The Role of Emotion Regulation in Pain Management Among Women From Labor to Three Months Postpartum: An Integrative Review

Abstract

BackgroundEmotion regulation is a regulatory process to modify emotional activation in a wide range of situations and shows potential effects to reduce pain and emotional distress. The purpose of this review was to enhance an understanding of the role of emotion regulation strategies and their outcomes in reducing women's pain from labor to 3 months postpartum. DesignIntegrative review. MethodsThe literature was reviewed following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses statement. The search was conducted using electronic databases CINAHL, PsycINFO, PubMed, Scopus, and ProQuest dissertation from 1990-2019. ResultsNine publications were included. Two emotion regulation strategies, mindfulness and distraction, were used. The findings revealed that prolonged training in mindfulness-based interventions produced significant improvements in decreasing pain intensity during labor and increasing maternal comfort 2 hours postpartum. The distraction strategy showed a significant decrease in pain intensity during labor for women who were trained and self-practiced during the prenatal period. ConclusionsBoth mindfulness and distraction would be offered to pregnant women as part of alternative self-pain management strategies to prepare them for dealing with pain and other discomforts. Future research needs to test the effects of the intervention beyond childbirth.