you’ve wondered about hormones, or simply what brought you to this course, I’d love to hear it.
Your reflections might spark connection or inspire someone else in our community.