Preparing for a childbirth

This is a subject which is of most important for a woman and is much talked about not only in west but also in India. With the advent of pain relieving drugs, anesthesia, the pain of childbirth was lost somewhere, in the last 20 - 30 years. Women especially in the western countries and even in our country, now want to feel the event of having a baby and hence these are learning processes.

This article is simultaneously posted by be at Preparation of a woman for childbirth

In India the village dais or midwife and in town the grandmother, mother or mother in law in the house, generally counselled the young mother to be, so this teaching was never lost. However in India today, with more and more women of the western culture attitudes being imbibed we are where the western Countries were 20 years ago. Before we really lose out our traditiopns with friendly midwives not being around, the five star culture catching up in privately managed hospitals I hope this article may help woman all they need to know regarding preparation for childbirth.

How to prepare for a childbirth

The idea of preparing a woman for childbirth is to minimize the discomfort, the feeling of pain in labor and delivery as also to decrease potential risks to the newborn and the mother to be.

There are many regimens ann various methods applied for preparing a woman for child birth, some of them which are commonly applied are :-

Dick Real method

Dick Real method involves breaking of the fear-tension-pain cycle by teaching breathing and muscle relaxation exercises and adequate knowledge of what to expect during labor.

Lamaze method

Lamaze method also deals with specific breathing and relaxation exercises, a thorough knowledge about the delivery process and active support, of the father of the child in all the exercise programs, as well as when actual uterine contractions occur during labor. The hallmark of this is strict discipline to do the exercises and be committed to follwing all that is taught.

Sheila Kitziner program

Sheila Kitziner program is like the Dick Real method and Lamaze method with stress laid on perineal exercises. Also the entire family is interviewed and relationship is worked out.

Bradely method - Husband coached childbirth

In Bradley method the woman concentrates not on breathing exercises, but by being prepared for the pain and tuning in on it, by concentrating on what is happening to her, in this unique process of childbirth. The husband is an active participant and both feel the entire process of labor. The husband encourages the woman through the labor and tactile reassuring contact is maintained.

Hypnosis

Women are hypnotized to relate the sensation of pain in labor as pressure in labor. The mind is concentrated and fixed on something other than pain.

In the Indian context, our age-old science of yoga and meditation beats all these techniques and now gaining popularity even in Western Countries. Basically, yoga and yogic exercise lay stress on breath control and the exercises help to develop correct breathing techniques. Yoga also teaches meditation and mental relaxation. To learn yoga one must be initiated and taught by a yoga instructor, if she is not aware of fully. However, it is best to to get a thorough check up done by a doctor before starting any exercise program. In pregnancy the yogic breathing exercise helps to teach the correct ways to breathe and relax, so helpful during labor.