091 Labor Support & Our Five Senses

Michelle shares with birth partners how incorporating our five senses and an understanding of the learning styles: Visual, Auditory, Tactile-Kinesthetic, and Olfactory-Gustatory can help them to better provide comfort measures and support to their partner during labor and birth. This basic understanding of learning and processing styles enhances communication. It also explains why a birthing person can be so sensitive to certain things in labor: such as the feel of monitors on their skin, the sound of the voices at the nurses' station, the lighting in the room, or the smell of the hamburger someone ate for lunch. These suggestions for addressing all 5 senses while providing comfort measures during labor and birth are helpful no matter someone's predominant learning and processing style.