The type and amount of discomfort during labor and birth varies from woman to woman and changes throughout the various stages of labor. Midwives are leading experts in helping women decide how to cope with childbirth pain. Whether you wish to try strategies such as movement, massage, water immersion, or relaxation techniques, or epidural, nitrous oxide, or other medications, your…
Labor is the work that your body does to give birth to your baby. Your uterus contracts, your cervix (the mouth of the uterus) opens, and you push your baby out into the world. Experiences of labor are as unique and varied as the nearly 4 million women who give birth every year in the United States. Familiarizing yourself with…
Can you tell me more about using nitrous for pain control during labor? I found out that lots of people use it in the UK but I can’t find any hospital around me that offers it. What’s the deal? Is it not safe? —Sarah B. Hospitals in the U.S. are beginning to have nitrous oxide available to women for…