A senior male midwife has come to the conclusion that women should put up with childbirth pain because it serves a purpose and is a “rite of passage”.Dr Walsh, a senior midwife and associate professor in midwifery at Nottingham University, said: "A large number of women want to avoid pain. Some just don't fancy the pain of childbirth. More women should be prepared to withstand pain.
And went on to say; "Pain in labour is a purposeful, useful thing, which has quite a number of benefits, such as preparing a mother for the responsibility of nurturing a newborn baby."
In an article for the journal Evidence Based Midwifery, published by the Royal College of Midwives, Dr Walsh argues that normal birth is in danger of being "effectively anaesthetised by the epidural epidemic."
He says a widespread "antipathy to childbirth pain" has emerged in the past 20 years which has combined with increased patient rights and risk-averse doctors to create a situation where almost all hospitals now offer epidurals on demand.
Instead the NHS should take a "working with pain" approach which would encourage women to use yoga, hypnosis, massage, support from their partners, hydrotherapy and birthing pools as natural ways of alleviating their pain, he said.
"Over recent decades there has been a loss of 'rites of passage' meaning to childbirth, so that pain and stress are viewed negatively," he added, arguing that patients should be told labour pain is a timeless component of the "rites of passage" transition to motherhood.
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