 Why
is there Pain in childbirth?
Think for a moment about what you do with your muscles, for example,
maybe you are a runner. As you run down the street, feeling the
wind, what can you do to make the running easier? Are there things
that you do which might make the running more difficult?
Athletes learn quickly that there is a right way, and a wrong
way to move. The right way is by only using the muscles necessary
for the task, and keeping the other body muscles relaxed.
In our running example, you can make a spin around the block exceedingly
difficult by tensing your upper body. By over contracting the muscles
of your neck, arms, back or chest and abdomen you find the running
gets harder. You will feel tired quicker than if your body were
not tensed.
Relaxing the muscles works for several reasons. First, it takes
energy from your body to keep the muscle contracted. If you can
actively relax the unnecessary muscles, you will free up more energy
to use your running muscles.
Second, keeping your body tensed puts pressure on the muscles
you are trying to use efficiently. The leg muscles do not stop at
the thigh. They are connected to the pelvis to allow you to move
and bend at the hip. If your back or abdominal muscles (which are
also connected to the pelvis) are contracted, you lose some movement
with the leg muscles. In short, you may be working just as hard,
but you will not be able to run as fast. if you an actively relax
the unnecessary muscles, you will be able to use the muscles you
need more efficiently.
Third, it takes oxygen to contract your muscles without cramping.
The only way for your body to get that oxygen is through your breathing.
If your body's oxygen demand is higher than what you can get by
breathing, you will contract your muscles anaerobicly, which builds
up lactic acid in the muscle, which causes cramping. If you can
actively relax the unnecessary muscles, you will need less oxygen
and have a better chance to avoid cramping.
So how does all this relate to childbirth? Quite simply, your
uterus is a muscle. Instead of running a race, it contracts rhythmically
to open the cervix and push the baby out. But the same principles
that can cause pain in running, can cause pain in laboring.
If you are laboring with tensed muscles, you will use energy faster,
causing you to feel tired more quickly than if your muscles were
relaxed.
Tensing your muscles can also hinder the efficiency of the uterus.
During a contraction, your uterus will tighten and move forward.
If your abdominal muscles are tensed, this will cause restriction
of the uterus, and you will feel the pressure of the muscles working
against each other. If your back muscles are tensed, the ligaments
that connect the uterus to the back will tug on a muscle that does
not want to move. Once again you will feel the pain of the muscles
working against each other.
Even a lack of oxygen can cause pain in childbirth, along with
a host of other problems.
Dr. Grantley Dick-Read began to realize the important effect tension
has on labor in the early part of the last century. He termed the
response the Fear/Tension/Pain cycle, because the more fear of labor
a woman had, the more tense her muscles were and the more pain in
childbirth she felt.
Even more interesting is the fact that the uterus and cervix have
very few sensory nerves themselves. Sensory nerves are the nerves
that tell the brain what is happening at the muscle, and the brain
determines if it is pain or pleasure. But with a lack of these nerves,
the uterus and cervix are simply not able to tell the brain to "feel"
that much pain. It is the surrounding muscle tissues that are responsible
for the sensations of labor pain. The more relaxed these surrounding
muscles are, the less they will work against the uterus and the
less labor pain you will experience.
Additional Information:
Importance of Relaxing
Perineal Tear Prevention
Warm Tub Bath During Labour
Blue Cohosh and Birth Defects
Labor Pain
Dealing with Pain during Childbirth
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