

Below is some information about the main methods of coping that are available at The Royal Surrey County Hospital. If you would like to know more about any of the below, please speak to your midwife who will be able to advise you.
As well as medical pain relief options available, there are many simple things you can do yourself to help manage your labour.
Keeping relaxed is vital, so things like bathing in warm water, massage (particularly having your back rubbed or lightly stroked), the use of a birthing ball, listening to music, and staying active wherepossible during labour can help; these techniques allow labour to progress and should help you to feel less intense.
Calm breathing can increase the oxygen supplied to your muscles, and so make the labour feel less intense. What is more, by focusing on your breathing you are distracting yourself from any pain.
Similarly, some mothers find aromatherapy, hypnosis, homeopathy and reflexology very helpful.
Ask your midwife about these simple methods, or see our education classes for more information on our hypnobirthing preparation classes.
We have three birthing pools available in our Maternity Department. Two are within our Midwifery-Led Unit (MLU), for women with uncomplicated low risk pregnancies, and a third pool is located within the main Delivery Suite for the use of women who do not meet the criteria for the MLU or their baby requires continuous monitoring in labour (e.g. VBAC).
Many women find that labour in water is less painful and they are better able to relax.
Regardless of whether you use the pool in the MLU or on our Delivery Suite, your midwife will continue to monitor your progress and your baby’s well-being throughout your labour.
During Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS), a gentle electrical current is passed through four flat pads stuck to your back, creating a tingling feeling. You can control the strength of the electrical current yourself.
TENS works by encouraging your body to produce its own natural painkillers (endorphins) and also by blocking the pain signals, which are sent by the spinal cord to the brain. It is sometimes helpful at the beginning of labour, particularly for backache, and has no harmful effects on your baby.
If you choose to use a TENS machine, it works well from early labour and can be used in conjunction with entonox and pethidine later in labour.
To hire a TENS machine please ask your midwife for a leaflet. If you hire one, you can start it at home.
Entonox (Gas and Air) is the most commonly used form of pain relief in labour due to it being highly effective and only lasting while you are breathing it in.
Facts about entonox:
You control the amount of entonox you use, but to get the best effect timing is important. You should start breathing entonox as soon as you feel a contraction coming on, so you will get the full effect when the pain is at its peak and most intense. Do not use it between contractions or for long periods as this can make you feel dizzy and tingly.
Pethidine is opiate medication (similar to morphine) given by a midwife as an injection into a large muscle in your leg.
Facts about pethidine:
Epidurals and spinals are the most complicated but most effective method of pain relief and are carried out by an anaesthetist.
Facts about epidurals and spinals:
Who can and cannot have an epidural?
Most people can have an epidural, but certain complications of pregnancy and bleeding disorders may mean that it is not suitable for you. Other conditions such as previous back operations or if you are overweight may make an epidural more difficult and take longer to put in place. However, once it is in you will have all the benefits.
The best time to find out about this is before you are in labour, and we run an anaesthetic clinic if you wish to see and discuss this with an anaesthetist.