Tips on Getting Through Labor

I don't think there is any pregnant woman who looks forward to going through labor. The stress, pain and time spent can be unbearable. I went through labor with two of my children and it was painful. I used techniques that help reduce the amount of pain I was experiencing during labor. These techniques are simple but very powerful and will help you through labor.

·Move your body. I know the experience of pain was ten times greater when I would lay or sit down. I had to keep my body moving by walking and turning it in different sometimes unusual positions. The only time that wasn't good to move my body was when I was having a contraction. During that time you want to remain still.

·Squeeze something. I always had something in my hand to squeeze. For example, I had sealed lipstick container that I would squeeze as hard as I could when I went through a contraction. I also would squeeze my husband's hand as hard as I could. The pain was no fun for him but he understood enough to know it couldn't be as bad as my pain. The husband idea may not be so great so have a couple of objects prepared to use during your labor.

·Focus on something else. Focusing on the pain just seemed to make me feel worse. What helped was focusing on anything but the pain. For example, I would find something in the room such as a painting or a picture and keep my eye on that. My husband would help me focus on something else by describing a place we traveled to such as the beach. He would encourage me to visualize that I was at the beach relaxing and having a couple of non alcoholic drinks.

·Relax. I know it is difficult to relax but it does make a difference if you are putting effort into calming your body. You can't be relaxed and tense at the same time. Some examples of relaxing are listening to music, getting a massage and surrounding yourself with scented candles.

·Think positive. Negative thoughts will only hurt not help. If you would like to increase your pain during labor just tell yourself, "This hurts! This is painful." To reduce the pain tell yourself, "I feel relaxed." I can get through labor." "I will get to see the baby soon."

·Take deep breaths. Breathing is a form of relaxation. It will help speed up the labor and will make going through labor a lot easier. Breathe in slowly through your nose and blow out slowly through your mouth. I was taking deep breaths from the beginning till the end of labor.

·Drink liquids. Your body is working very hard and it needs fluids. What helped me was apple juice with ice. The apple juice rejuvenated me and the ice cooled me down.

When you go into labor try the different techniques. You will find that some techniques work better than others. Each woman's body and experience is different so what may work for one person may not work for another. During labor focus on the techniques that do work for you to help and it will successfully take you to the end of your labor.