When going into labour, one of the key pieces of information needed at the hospital are contraction times.

Why are they so important?

More often than not, many first time mums tend to arrive at the hospital before their labour has been established, and are often asked to return home and to come back later. Established labour is basically when your cervix has been dilated to more than 3cm and regular contractions are opening the cervix. It's usually at this stage that pregnant women are offered a bed in the labour ward, and not before. Recording contraction times and in-between contraction times establishes how far you are in labour.

The Elle TENS 2 and Elle TENS Plus are perfect for managing the early stages of labour at home, which takes the stress off traveling to the hospital before you’re dilated enough. They not only have a contraction timer built in, but they also record the last 5 contraction and between contraction times. This is handy information to hand over to your midwife who will make the assessment.

To make your own assessment, when experiencing regular, painful contractions that feel stronger and last more than 30 seconds, labour may have started. As labour progresses, your contractions tend to become longer, stronger and more frequent.