Labor
Support, Techniques & Procedures
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Lamaze
Offers Time-Tested Ideas (opens
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Lamaze
childbirth classes focuses on educating and empowering
women. They do not promise a painless childbirth experience,
but help women understand the value of pain during
labor and birth. Lamaze also teaches the mother-to-be
and her support person how to respond to pain in ways
that help labor as well as increase comfort levels — and
yes, some of those comfort measures discussed include
medications such as epidural anesthesia.
Painless
Birth with HypnoBirthing (opens
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HypnoBirthing, a legitimate,
alternative way to give birth! Birth usually takes at least
a little time, so how do you relax and actually enjoy giving
birth? One method that’s becoming increasingly popular
is HypnoBirthing. It’s a completely safe method of
childbirth. It’s a way for you to really relax and
let your body do the work it needs to do in order to birth
your baby. It’s a deep state of relaxation that you
don’t normally reach in everyday life.
Prenatal
Yoga: More Than Relaxation (opens
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Prenatal
yoga helps you during birth but even moreso before
and after birth. During pregnancy, the breathing
and body awareness help you stay connected to your
changing body. The gentle stretches and poses develop
strength and readiness for giving birth as well as
improving your current physical health. Finally,
the relaxation is so needed in our harried and stressful
world.
Unexpected
Changes During Birth (opens
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Call it a womanly forte, call it a
mother’s prerogative, explain it with hormonal
fluctuations; the desire to nest often extends beyond
scrubbing floors and organizing nurseries. Women
raise the bar and create birth plans. Often called
a “wish list,” birth plans offer many
benefits: they facilitate open communication between
mothers and caregivers, they can identify key beliefs,
alert caregivers to potential misinformation and
allow the mother to have a sense of control over
a situation.
Hypnosis
for Childbirth (opens
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Mention the words “labor
and delivery” to an expectant mom in her last
trimester, and chances are good that her heart will
begin to race and her mind flood with concern -- and
in some cases, panic. She knows that the day is coming
when a force much bigger than herself will take over
and her body will govern itself completely.
Coping
With Slow Labor (opens
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While some women experience fast labors
and occasionally don’t even make it to the hospital
on time, others labor for hours or sometimes days.
These labors are physically and emotionally exhausting
for you and your support people.
Labor
Support: More Than Huff-Puff-Blowww (opens
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Explanation
of who provides support during labor and birth and
tips for supporters.
Off-Label
Use of Cytotec: Drawbacks to Popular
Labor-Inducing Drug (opens
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The
rate of labor induction has reached an all-time
high in the United States, with estimates climbing
as high as 33.7 percent of all pregnancies.
Five
great labor positions (opens
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Although you might want to crawl
into bed and not get up until it’s all over,
staying in bed is one of the worst things you can do.
