Some of the different types of pain management during labor are deep breathing techniques, walking, and distracting oneself by keeping occupied with other tasks. Breathing techniques like the Lamaze technique are a traditional kind of pain management during labor that some women naturally perform to help with the pain. Walking and changing positions in general can help move the baby to where he or she needs to be. Cooking, cleaning, and participating in a well-loved hobby are other distracting methods used to control pain during labor. In addition, expecting mothers sometimes find pain relief in medication like epidurals.
Deep breathing is a traditional type of pain management during labor. In fact, popular methods like the Lamaze technique date back to the early 1940s. Deep breathing techniques have the expecting mother focus on her breathing, and its effectiveness varies. The effectiveness is attributed to distracting the expecting mother from her pain or the placebo effect.
Slowly walking around a room is a form of pain management during labor for many women. Some women feel uncomfortable sitting or lying on their backs; plus, standing up can help the baby move into the birth canal via gravity. Some hospitals even encourage women to walk around and give them chairs and exercise balls to rest on between walking around the room. In some cases, an expecting mother may be advised not to move around much during labor.
Another type of pain management during labor is simply keeping occupied. Some women bake or clean, while others enjoy one of their favorite hobbies. Taking a shower or warm bath can also be relaxing and helpful during labor. In fact, some women purchase a small pool to inflate in their living rooms in order to relax without being restricted to a bathroom. This method also focuses on distracting the woman from her pain by indulging in things she likes to do that may be comforting to her.
In Western countries, medication often plays a strong role in dealing with labor pain. Medications make labor pain less painful, which is something a lot of the natural methods cannot do. On the down side, taking medications during labor can make the delivery take more time, and both the mother and baby are at risk of side effects of the medication. For example, babies who are delivered to women who had an epidural can experience difficulty breathing.
