I used it for my second and third births, after learning HypnoBirthing for my first. It was amazing. I didn't find it time consuming at all, since most of the practice could literally be done in your sleep. Yes, there are a number of things that need to be done to be fully prepared, but I didn't find it to be too much of a commitment. There is reading to be done each week for 5 weeks (6 if you take a live class). That took less than an hour a week. There is an affirmations CD you listen to daily, but it can be played in the background while you're doing other things, so it doesn't take time out of your day. There is an instant hypnosis technique that you practice 5 times daily, but you can do them all at one time and it only takes a few minutes. I did them when I was going to sleep at night or to help me get back to sleep if I got up to use the bathroom, so it didn't take time out of my day. There are daily scripts you listen to, one per day. I listened to each one the first time after doing my reading for the week, but I fast-forwarded through the relaxation so I could stay alert and just hear the suggestions and would know what it was teaching me. Once I had done that and knew what I was learning, I always listened to it while I slept at night, so again, it didn't take any time out of my day. So one day a week for 5 weeks, I spent around 1.5 hours on preparation, and other than that it was under 5 minutes most days. But the benefits were enormous. I slept beautifully, my stress level dropped significantly, I went into my birth confident and joyful. Oh, yeah, and - bonus! - it provided all the information and skills I needed to have really enjoyable births.
For the record, it can also be very helpful if a woman winds up needing medical intervention. Two of my close friends had very high-risk pregnancies. One knew she'd need a c-section. She chose Hypnobabies to decrease stress, focus on what she could do to help keep her baby healthy and because all the skills are extremely useful before, during and after surgery. She was really happy with how helpful the skills were throughout her pregnancy and birth. The other mom was able to use the skills to control her dangerously high blood pressure so well that her OBs went from recommending she have a c-section as soon as they could determine the baby's lungs were developed (they wanted to start checking at 35 weeks) to letting her go until her 39th week when her birth began spontaneously. She did wind up needing a c-section because her baby was in distress, but she was amazed by how much better she felt during and after the surgery than she had with her first c-section, thanks to using her Hypnobabies techniques. It's definitely useful for far more than just a straight-forward, vaginal birth.