The Hormones Of Labour

Oxytocin, endorphins, adrenaline… that’s a cocktail of hormones to make your head spin. Let’s break it down…

I’ll start with Oxytocin! Now there aren’t many times throughout pregnancy and labour where I feel the birthing partner is getting the raw end of the deal. But one thing is for sure, in my experience, the rush of oxytocin that can be experienced around childbirth and lactation is a better high than most other things can offer in this world! 

Oxytocin is known as the ‘love hormone’ and for very good reason. It’s the hormone we produce when we’re feeling safe, comfortable and happy. When we’re snuggled up on the couch next to our special someone, laughing at our favourite tv show, and feeling like all is well with the world. It’s the hormone we produce when we orgasm, that gives us a burst of feel-good emotions. It’s the hormone that we produce when we breastfeed, that can make you feel such a rush love for your baby that you just want to sit and sob because of how wonderfully intense it is. 

It’s also the hormone that is needed for the uterus to contract in labour. Without oxytocin there are no contractions. Without contractions there is no labour. If you are medically induced, you will be given a drug called Pitocin or Syntocinon which is artificial oxytocin. Sadly this artificial version lacks any of the feel-good factors that our natural oxytocin gives us. But regardless, oxytocin, whether natural or synthetic, is absolutely necessary for labour to happen. That means then, that on a chemical level, natural labour is designed to feel good. 

This isn’t to say labour isn’t intense. Actually it’s one of the most intense workouts you’ll likely ever do in your life. And your uterus is the star of the show! The uterus is the strongest muscle in a woman’s body, and is actually made up of two bands of muscles that work together to open your cervix and push your baby down and out. And what do muscles need for intense workouts? They need a strong and constant supply of oxygen-rich blood so they can function most efficiently. Keep that in mind for a little later…

Back to the hormones…

We also produce high levels of endorphins in labour. Endorphins are naturally-occuring opiates that help with pain management and stress-relief, and are found in their highest levels in unmediated, natural births. 

So why do so many birthing people experience pain in labour?

Let’s look at this logically. In order to understand what is happening we need to ask, what is pain? Pain is a signal that the body sends to the brain to warn of danger. The brain then interprets this signal as pain and tells the body to respond  accordingly. For example, if you put your hand in the fire, your brain will very quickly interpret the signal stimulated by the change in temperature as pain and tell your hand to retract immediately. It’s a wonderful system of self-preservation that allows instant action to reduce damage to the body. 

So then, let’s think about labour. At approximately 40 weeks gestation your baby is ready to be born. You know that you shouldn’t be carrying your baby in the womb for too much longer than about 42 weeks. Nobody wants to be carrying an 18 year old around in their uterus. So you understand that it is the correct and natural process for your baby to be born around this time. Your body wants your baby to come out. Why then, on a logical level, would your body be sending a message to your brain saying something isn’t right and needs to stop? Why would your brain be receiving a message to say it needs to do something to stop these contractions when you need them to bring your baby out? That doesn’t seem to make any sense!

So we know on a chemical level labour is supposed to feel good. And on a logical level it doesn’t make any sense for labour to be painful. 

Why then do so many birthing people report feeling pain in labour? Are they lying? Of course not! Something must be going wrong somewhere down the line with the natural process of labour. 

Let’s talk about another hormone - adrenaline. Adrenaline is the hormone that is made and released quickly by your body when you experience stress. Adrenaline makes your blood vessels contract to direct your blood to major muscle groups, initiating the fight or flight response when you perceive threat. Again this is another fantastic self-preservation system that can save your life when faced with real danger. Your oxygen-rich blood is immediately drawn away from organs such as your digestive system and uterus, and sent to the muscles in your arms and legs, preparing you to run or fight.  

When you are in labour and you feel a threat of any kind, whether real or perceived, the body initiates your fight or flight response. Adrenaline is released and your uterus is suddenly deprived of the oxygen it needs to continue doing it’s job effectively. As a result, the uterine muscles begin contracting inefficiently, which your brain then interprets as pain. 

When adrenaline is released labour slows down or stalls. This is because adrenaline inhibits the release of oxytocin, telling our brains that it is not safe to birth our baby right now. 

To further explain the labour-interrupting nature of adrenaline, let’s use another example. There is a point in labour called ‘transition’, where adrenaline is released as part of the natural process of labour. Now that seems to contradict everything I’ve just said about your hormones working together to encourage the progress of labour. But the reason for this is that transition occurs just before the pushing stage begins. Back when we were birthing in caves and the threats were far more likely to be in the form of wild animals, our bodies took a pause from the deep concentration of labour to give us a shot of adrenaline. This allowed us to be alert enough to have a last check around our environment to ensure that we were in a safe position to bring our babies into the world. When everything looked safe and acceptable, we went back into the trance of our oxytocin-rich labour and pushed our babies out. 

So back to the present day, what can cause us to perceive threat in labour? We can experience a change of environment, such as getting in the car to drive to the hospital, or some unwelcome news (“your mother-in-law is on the way” …. IM JOKING! My mother-in-law is a saint!). Or perhaps it’s something as subtle as a new doctor entering your room that doesn’t have the same caring bedside manner as your previous one. Whatever it is, you start to feel a little uneasy, and your body isn’t able to distinguish real threat from perceived threat. Adrenaline begins to be released, the oxygen-rich blood is drawn away from your uterus and into your arms and legs, your uterus starts to struggle to contract, pain is introduced, labour stalls, your fear increases and suddenly you find yourself locked in a fear - tension - pain cycle. 

Well that all sounds like doom and gloom, and not a very hopeful perspective on how labour can go. But it’s the pattern too many birthers fall into when they don’t fully understand how to work with their natural hormones in labour. Not you though! You have now educated yourself and will be proactive to ensure you don’t fall into this unnecessary labour-stalling cycle! 

So what can we put in place to ensure that we create conditions conducive to the release of helpful hormones in labour and reduce the release of the unhelpful ones? 

You can set your environment up to encourage the natural release of oxytocin, an environment where you feel safe, cared for and respected. You can arrange continuous support, such as doula care, to create conditions that encourage the release of oxytocin and endorphins, and keep adrenaline at bay. 

You can limit exposure to stress in the days leading up to birth, by not watching horror movies, skipping a conversation with that person in your life that makes you feel anxious, or not over-filling your schedule. You can feel confident in your ability to make knowledgable and wise choices for yourself and your baby by educating yourself about common medical procedures in labour. You can restrict your exposure to people in your birthing room to only those you feel safe and comfortable with. You can set a dim, quiet environment conducive to a peaceful birth with low lights, essential oils and calming music. 

And most of all, you can cultivate confidence in your body’s innate ability to birth, by understanding how the natural hormones of labour will work together seamlessly and brilliantly to allow you to bring your beautiful baby into the world.