ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a critical approach to the way that childbirth pain and its management has been viewed and emerging research that sheds light on how women themselves view labour pain, the impact of the midwife on women’s experiences, and how belief systems and environments can influence decision-making. It examines the influence of various paradigms on the way that pain-management decisions are made, including the way that information is shared with women. The chapter looks at some of the everyday assumptions that midwives, doctors and women themselves may have about approaching pain in labour. Salutogenesis is a theory of health that focuses on maximising the strength and well-being of each individual rather than focusing on risk and disease. The medical paradigm has been mainly proactive in its support of pharmaceutical analgesia in the birth space and has viewed labour pain as being of primary concern for women.
