Mental Strategies

What are examples of mental strategies used for labor pain relief?

• visualization (for example, you might repeat to yourself the phrase, "My body is strong and is working well for me" and visualize this thought as a reality for your body)
• focus on the breath
• breathing techniques (often known as "Lamaze breathing")
• non-focused awareness (noticing what you see, hear, feel, smell without holding on to any of these thoughts)
• vocalization (for example, moaning and groaning)
• music
• prayer; and
• hypnosis.

What are the effects of mental strategies on labor pain?

What is needed to use mental strategies?

What are the advantages of mental strategies?

• offer many possibilities for relieving labor pain and can be combined with each other and with other types of techniques to suit every need
• have no lag time between deciding to use one and doing so
• promote a sense of accomplishment and capability, which can be more critical to a satisfying childbirth experience than pain relief in and of itself
• do not interfere with labor progress or the ability to push.
• do not limit your ability to move about
• may enable you to avoid pain medications and their possible adverse effects
• may enable you to delay or limit the use of pain medications and limit adverse effects.

What are the drawbacks of mental strategies?

• may not provide adequate pain relief
• often require training and practice.