Tell a friend   Print

Maternity Tens Machine

What is a Tens Machine?

Tens machines provide a safe and drug free form of pain relief during labour.  They work by applying electrical pulses to a specific place on your back in order to block the pain signals being sent to your brain. You can buy or hire Tens machines from a number of places. If you do buy or hire one make sure you and your birth partner know how to use it BEFORE you actually need it. Choose one with 4 pads rather than 3 as these are said to be more effective.  The more expensive Tens machines let you change the intensity and pulse width and some have these features pre-programmed for the type of pain being experienced. It is not advisable to use a Tens machine during pregnancy, it should only be used during labour.

Where to buy or hire a Tens Machine

You can buy or hire a Tens Machine from Boots.  If renting the machine will be delivered 3 weeks before your due date.  The standard hire period is 4 weeks but Boots will extend the hire period by 2 weeks at no extra charge if you notify them before the end of the 4 week period.  Ask in store.  See Ads below for alternative suppliers.

Tens stands for Transcutaneous electrical Nerve Stimulation.

This site looks much better in a browser that supports current web standards, but it is accessible to any browser. Download one now