Читать книгу Stand and Deliver!: And other Brilliant Ways to Give Birth - Emma Mahony - Страница 33

Aromatic essential oils are a great healer for those common discomforts in the last stages of pregnancy, and are particularly good for massage during labour. Take some advice, however, because certain oils should be avoided, and essential oils should not be used at all until after the first three months.

My midwife massaged me on my lower back during labour with some rose oil that she had brought back from Turkey, and it was something pleasant to do while lying in the bath before my waters broke.

Aromatherapists describe rose oil as a uterine relaxant, which helps soften the ligaments and help the pelvic bones expand, as well as being a natural antiseptic and having slight analgesic properties.

Sceptics of the benefits of aromatherapy in labour may be interested by the results of the largest clinical aromatherapy trial in Europe, which took place in the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford. Over a period of nine years, 8,000 mothers were offered aromatherapy in labour. Those that took it up were proved to have shorter labours with fewer drugs were used for pain-relief. There were no side-effects on the babies.⁴

One mother I met recently at the Active Birth Centre in north London was Natalie, who had no pain-relief during the birth of her breech baby, delivered standing up at home. All she had was a few drops of clary sage (another uterine tonic that is good for labour pains) put on a wet sponge and inhaled. She claims, ‘It acted like gas and air, and I was practically chewing the sponge by the end!’ She gave birth to an 8-lb little boy, without anyone touching her or the baby throughout the whole experience (‘If anyone came near me, I just said “don’t touch me!’”) while two ambulances and a host of midwives waited outside the door.

The typical gripes during the last stages of pregnancy – swelling, indigestion, muscle ache and poor sleep – can all be improved with a good oily rub in the last few weeks, particularly if you can find a professional to do it for you. Stick to lavender and citrus oils for facial and body massage because there are many oils to avoid altogether.

The best carrier oil for essential oils when pregnant is sweet almond, a medium-to-light oil which protects and nourishes the skin, and is relatively pure because it is cold-pressed. While pregnant, the usual dosage of 1 drop of essential oil per 5ml of carrier oil, for facial massage, should be further diluted to 1 drop per 10ml.

Essential oil-wise, lavender is an analgesic, making it good for aches and pains, as well as relaxing (add 3 drops to a warm bath in the evening to help you sleep).

Mandarin oil is an uplifting oil and has carminative and digestive properties which help heartburn and indigestion, as well as stimulating the lymph glands – good for oedema (water-retention) and swollen ankles.

Grapefruit oil also has an uplifting effect and is good for general fatigue, circulation, and muscle stiffness.

Try sweet orange (Citrus sinensis) for its digestive properties, black pepper (Piper nigrum) as a muscular tonic, and ylang ylang (Cananga odorata) for calming and soothing. Denise Tiran, author of Natural Remedies (Quadrille, 2001) recommends that you don’t use the same oil for more than three weeks, particularly in your bath water, so chop and change as you deem fit.

For labour, blend your favourites with 3 drops per 20 ml of carrier oil, and don’t forget to add good old clary sage. If it worked for Natalie, it could work for you.⁵

If you can afford to go the whole hog, to find out where your nearest accredited aromatherapist is contact the International Federation of Aromatherapists at 182 Chiswick High Road, London W4 1PP (tel. 0208 742 2605) or visit their website at www.ifaroma.org. A ready-made organic labour massage oil containing lavender, clary sage and geranium can be bought from www.activebirthcentre.com, where the organic perineal massage oil is also sold.