Nikiah Seeds
Certified Birthing From Within Mentor
Childbirth Educator
CD (DONA), RHN, CH
How to Have Less Pain in Labour
By Nikiah Seeds
To lesson the pain created by labour:
Movement and positioning: change your position often, walk
Counter pressure: if you have low back pain, have someone press firmly where it hurts.
Baths: having a soothing bath can take away some of the pain and help you to progress quicker.
Reflexology and Accupressure: using reflexology during labour can be deeply relaxing and can help to speed contractions. Pressing the acupressure point 4 finger widths above your ankle bone or between your thumb and index finger can lower pain as well as help your contractions get stronger.
Massage: is a great way to distract from the pain. Using either hands or tools such as wooden massagers or battery operated, pool noodles or even a tennis ball. There are several techniques that can be used.
Water: Hydrotherapy is an excellent form of relaxation. Sitting in a whirlpool or bathtub is deeply relaxing and can help you to deal with strong contractions. A bath or water birth can also help during pushing by lessoning the pain of stretching. A hot shower is also wonderful especially if your water is broken and you would still like to use water. The hot water spraying on your lower sacrum really helps with back labour. Or, how about filling up a hot water bottle.
Hot/ Cold: Using either hot packs or cold packs can be extremely useful.
Distract yourself:
~ Bring some birth art to focus on or a photo of a baby or loved one.
~ Try chanting using words like “open”, or “out”, or ”low”.
~ Making noises such as sighing or growning and moaning are helpful ways to deal with pain and to make your body more relaxed.
~ Move, move, move, sway your hips rhythmically, stomp your feet, wave your hands whatever feels right and distracts you.
Breath: focus your attention on your breath- try slow breathing, deep, patterned whatever feels right.
NFA- Non focused Awareness: What this means is using all of your senses instead of just focusing on the one that is giving you all of the pain which is our sense of feeling. Try listening to everything that is going on around you, really listen. Or your sense if smell, sight etc..
The terrain of pain is mainly in the brain!
Tips to help with pain and fear:
~ Be aware of what is happening in your body during labour.
~ Lesson your stress by making sure that you feel comfortable with your surroundings.
~ Stay home during early labour and if you are choosing a hospital birth you can take comforting things with you to the hospital such as your own nightgown and pillows.
~ Surround yourself with caregivers that you trust.
~ Have a doula.
Help your body to relax:
~ Relax every part of your body one by one.
~ Imagine your contractions as waves. You could either ride the wave as it peaks or dive under and let it wash over you.
~ Imagine your cervix as a flower opening.
~ Listen to soothing familiar music.
~ Have your partner or doula massage your muscles to help with relaxation.
~ Try hypnosis or deep meditation. Let the contraction happen, fighting against it will only make it last longer and seem to hurt more.
~ Quiet, not being asked questions during contractions and keeping chatter down so mom can focus.
Read, read, read:
Reading books on this subject can also help you to get an idea of what you might like to use and what works for you.
Some suggested books are:
~ Mind over Labour by: Carl Jones
~ Comfort measures for childbirth by: Penny Simkin
~ The Birth partner by: Penny Simkin
~ Easing Labour pain by Adrianne Liebman
~ Hypnobirthing. A celebration of Life. By: Marie F. Monigan