The third paradigm in labour pain preparation and management: the childbearing woman's paradigm.

THE STUDY'S RATIONALE Women's experiences regarding labour pain preparation and management have been largely neglected. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES Explore women's experiences regarding labour pain preparation and management in normal childbirth. METHODOLOGICAL DESIGN AND JUSTIFICATION The Vancouver School of doing phenomenology was the methodological approach of the study since it provides inside information about the lived experience. RESEARCH METHODS Data were collected through in-depth interviews with 14 participants; seven primiparous and seven multiparous women. RESULTS The women described a challenging journey of no return through labour pain, with different landmarks on the journey. They described how they prepared for the pain; the context of the pain experience; how they experienced and managed the pain with different strategies and how they saw the pain at the journey's end. The quality of the midwife's presence and professionalism was of great importance to them. The 'good midwives' they described created a special atmosphere which was warm and secure and was conducive to their managing the pain. The women also described how important it was for them to have a supportive partner, with whom they had a mutual understanding, in order to manage the pain. CONCLUSIONS In this paper, we are presenting a study within the third paradigm in labour pain preparation and management: the childbearing woman's paradigm - the first and second being the midwifery and the medical paradigm, respectively. Midwives can play a major role in working with women in their preparation and management of labour pain. In the future, more research has to be done to illuminate this essential part of the childbearing woman's paradigm.

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