Managing Pain in Labour

Breathing Techniques

Effective breathing techniques maximise oxygen for you and your baby, slow your pulse rate and lower your blood pressure.

Learning to focus the breath during labour reduces stress hormones and anxiety. It also relaxes the muscles around your womb and reduces pain. Ask your midwife where you can learn these techniques.

Entonox (Gas and Air)

It takes about 15 to 20 seconds to work from when you start to inhale it. You are completely in control of how much entonox you use. Once you stop breathing it, it wears off quickly. This is available in all birth settings.

Side effects of Entonox

Pethidine, Diamorphine and Meptazinol

These drugs are given as an injection, usually into your thigh. They may not remove the pain but can make you feel more relaxed.

They take about 20 minutes to work, and last between 2 and 4 hours.

Side effects of Pethidine, Diamorphine and Meptazinol

Pethidine and diamorphine are available in all hospital settings. Meptazinol is not available at all hospitals – check with your midwife.

Epidural

The epidural is a package of care. This is what you can expect:

You will sit in a curled position whilst the anaesthetist numbs the area to introduce the needle into your back. A skinny tube is then introduced through the needle, which will be left in place to give you the local anaesthetic. An epidural can lower your blood pressure so you will need an intravenous drip running with extra fluids.

Continuous monitoring of your baby will be recommended. Most people need a catheter (a tube into your bladder to drain the urine) as you lose the sensation of needing to pee.

An epidural is a skilled procedure and can take 10 minutes to set up, or much longer. It will take a further 15-20 minutes for the effects to be felt. An epidural can provide very good pain relief, but it’s not always completely effective in labour.

Side effects of an epidural

• The contractions may slow down. Therefore, you may need another drug to speed them up.
• You may have an increased chance of needing help to give birth with forceps or a ventouse as the epidural makes it harder to know how to move your baby down.
• You will need to wait until the epidural has worn off before standing up.

Waterbirth

You can use a birth pool for comfort during labour and either stay in it or get out to give birth to your baby.

Being in water helps you change positions easily as the water will take some of your body weight. Warm water relaxes muscles and helps the perineum to stretch which can reduce tearing. It also produces endorphins – your body’s natural painkillers.

Your baby is already in water and will find the birth into a pool a very gentle journey into life outside of the womb. If you are birthing at home, you can hire a birth pool.  Most midwifery-led units offer pools, and some consultant-led units also offer waterbirth.