What Is Directed Breathing In Childbirth?

Although breathing techniques were popular as a way to prepare for childbirth in the 1970s, birth skills have gone out of popularity. The most common and well-known breathing techniques were Lamaze. This was very popular with expectant families particularly in the US at a time when childbirth choices had become more available.

The purpose of breathing techniques has been to distract women from the naturally occurring pain of contractions. There are many theories surrounding the use of breathing techniques as a useful tool for self-management of birth pain. Another benefit of learning breathing techniques in giving fathers an active role in coaching birth.

For most of the history of modern maternity medical care women laboured alone either in a ward separated by curtains, a semi-private or private room. By the mid-1960s women demanded the presence of their husband during labour. They didn’t want to be alone. They wanted help in coping with labour pain. The most natural person to help was the husband. After all he was going to be a father and women rightly believed that men should understand how hard labour was. Many men felt left out of the whole birth arena. Although some cultures excluded fathers historically, there were many cultures where fathers were actively involved.

A man who learned breathing techniques was much more likely to actively help his partner manage contractions. This built family relationship. Men appreciated the hard work of labour, often grew in admiration of women and bonded more easily with their baby.

However, breathing techniques didn’t always work. The most common reason that breathing techniques didn’t work had to do with the intensity of pain. When the pain became very intense in the perception of the woman, often she felt out of control and lost control of the techniques she was taught.

This had a spin off effect for the man. Often men thought that the pain had shifted into a ‘problem’. This was mixed with a belief that the woman knew what she was doing or that her feeling out of control was a normal part of labour. This led to confusion. While the woman often wanted her husband to help her, he was often uncertain how to or whether he could or should. Sometimes he just wanted the obstetrician to come in and ‘do something’ to put her out of her misery.

Directed Breathing is an entirely different way to use our breathing in labour. We breathe all the time and will continue to breathe in labour whether we groan, scream or are very quiet. Breathing techniques are based on theories about breath, where Directed Breathing is based on what we do as humans when we breathe in different situations or activities.

The one and only contributing factor to a change in a woman’s breath in labour is directly due to the amount of pain she is experiencing. Pain is subjective yet if any person who experiences what they perceive of as painful will find their breath changing. Usually one pain response is to increase the rate of our breathing or to begin to make sounds. Groaning, moaning, hyperventilating are all part of this common response to feelings of pain.

Directed Breathing childbirth skills move us from merely using a technique to understanding how humans breathe when they feel pain and when we are relaxed. Birth pain is unique. It’s usually not coupled with an injury, sickness or even a ‘problem’. It naturally occurs and is connected to the opening of our cervix that is the closure of our womb. When a baby is ready to be born, the cervix must open. This stretching causes pain during the contractions that are the action of the womb to tug open the cervix.

Learning Directed Breathing skills is vitally important during pregnancy. All humans breathe the same way so men and women will both understand what relaxed breathing feels like compared to stressed breathing. This means couples can work more closely and men can understand the sounds a woman makes in labour and what it means.

Directed Breathing skills do create a focus to work with the baby’s efforts to be born even if your inner voice doesn’t like the experience. Using Directed Breathing permits us to use our willpower, determination and choice at every moment of birth. In fact as contractions get more painful, we are more likely to use our Directed Breathing skills more deeply. It makes common sense and becomes our default behavior. Our partner can model the best breathing type and work with us at every phase of each contraction.

Birth preparation and childbirth skills will become the common sense approach to pregnancy in time because they work in all births. Directed Breathing skills can be learned when you are planning a cesarean and used during delivery and recovery. Birth is birth. We will all breathe. Intentionally using your Directed Breathing skills will give you a sense of control of the experience as well as working with your baby’s efforts. This is terrific.

If you want to know more about Directed Breathing, the Pelvic Clock or Deep Touch Relaxation, Kate’s Cat, Hip Lift and Sacral Manoeuvre then visit http://www.birthingbetter.com. Learn more about The Pink Kit Method For Birthing Better® the only childbirth preparation course that focuses entirely on birth skills for mothers and fathers for ALL births. Wintergreen, is a Trustee to Common Knowledge Trust which produces The Pink Kit. She is a childbirth communicator and communicates on the societal benefits of growing a skilled birthing population.