What Is The Best Relaxing Music During Labor?

Music listened to during labor can calm, relax, energize, inspire, and lend strength to your birthing experience. You need to start listening early in your pregnancy and choose various pieces to suit many possibilities.

by Daniel Kobialka, D.M.A.

unborn baby listens to relaxing music I've been asked that question frequently. The best music to use during labor depends on your tastes. There is also no one answer because you may prefer different music in each stage of labor.

The best music is whatever music the mother finds helpful for relaxing and laboring. Since you don't know what will please you at the time, plan on having a selection at hand, Some women prefer classical or other instrumental music with slow tempos. Other women will choose music with familiar lyrics they can focus on or sing with. Many women choose music with lyrics they find meaningful to give them strength, courage, faith or patience during labor.

How to find music to fit your tastes

Ask all three people involved – yourself, your birthing partner, and yes, the unborn child, because all of you can and should express a point of view. If the child in the womb likes the music you are playing, you can tell! You will feel movement, and can differentiate between what is pleasant, calming, exciting or undesirable.

Why do you need different music for different stages of labor?

Your labor can be short, or it can last for hours. You definitely want to have a contingency plan that includes different sorts of music to fit many different possible experiences.

Early labor

During early labor you may still be at home taking a relaxing bath. Whatever music you choose, you will be able to pay attention to it now more than when labor becomes more intense. Now would be a great time to choose familiar melodies.

Some common suggestions for early labor are warm baths, anything that relaxes you and maybe takes your mind off of labor, such as games, reading or light activity. Listening to relaxing music seems perfect.

If Celtic music moves you, then maybe Celtic Fantasy will suit you during early labor. The familiar melodies of Greensleeves, Amazing Grace, Loch Lomond, and Auld Lang Syne will soothe you and bring you great joy. Or maybe you'd rather relax to lullabies such as those on When You Wish Upon a Star. The gentle melodies of When You Wish Upon a Star, Angels Sleep, Children's Sonata, and Hush Little Baby may be your baby's favorites and yours as well.

Active labor and transition

During active labor and transition, you will probably become less aware of your surroundings and retreat with in yourself. This is a great time for music that doesn't distract you with its melody. At this time, music can simply drown out some of the hospital noises and activity and help you focus on your contractions.

You may experience some anxiety and exhaustion, and really appreciate music with no melody, with no beginning and no end, reaching out in all directions yet without a single, separate direction to be found, such as the music found on my album, Pathless Journey.

Best music during pushing

While you're pushing you may feel like this is when you need the most support, you need to be reassured at the same time as you need to really feel your power. You will appreciate the steady rhythm of Ravel's A Bolero Fantasy, the grounding empowerment of Pachelbel's Canon in D, and the peace of Timeless Spirals, all on Dreams Beyond the Twilight.

Music after birth

Now is the time for the most relaxing, loving vibrations, the soft gently soothing music that will put all of you to sleep, dreaming the gentlest of dreams. Come sample free music from all of my albums and choose what will send you softly into dreamland with your new family.

Research has shown that music a baby hears prenatally will soothe him after he is born, so start listening and choosing your birthing music early in your pregnancy. Your personal choices will guide your family through the birthing in a gentle, relaxing way.