Hello.

I'm Mrs. O'Neill.

Welcome to today's lesson which is a continuation of our unit all about intimate relationships, pregnancy, and parenting.

Thank you so much for joining me today.

So today's lesson is all about labour.

Labour in pregnancy.

At the end of a pregnancy, when a child is born.

And it's about the other issues associated with labour.

Now this lesson does cover aspects of sex education.

So if this is a sensitive topic to you.

We've recommend checking with a trusted adult before starting or doing the lesson with a trusted adult nearby.

You will need today, an exercise book or a piece of paper and a pen or a pencil, something to write with.

So hopefully you've already completed today's introduction quiz.

If you haven't just press pause, go back and complete that before resuming.

We're going to consider vagina labour and C-sections or caesarean sections, and look at the differences between both on what both entail.

We're going to talk about pain management in labour.

Physical and mental wellbeing after pregnancy.

And then I'll direct you towards our exit quiz.

So keywords for today's lesson.

We're going to talk about vaginal birth, which is a birth where the baby is pushed out of the mother's uterus by the vagina.

It's also known as the birth canal.

This birthing process is often called labour or being in labour.

We're also going to talk about ceasarean sections, also known as C-sections which is the surgical procedure by which a baby is delivered through an incision or cut in the mother's abdomen.

I will be talking about postnatal care and postnatal health, which is the period of time after the birth of the baby.

So based on those key terms, I would like you to please match up the correct term with the correct definition.

Please pause the video and match up those terms to those definitions now.

Thank you for rejoining me.

Hopefully you've managed to match up the correct key term to the correct definition.

Let's check the answers.

Vaginal birth means when a baby's pushed from the uterus.

A C-section is a surgical procedure and postnatal means after the birth.

Well done if you've got those right.

So vaginal labour and C-sections.

So vaginal labour.

It can occur at home, in a midwife led birthing unit, or a doctor led delivery suite And what vaginal labour will entail is first of all in stage one, contractions or tightenings.

They make the cervix gradually open.

You can see on the image that where the cervix says it is, at the top of the vagina, the entrance to the uterus or the womb.

And these contractions, or tightenings it can be quite painful and will grow in pain, will make the cervix gradually open.

And that might be a really slow process lasting for hours or even days.

During this period of time while contractions are happening and the cervix is opening or dilating.

At some point, the water is the fluid that surrounds the baby will break.

The phrase that you may have heard is the waters have broken.

And that may happen earlier on in the early stages or a little bit later on.

There may need to be a little bit of a helping hand from the medical team if the waters don't break, just to speed things up a little bit.

Stage two.

So this is from when the cervix is fully open or dilated and that's 10 centimetres.

So again, you might have heard that phrase is that they're fully dilated or 10 centimetres dilated.

So the cervix will open to 10 centimetres.

The baby will move down the birth canal and there'll be an urge to push, which is when the baby is born.

And finally, after the birth, the placenta which is a structure, it's an organ that provides nutrients to the unborn baby that will be delivered separately to the baby through the vagina.

That will be up to the mother, whether they are happy to wait for the placenta to be delivered naturally or midwife can give an injection that speeds up the process and the placenta is delivered quite quickly.

So that's a conversation that the mother would have with her medical team in order to decide how they wanted stage three to take place.

So we have contractions followed by the birth with the baby moving down the birth canal once the cervix is fully dilated, and then we have the delivery of the placenta.

So I'd like you to please put the stages of labour into the correct order.

Please pause the video and jot down these three different stages in the correct order and press play when you've done that.

Wonderful.

Let's see how you did.

So number one, the contractions enable the cervix to open.

By the way saying some people prefer the word surge or tightening to contractions, perhaps giving it a more positive connotation than contractions, but contraction is the word that's more recognisable in our everyday language to describe those feelings and sensations.

Number two, the baby moves down the birth canal and number three the placenta is delivered.

So onto caesarean sections or C-sections.

So caesarian section is an operation to deliver a baby through a cut made in the abdomen and uterus.

It is a major operation and it does carry risks like any major operation does.

So it's usually only done if it's the safest option for the mother and baby.

That being said, around one in four pregnant women in the UK has a ceasarean.

So it's really common.

It may actually be recommended by the medical team as a planned or elective procedure.

So something that's booked in the diary to happen because it's decided that that's the safest way to bring the baby into the world or it may be done as an emergency.

If they thought that the vaginal birth is too risky or if the vaginal birth is taking too long, if the mother doesn't dilate enough to push the baby out or if there's any problem in the vaginal delivery, that process, that makes a medical team concerned, they may call for an emergency caesarean.

So caesarian section is only performed in an emergency situation? Is that true or is that false? Please point to the screen now.

It is indeed false because it's, even though it's often performed in an emergency situation, it is often planned and especially where there's no risks or circumstances that make it the safer option.

So what approximate percentage of UK pregnant women go on to have a caesarean? 30%, 15%, 20% or 25%? Point to the screen now to the correct answer.

Have a guess if you aren't sure.

Well done if you've got 25% or one in four.

Now the rate of caesarian sections performed does vary between countries.

So that statistic is approximate for the UK.

So let's talk about pain management in labour.

As we mentioned, labour can be a painful experience.

There are some self-help techniques that can be used to help alleviate pain, particularly in the early stages.

To keep you moving can actually really help.

Having a bath or a massage in the early stages of labour again, can alleviate some of the pain.

And something called a Tens Machine can help stimulate the nerves for pain relief and many women choose to hire them to use at home in early labour.

There was some alternative pain management strategies that people use.

For example, aroma therapy, hypnosis, reflexology and these alternative pain relief methods might not be proven to be effective, but many women do report using them to great effect for themselves.

Something called an epidural, which can only be administered in a hospital by an anaesthetist.

And that involves a local anaesthetic being given through a tube in needle in the back.

And essentially it numbs a lot of the area where the pain is coming from.

Can cause some issues in pregnancy.

And there are links between a greater increase chance of a ceasarean section having to take place if an epidural has been used.

However, if a woman is in great pain an epidural really can make the experience of labour a lot more manageable.

A medical.

Gas and air, you might've heard, where nitrous oxide and oxygen is breathed in to make the pain more bearable.

And it's also possible to have pain relief injections with a pain relief drug, for example, Pepperdine that can again alleviate some of the pain that the person is going through at that time.

All of these different pain management options should be discussed with a medical professional, a midwife or a doctor in the run-up to labour.

So this is something that is just guidance but if ever you are in a situation where you're considering pain management in labour, do consult a medical professional.

So from the list that you're going to see on the screen now, I would like you to select the correct common and acceptable forms of pain relief in labour.

So pause the video and jot down what you see in the table that you know is a common and acceptable form of pain relief during labour.

Press play when you're ready to resume.

Wonderful.

Let's see if your answers much mine.

So, epidural, which was the local anaesthetic.

Gas and air.

Keeping moving, particularly in earlier stages of the labour.

Pain relief injections.

A Tens machine, which stimulates the nerves for pain relief and alternative therapies.

Let's talk about physical and mental wellbeing after pregnancy.

We used the term before postnatal, meaning after the pregnancy.

So physical and mental wellbeing after pregnancy.

Many people will feel well after pregnancy.

Some people might feel the need to physically heal.

They may have physical healing to do, and they may feel exhausted.

It's really common in the first week or so after the birth of a baby to experience what's known as baby blues or low mood due to hormonal changes, but that normally disappears quite quickly.

But for some women depression after the birth can set in, this is known as postnatal depression, and it can be quite distressing.

Around one in 10 will suffer from postnatal depression.

Now there will be support put in place to enable individuals to recognise postnatal depression in themselves, in their partners, and there is a lot of support for postnatal depression, which we'll talk about in a moment.

So different ways that parents and babies are supported in the weeks after birth.

First of all, the midwives will visit the home in the days after the birth to check on the mother and baby.

It might be that the mother and baby, if the labour was complication free, that they may be out of the hospital, if they have the delivery in hospital, they may be out the same day.

So even though they might be at home, that contact with midwife will continue.

So several times that midwife will visit to check on the mother and the baby, in those first days after the birth.

Every one will be entitled to a six week checkup with their GP.

Which is a thorough checkup for both the mother and the baby to check that all healing has taken place, as it should, check that there are no problems. And it's a chance to discuss any concerns that the mother might have about herself or the health of the baby.

Every family will have a health visitor attached to them who again will normally visit their home couple of times, and will give you their contact details and who you can keep in touch with.

Should that be any concerns or any future issues that you feel the need to discuss.

Health visitors will also carry out a check with the mother to make it a guided and understanding of her mental health, and to make sure that if the mother does need any support with that then that support is available.

And in every region of the UK there are child health clinics that offer baby weighing, they offer advice that you will be given at a particular time of the week that you know your local baby health clinic is open and available and you can attend there and ask any questions that you have, make sure that your baby is healthy.

So lots of support there for parents and babies in the weeks, months after the birth.

So I would like you to now pause your video to complete this task.

You're going to write a reassuring advice letter about pregnancy concerns.

Imagine you have a close friend or relative who was heavily pregnant and they're really worried about pain in labour and whether they'll be able to cope after the birth.

Use your knowledge from this lesson to write a letter offering reassuring advice.

You might start it with I know you're worried about, please remember that.

Please have a go with that letter.

Press play when you've completed it.

Thank you.

Okay, well done for having a go at the letter task.

Did your advice include discussing the several pain relief options that are available in labour? For example, gas and air.

You might've mentioned that in an emergency or if there were problems during a vaginal birth a C-section might be offered.

And again, that's really normal.

One in four pregnant women will have a C-section or caesarean section.

You might've mentioned the support systems after birth.

Midwives, the GP, health visitors and baby clinics.

Well done if you've got some of those things into your letter.

So final reflection.

Thinking, perhaps not necessarily about yourself, but thinking more widely about people you know, who might be, or might one day be pregnant why would it be important for them to always seek support and advice if there are concerns after the pregnancy? So think about things we've talked about today, things that might occur after the pregnancy.

Why is it important to always seek support and advice? It will help benefit, for the baby and the baby's health.

Perhaps thinking particularly about the mother and the possibility of postnatal depression and noting that that is spotted and support is put in place early if the mother is feeling that they are struggling with their mental health after pregnancy.

So important to get support and help from the array that is out there available to help them.

Thank you so much for joining me today.

Please don't forget to go and complete our exit quiz.

I really hope that I'm going to see you again for our next lesson in this unit, which is on intimate relationships, pregnancy and parenting.

Have a wonderful day.