Aromatherapy During Labour – Can You Experience Less Birthing Trouble Using Aromatherapy?
The process of labour to deliver your baby is one of the most intense, painful, exciting, and distressing times in your life. Combined with all the excitement because your baby is finally quickly approaching, you are feeling pain and discomfort during every contraction. You want to guide your mind away from the pain and discomfort, but it can be difficult. Aromatherapy during labour can be an effective way to help.
Is aromatherapy going to make a dramatic change in the pain of your labour? As you are already probably thinking, it is not going to change the pain levels at all. It is not going to reduce the intensity of a contraction, nor shorten the length of contractions. In reality, you do not want the contractions to be shorter, or weaker. Their length and intensity is what is bringing your baby into the world, and into your arms.
What aromatherapy will do for you is give you a new area of focus. You have probably already been instructed about bringing along pictures, music, and other items to help distract your mind from the pain of labour. Aromatherapy is another piece of the puzzle. By engaging more senses, and having audible, visual, and aromatic sources of focus, you can reduce your attention on the pain of the contraction, lessening the effects and feeling.
How effective can aromatherapy during labour be? One study done in Oxford with 8000 women showed remarkable differences. There was a 30 percent drop in the usage of medical pain relievers. Imagine if your labour could feel 30 percent better? Would it be worth the small investment in some aromatherapy essential oils, and a few minutes of time to prepare?
While not every woman reports a significant difference in their labour experience by using aromatherapy, a high enough percentage do, which shows it can be successful for most women. Make sure you understand, successful means improving the experience, and aiding in the management of pain, not removing pain.
How can you use aromatherapy during labour? You can use it as a room scent, and have the room smelling of your favorite oil during the entire experience. You could choose to have it added to a cool compress, so you smell it during a contraction as your loved one wipes your face. You can add it to your favorite massage oil, and have the scent spreading about you as you receive a soothing massage. Using the massage technique could be one of your favorite, since it involves relief from touch and scent simultaneously. Since both massage and aroma have been shown to be effective in helping manage pain, combining the two can be very beneficial.
No matter how you choose to use aromatherapy during labour, you are going to enjoy it. Hiding the scents of the hospital, and giving yourself a pleasant scent to focus on will help improve your experience of labour and delivery. Everything you can do to increase the enjoyment of this great occasion is worth the tiny investment.
