Comfort Measures for Labor and Birth

Posted by mamas

Posted: December 2, 2008 - 7:57 pm

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mmmmm….comfort. When you hear the word, it makes you want to sigh and smile as a feeling of warmth wells up within. At least it does for me anyway. I have always loved comfort and find that in any difficult or trying time, if you add a little comfort it will go a long way in making the situation better. The same is true during labor. Regardless of if you are having a strenuous or relatively easy time; comfort measures will improve your physical, mental, and emotional status.

There are so many possible comfort measures that could help with labor and birth and they range from the extremely unique to the everyday simple measures. The Gate-Control Theory of Pain suggests that if there are painful nerve signals being sent to the brain and you introduce a different stimuli instead, it will break the path of the pain signal and send a new signal, thereby, slamming a gate in front of the pain. Thoughts, emotions, and physical sensations can all produce the gate-control effect. An example of this theory is the migraine headache that disappears during an action movie and returns immediately afterward, or the bad bruise that goes unnoticed during an intense sports game until the game ends.

Probably the comfort measure that tops the list for most during labor is the use of hot and cold to stimulate nerves. Especially when you combine this with another comfort measures such as aromatherapy, music, or hydrotherapy. For instance, the hot shower or Jacuzzi tub bath combined with soft lighting can have an immediate soothing effect on your muscles and your mind. The acupressure of massage combined with your favorite scent, the sound of your favorite song combined with the visual of a baby outfit, the breeze of a fan combined with the crunch of the ice chips, the pattered breathing combined with the powerful affirmation. All of these measures will work together to bring you comfort as you and your body work through labor and birth.

It is a good idea to do some personal research prenatal and find out what brings you comfort in times of stress. Practice relaxing in different rooms of your house and write down what makes you feel best. It may even be something as unique as a shirt from your husband’s closet, rocking or laying in a certain position, the scent of baby shampoo, or a picture of a tropical get-away. Whether your ideal place of peace is found through baths, verses, songs, a preferred taste, photos, positions, visualizations, or any other number of stimuli, it is your choice to incorporate them into your labor and birth experience.

Typically, when using comfort measures during labor, it will take a minimum of three contractions to know if it is helping or not. So after switching positions or changing any internal or external comfort measures…it would benefit you to wait between five and fifteen minutes before changing again. This way you will know for sure if it is helping or not. Once you have found a comfort measure that you like, it may only help for 30 minutes to one hour. Generally, you will need to switch comfort measures at this time and then come back to the original one a while later. However, once you find the right sequence or comfort measure for you, maintain it as long as it is working.
What comfort measures strike you as being “just right”? What works well for you at home or in labor?

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