The Lamaze technique, also known as the psychoprophylactic method or simply Lamaze, began as a prepared childbirth technique. As an alternative to medical intervention during

childbirth Childbirth, also known as labour, parturition and delivery, is the completion of pregnancy, where one or more Fetus, fetuses exits the Womb, internal environment of the mother via vaginal delivery or caesarean section and becomes a newborn to ...

, it was popularized in the 1950s by French

obstetrician Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a surgi ...

Fernand Lamaze Fernand Lamaze (; 1891–1957) was a French obstetrician, most famous as the popularizer of psychoprophylaxis, a method of childbirth preparation and pain management that bears his name (the Lamaze technique). Career Lamaze visited the S ...

and based on his observations in the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. The goal of Lamaze is to build a mother's confidence in her ability to give birth, through classes that help pregnant women understand how to cope with pain in ways that both facilitate labor and promote comfort, including

relaxation techniques A relaxation technique (also known as relaxation training) is any method, process, procedure, or activity that helps a person to relax; attain a state of increased calmness; or otherwise reduce levels of pain, anxiety, stress or anger. Relaxati ...

, movement, and

massage Massage is the rubbing or kneading of the body's soft tissues. Massage techniques are commonly applied with hands, fingers, elbows, knees, forearms, feet, or a device. The purpose of massage is generally for the treatment of body stress or pa ...

. There is a training and certification program available to practitioners, leading to the Lamaze Certified Childbirth Educator (LCCE) designation.

History

Fernand Lamaze visited the

in the 1950s, and was influenced by birthing techniques which involved breathing and relaxation methods. The Lamaze method gained popularity in the United States after Marjorie Karmel wrote about her experiences in her 1959 book ''Thank You, Dr. Lamaze'', as well as

Elisabeth Bing Elisabeth Dorothea Bing (née Koenigsberger; 8 July 1914 – 15 May 2015) was a German physical therapist, co-founder of Lamaze International, and proponent of natural childbirth. She trained as a physical therapist in England after fleeing Nazi ...

's book ''Six Practical Lessons for an Easier Childbirth'' (1960). Both Karmel and Bing would later found the American Society for Psychoprophylaxis in Obstetrics in 1960, later renamed to

Lamaze International Lamaze International, formerly the American Society for Psychoprophylaxis in Obstetrics or ASPO, is an organization dedicated to promoting the Lamaze technique of natural childbirth. It was co-founded in 1960 by Elisabeth Bing and Marjorie Karm ...

Criticism

Lamaze himself has been criticized for being over-disciplinary and anti-feminist. Natural childbirth activist

Sheila Kitzinger Sheila Helena Elizabeth Kitzinger MBE (29 March 1929 – 11 April 2015) was a British social anthropologist, natural childbirth activist and author on childbirth and pregnancy. She wrote more than 20 books and had a worldwide reputation as a ...

's description of the methods he deployed while working in a Paris clinic during the 1950s expresses concern regarding "the disciplinary nature" of Lamaze's approach to childbirth. According to Kitzinger, Lamaze consistently ranked the women's performance in childbirth from "excellent" to "complete failure" on the basis of their "restlessness and screams". Those who "failed" were, he thought, "themselves responsible because they harbored doubts or had not practiced sufficiently", and "intellectual" women who "asked too many questions" were considered by Lamaze to be the most "certain to fail". The Lamaze technique has also been criticized for being ineffective.

References

External links

Official site of Lamaze InternationalReally Teaching Lamaze: Evidence-Based PracticeRecords of Lamaze International.Schlesinger Library
Radcliffe Institute, Harvard University
Audiotape Collection of Lamaze International.Schlesinger Library
Radcliffe Institute, Harvard University
Moving Image Collection of Lamaze International.Schlesinger Library
Radcliffe Institute, Harvard University {{DEFAULTSORT:Lamaze Technique Childbirth Natural childbirth

History

Criticism

See also

References

External links