Nursing measures to minimize discomfort during childbirth involves two areas.

They are to decrease the intensity of pain and to minimize the degree to which the patient is bothered by pain.

In decreasing the intensity of pain, the patient is given the opportunity to rest and is allowed more involved participation in the childbirth process. In addition, minimizing the degree to which the patient is bothered by pain will allow her to progress faster and keep her from becoming so fatigued.