Pain and how does it affect our body?

Pain is an unpleasant sensation and emotional experience that links to tissue damage. It allows the body to react and prevent further tissue damage. The body responds to pain via the sympathetic nervous system (SNS). The effects of these changes on body systems are summarised in the table below. 

What is the Sympathetic Nervous System?

The SNS is involved in the body’s immediate response to emergencies, including severe and acute pain; its reaction to pain or fear is known as the ‘fight or flight’ response. When we experience pain, our breathing is often strained, shallow. This causes reactions like ‘an increase in heart rate and blood pressure, and the tightening of muscles.

Why does breathing help ease pain?

By consciously breathing, you can trigger a powerful positive physiological response that counteracts the flight or fight response. The benefits of deep breathing for pain relief are two-fold. When you breathe deeply, hormones such as nitrous oxide increase in the blood, reducing tension in the body’s connective tissues and muscles.’ This is why some women will choose to use techniques such a hyno-birthing as it focuses on mindfulness and deep breathing during childbirth. Several studies have concluded that there is evidence to suggest that taking control of breathing helps with pain management/perception.

What breathing techniques are there?

I will discuss 2 of my favourite techniques but there are many more techniques widely available.

1. Breath Focus Technique

This deep breathing technique uses imagery or focus words and phrases.

Choose a key word that makes you smile, feel relaxed. Examples include peace, calm, easy, serene or relax, but it can be any word that suits you.

The aim to is build up your breath focus. So start with 1 minute focus time. Gradually increasing this to 20 minutes. This will help when in labour and needing to stay in control during contractions or the transitional phase of labour. 

How to do it:

1. Sit or lie down in a comfortable place.
2. Bring your awareness to your breaths without trying to change how you’re breathing.
3. Alternate between normal and deep breaths a few times. Notice any differences between normal breathing and deep breathing. Notice how your abdomen expands with deep inhalations.
4. Note how shallow breathing feels compared to deep breathing.
5. Practice your deep breathing for a few minutes.
6. Place one hand below your belly button, keeping your belly relaxed, and notice how it rises with each inhale and falls with each exhale.
7. Let out a loud sigh with each exhale.
8. Begin the practice of breath focus by combining this deep breathing with imagery and a focus word or phrase that will support relaxation.
9. You can imagine that the air you inhale brings waves of peace and calm throughout your body. Mentally say, “Inhaling peace and calm.”
10. Imagine that the air you exhale washes away tension and anxiety. You can say to yourself, “Exhaling tension and anxiety.”

2. Yogic breathing

Yoga Breathing is the foundation of yoga practice and promotes mind-body balance and healing:

How to do it:

1. Inhale from the base of your stomach, feeling the stomach rise as though you’re blowing up a balloon.
2. Keep inhaling, sending the breath upwards through the chest, feeling the ribs moving outwards, sideways and backwards.
3. Finally send the breath all the way to the collarbones, filling the lungs as full as they will go.
4. Exhale slowly, feeling the body release all the way down to the base of the stomach.
5. Aim for each inhale and exhale to be as slow as possible (four to eight counts or longer).

At Precious Delivery we offer affordable private midwifery consultations. Do you need more information about pain relief in labour? Book a consultation today to discuss any pregnancy concerns with our UK Registered Senior Midwife