Guided Meditation for Labor: What Actually Helps During Contractions

You have probably heard that meditation can help during labor. But when you are in the middle of a contraction, most of the advice you read during pregnancy will vanish from your mind. The key is practicing techniques that become automatic -- so deeply ingrained that your body reaches for them without your conscious brain having to remember.

Here is what the research says about meditation during labor, which techniques work at each stage, and how to actually prepare so it helps when it matters most.

Why Meditation Works During Labor

Labor pain operates through a well-documented feedback loop: pain triggers fear, fear triggers tension, tension increases pain. This is called the Fear-Tension-Pain cycle, first described by Dr. Grantly Dick-Read in the 1940s and confirmed by decades of subsequent research.