An interesting article from The Irish Times, published February 2, 2010, on the debate of what makes a satisfying birth experience and options to increase comfort in birth.
Article excerpt: Outlining the role of the midwife in pain management in pregnancy and the peripartum period, Denis Walsh, associate professor in midwifery at Nottingham University in the UK, said that the epidural was very effective in complicated labours, for example where the birth was being induced or sped up.
However, in normal pregnancy there was evidence that three forms of care reduced epidural use: one-to-one care in labour given by a midwife; access to water immersion, ie getting into a tub during labour; and access to self- hypnosis or hypnobirthing.
“When those three forms of care are widely available for women, we see quite a low rate of epidural, even in first-time births... Click here to read the full article
MY COMMENTS: This is a debate not only among women, but chilbirth professionals world wide! I appreciate seeing what other countries are finding and how they are approaching birth for their populations. The choice to use midwifery care is an important one, and has consistently shown good results for mother and baby health, and women's satisfaction with their birth experience.
I've been teaching hypnosis skills for birth since 1995. Many of my clients have been couples choosing out of hospital births and water births. It is great to see the statistics on success and satisfication from using hypnosis (and water tubs) - particularly internationally. Hypnosis has been steadily losing its "whoo whoo" reputation as more and more research validate how it works, as well as the benefits it offers. I look forward to continuing to be a part of helping women prepare for birth with skills to truly increase their satisfication with their birth experience and to be more comfortable thru the process.
All the best,
Nancy