Women's Pain Perception in Childbirth

The method used to study the hypothesis was by having 328 women completed five surveys up to 72 hours postpartum. They were between the ages of 18-42. Out of the group 68.6% were married or living with a partner and 43.3% had a job. The average number of years the women spent in school was 8.8yrs. More than half (59.2%), did not complete high school and only 2% (6) completed higher education. From the group, 19.2% of them had a miscarriage before. More than half (51.5%) had already

This paper will define the term pain and how it pertains to the comfort theory. Next, there will be discussion from relevant literature in regards to pain. Its defining attributes will be

First pain is an everyday experiences that is expressed through the use of language and is then legitimized (Waddie, 1996). If a patient as a history of depression or chronic pain they have pain every day and the concept is used to help explain their pain. As nurse we use the concept of pain to find a base line of the pain and to assess new pain. In surgical patients they may have multiple types of pain from the incision, emotional, and history. The concept educates the nurse of the different form that pain can present itself. Pain can also guide how we treat the patient. Emotional pain would not be treated with the “so know pain pills”, but with talking or listening to patient. Concept of pain also address the different form of patient and how the nurse and patient response to it. If a patient is having somatic pain from an incision the nurse could react by applying heat or ice. Pain is what the patient says it is.

The American discourse around childbirth pain management includes mostly narcotic pain killers, epidurals and other sources of pain medication while the Middle Eastern discourse around labor pain management includes meditation, herbal substances and breathing exercises. This is important because America’s attitude towards hospitals and doctors is so trusting that we don’t stop and think about what we are putting into our bodies and we blindly accept what they are giving us because it is considered, for the majority, culturally acceptable. Many Middle Eastern women on the other hand, are not allowed to see male doctors, therefore they give birth solely with the help of midwives who have little access to medication and can only help through

The concept of pain differs across cultures and healthcare disciplines, and devising ways to accurately define and assess pain is one of the underlying anxieties associated with the concept of pain. Since the population of the United States is a melting pot of traditions and customs, cultural differences between patients and caregivers may affect the perception and reporting of pain. According to Bird (2003) when measuring pain, cultural-related variations must be taken into consideration because measures of pain may be culturally specific. There are a variety of pain measurement tools available for use and each has its

Derbyshire within Fetal Pain: Do We Know Enough to Do the Right thing? discusses the anatomy, anatomical pathways and the psychology relating to the fetus (Derbyshire, 2008). It has been suggested that because of the fetal capabilities there is a possibility that the fetus can respond emotionally and cognitively, with the possibility of the experience of pain in utero at seven, eight, and twenty-six weeks’ gestation (Derbyshire, 2008). An average woman does not know about her pregnancy until five to six week’s gestation, and by that point, the baby already has a heartbeat and its nervous system has begun to grow. By this point is when the mother decides if she wants to keep the child or abort it. The pain sensory, or known as the “Alarm system

Pain is a prevalent symptom among patients in general and in cancer patients. The treatment and control of pain have been through the years one of the most significant concerns of health workers and a constant inspiration for the scientific community in the search for the ideal drug to treat pain with the least possible amount of adverse reactions.

Due to the fact that this intervention will be new to the labor and delivery unit it will be important to see if this intervention is effective. In this case a pain rating scale will be used by nurses to evaluate the water protocol intervention. This information will be useful in the comparing pain levels among women using the water labor intervention and those who choose to labor naturally without an epidural. Not only will a rating scale be appropriate in determining pain levels for patients but it will also be convenient for those involved in the data collection process due to the fact that nurses already use the pain rating scale during their patient assessments. Using this method will also help with consistency. In order to determine patient satisfaction on the proposed intervention a Likert scale will be used on the patient discharge teaching computer in the unit. The information will be captured and maintained within the existing hospital server and will not incur any extra cost. In order to make sure that the information is captured in a timely and consistent manner the patient will be given the option to complete the questioner right before discharge. This information will be collected over a period of a year and be managed by leadership staff within the unit. The data will then be interpreted and analyzed by leadership on a monthly basis and at the year mark. The information to be analyzed will be the average percentage of women using the water labor intervention compared to monthly and yearly total of women laboring in the unit. As mentioned earlier the Pain rating scale and Likert scale will also used in order to determine if the intervention is worth installing permanent birthing suites in the unit and if the intervention is

This article, Natural Childbirth doesn’t have to be a painful delivery written by Janelle green emphasizes that woman’s body is designed to birth babies and so, natural childbirth must be considered as a natural event. Natural childbirth (NCB) means laboring and delivering using no medication at all, rather depending on non-drug pain relief, such as hydrotherapy (using water in a shower or tub), massaging, breathing, visualization, meditation, position changes, and hypnosis. Moreover, non-drug pain relief methods are efficient due to these techniques interfere the sensory pathways to the brain that communicate pain, and also, this reducing catecholamines; so, can help the labor more calm and manageable. Experiencing labor pain doesn’t mean

“A scientific definition of pain is an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage” (Lowe, 2002). Labor pain, has many different variables, physical as well as its interaction with culture and emotions, making labor pain exclusive to each individual. During the first stage of labor there is mostly visceral pain due to the dilation of the cervix. Uterine contractions may be felt as back pain because the lower back has nerves that connect to the uterus as well as the skin of the lower back.

Childbirth is a beautiful thing. After the hours of labor, there is nothing more special than having the newly mother able to hold her child the minute after it’s born. It makes the pain that you had just experienced go away because all that matters in the world is that newborn child in your arms. During labor, every woman has her own experience but one common experience is the pain. According to Kitzinger (1978) “Labor pain can have negative or positive meaning, depending on whether the child is wanted, the interaction of the laboring woman with those attending her, her sense of ease or dis-ease in the environment provided for birth, her relationship with the father of her child and her attitude to her body throughout the reproductive

Specific Purpose: To inform my audience about the different forms of pain management used during childbirth.

The most common reason that people seek medical care is pain, and pain is the leading cause of disability (Peterson & Bredow, 2013, p. 51; National Institute of Health, 2010). Pain is such an important topic in healthcare that the United States congress “identified 2000 to 2010 as the Decade of Pain Control and Research” (Brunner L. S., et al., 2010, p. 231). Unfortunatelly, patients are reporting a small increase in satisfaction with the pain management while in the hospital (Bernhofer, 2011). Pain assessment and treatment can be complex since nurses do not have a tool to quantify it. Pain is considered the fifth vital sign, however, we do not have numbers to guide our interventions. Pain is a subjective expirience that cannot be shared easily. Since nurses spend more time with patients in pain than any other healthcare provider, nurses must have a clear understanding of the concept of pain (Brunner, et al., 2010). Concept analysis’ main objective is to clarify ideas, to enhance critical thinking, and to promote communication (Rodgers & Knafl, 2000). This paper will examine the concept of pain using Wilson’s Steps of Concept Analysis (Rodgers & Knafl, 2000).

The International Association for the Study of Pain defines pain as “an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage, or described in terms of such damage” (1979). Pain is actually the culprit behind warranting a visit to a physician office for many people (Besson, 1999). Notoriously unpleasant, pain could also pose a threat as both a psychological and economic burden (Phillips, 2006). Sometimes pain does happen without any damage of tissue or any likely diseased state. The reasons for such pain are poorly understood and the term used to describe such type of pain is “psychogenic pain”. Also, the loss of productivity and daily activity due to pain is also significant. Pain engulfs a trillion dollars of GDP for lost work time and disability payments (Melnikova, 2010). Untreated pain not only impacts a person suffering from pain but also impacts their whole family. A person’s quality of life is negatively impacted by pain and it diminishes their ability to concentrate, work, exercise, socialize, perform daily routines, and sleep. All of these negative impacts ultimately lead to much more severe behavioral effects such as depression, aggression, mood alterations, isolation, and loss of self-esteem, which pose a great threat to human society.

Childbirth can be described as one of the most rewarding and also painful experiences in a woman’s life. Most women choose some type of method to ease pain, however, there has been a lot of controversy over with pain management method is the most effective. According to the CDC (Center for Disease Control), In 2013, there were 3,932,181 births recorded in the United States, 32.7% of those births were surgical procedures. In 2012, 1.36% of recorded births occurred out-of-hospital, meaning these births took place mostly in homes or birthing centers. Without the option of medicine that a hospital provides, how were these women able to manage their pain during labor and delivery. There are many different methods for easing pain during childbirth, some methods involve the use of medicine and surgery, and others include natural techniques, such as hypnosis, Lamaze, and many others. It is a personal preference of the parents over which method is right for the needs of the mother and child. This can be an overwhelming decision for new parents to make because they have to take into consideration the safety of the mother and child, pain management for the mother and desire for medical involvement.