Pain Relief in Labour

There are a variety of different pain relief options available to you, it’s good to know your options before you give birth. 

You could be in the early stage of labour (latent phase) for a little while so it’s important to know what will help you during this period:

• warm baths
• back massage
• tens machine
• paracetamol 
• keeping mobile, trying different positions
• eating and drinking ( you might not feel like eating a big meal but take sips of water regularly and eat little and often to keep your energy levels up)
• resting / sleeping (especially if at a time when you usually would be asleep) 

Every birthing person will deal with labour differently, some will be very vocal and may verbalise loudly, others require a lot of pain relief and some may not need any. There are no rules about how you labour and your midwife will support you to make an informed choice with regards to what pain relief you require.