We love receiving birth stories – and this one from Jess had us smiling 🙂 We could imagine the TENS hooked onto her PJ’s like a pager.
I had such a good experience with my labour TENS machine hire that I thought I’d share it with you.
My waters broke early in the morning and my labour started a couple of hours after that. As soon as the mild contractions started, I got my husband to hook up my TENS machine – and from the first moment, I loved the sensation of the rhythmic ticks and the vibration of the ‘boost’ mode. I have never used a TENS machine before, so I didn’t really know what to expect – but to me the boost mode almost felt like having my phone on vibrate in the muscles of my back.
I then spent the next 7 hours or so pressing the boost button every 3-4 minutes to get me through what quickly became my established contraction pattern, with the machine strapped to my pjs like a pager. My Mum and husband would watch me flip open the controller and press the button and know ‘here we go’!
By the afternoon, the contractions were quite strong and I said that I really thought we needed to go to hospital. My Mum and husband, a little sceptical that I could be very far dilated, agreed we could at least go to the hospital and see what the midwife thought (I should mention here that I am renowned in my family for having a very low pain threshold!!) Imagine my surprise when we arrived and were told I was 8cm dilated! At that point, I switched off the TENS machine and got into a warm bath, where a few hours later I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl.
The TENS machine was the only pain management I used during labour and was without a doubt the best thing I bought in preparation. The machine was delivered overnight, was very easy to use and was easy to return. I even took some photos of the controller for posterity, since I spent so much time in my labour looking at that red boost button and want to be able to look back and remember how much relief I got from having that sensation and distraction.
Thanks so much for playing a part in my labour story. Based on my experience, I would recommend hiring a TENS machine to anyone preparing for labour, but especially recommend it for anyone hoping to achieve a natural birth.
Regards,
Jessica