Jessica wrote to thank us for the hire of the Labour TENS Machine. She shared the story of how she used our TENS machine for labour, some essential oils and lots of encouragement to bring beautiful baby Lara into the world. Here’s her story:
My baby girl Lara came 18 days early by augmented induction. Her rate of growth had slowed and we were supposed to go in for an induction birth at 39 weeks. However, I had a fever one night and we thought it was best to call the hospital. After a few minutes on the phone the nurse asked us to go in to the hospital to get a check up.
Once we arrived, to our surprise, the nurses said my labour had actually started itself due to the fever. I was hooked up to an IV drip and given some medication to help with the fever. At this point it was around 3-4am.
My husband and I had discussed the use of pain relief prior to this, and we’d decided that if possible, we didn’t want to use any medicinal pain relief and that I would stick with non-medicinal relief as long as possible. We had ordered a Sweet Beats TENS machine a few days earlier and it arrived in just a couple of days. Luckily for us we’d been organised, as it came just in time for our earlier than planned delivery! I quickly hooked it up to my back and it was very easy to use with buttons to decrease and increase the intensity as well as a boost button to relieve intense pain. I started with low intensity as I knew that the pain would increase gradually over the next few hours. As my contractions came and went I used the boost button during a contraction and switched back to normal use in between.
This, accompanied with doTERRA essential oils (Frankincense, lavender and wild orange) and soft instrumental music, helped me immensely to cope with the whole labour stage which took about 14 hours in total.
My OB came in to the hospital early that morning, and confirmed I was in labour and the baby would arrive soon. We just needed to wait for my cervix to dilate enough to be ready to push.
It was a long and exhausting day, but surprisingly, everything was going according to plan, as I hadn’t needed to use any medicinal pain relief. At the latter stage of labour, however, the pain got quite bad, and I found myself using the TENS machine at a higher intensity between contractions and using the boost function more often. I think this little machine saved my life as it really helped me focus on relaxing rather than focusing on the pain. In the last couple of hours, when it all got a bit much for me, my husband also gave me massages, encouraged me to take deep breaths and helped operate the TENS machine.
Finally, at 4:15pm our OB came and checked my cervix again and she announced I was ready to push! So, I pushed as best as I could! With the aid of a kiwi cup and an episiotomy, every ounce of energy, every breath and every bit of encouragement possible, my baby girl Lara was welcomed into the world. It was an experience I will never forget and one that brings myself and my family great joy!
