💗 Why Holding Ice to Prepare for Labor May Be Less Helpful Than We Thought! (we present this with love, please read with an open mind and heart)
In some childbirth education circles, there’s a popular suggestion: hold an ice cube in your hand to “practice” coping with labor sensations. The idea is that this simulates pain, allowing pregnant moms to practice breathing or relaxing through discomfort. While this might seem helpful on the surface, there’s a hidden risk that many aren’t aware of. Ice-holding exercises may actually train the brain and body to associate pain with more pain, rather than comfort, relaxation, or confidence.
Here’s why that matters: the mind learns through repetition and association. If we repeatedly pair physical pain (like the sharp, burning sensation of holding ice) with the act of trying to relax, we risk creating a subconscious connection between relaxation and pain. Over time, this can condition the nervous system to expect discomfort when attempting to relax. This is the exact opposite of what we aim for in empowered birth preparation, where relaxation should trigger feelings of calm, safety, and ease.
It’s also important to recognize that ice does not mimic the sensations of birthing waves. Contractions (or pressure waves, as we often refer to them in hypnobirthing) are rhythmic, flowing, and typically build and fade over time. Ice pain is sudden, intense, and activates a different part of the brain. Practicing with ice conditions the body for acute pain management, rather than encouraging the neurological and emotional pathways that promote comfort, relaxation, and confidence during birth.
Birth professionals who recommend ice-holding often do so with loving intentions, hoping to prepare their clients for the intensity of birth. But intensity doesn’t have to mean pain, and birth doesn’t have to be something that is simply endured. Instead of practicing pain tolerance, we can teach expectant families how to reframe birth sensations, use self-hypnosis and mental rehearsal, and associate pressure with peace. When we do that, we empower the mind-body connection to respond with ease and strength.
We now know that birth preparation is not just physical — it’s deeply mental and emotional. What we imprint in the subconscious during pregnancy influences how the body responds in labor. Let’s choose to imprint confidence, calm, and joy. Let’s help birthing moms train for comfort, not pain.
💗 A bit more information:
🌸 For pregnant moms:
Many people have heard the suggestion that pregnant women should “practice” for labor by holding ice cubes to simulate discomfort and test how well they can relax
through pain. However, this approach can actually be counterproductive. Pain is not the same as pressure or intensity, and holding ice — which causes sharp, burning pain — teaches the mind and body to associate discomfort with suffering. Instead of building confidence, this kind of practice can increase fear and resistance, reinforcing the idea that pain is inevitable and must simply be endured.
The mind is incredibly powerful, and it learns through repetition. If we repeatedly introduce pain and pair it with relaxation attempts, we’re unintentionally creating a neural connection that says, “relaxation equals pain.” This can condition the body to brace and become more tense during real birthing sensations — the opposite of what we want! For a more positive and effective approach, expectant parents can use mental rehearsal, visualization, and hypnosis techniques to associate pressure or intensity with deep relaxation and comfort. This helps the body respond with calmness and confidence during birth, instead of fear and tension.
🌸 For us Birth Professionals:
It used to be common in some birth preparation spaces to suggest that pregnant moms “practice” for birth by holding ice cubes in their hands — the idea being that it simulates discomfort, and gives them a chance to practice breathing or relaxing through it. While well-intentioned, this method can actually backfire. Ice doesn’t replicate the sensations of birthing waves at all. It causes a sharp, burning pain, which triggers the brain’s pain-avoidance response. This isn’t just about discomfort — it’s about how the brain and nervous system process repeated experiences. By pairing ice-holding (pain stimulus) with the intention to relax, we unintentionally create a neural association between relaxation and pain. Over time, this conditions the subconscious to expect pain when trying to relax — which is the opposite of what we want for childbirth preparation.
As birth professionals, we deeply value evidence-based approaches and helping our clients feel empowered. From a neurological standpoint, the subconscious mind learns through repetition and emotional imprinting. If we ask someone to repeatedly experience pain while trying to be calm, we may be reinforcing the idea that pain is inevitable, that relaxation isn’t effective, or that they must simply endure rather than transform their experience. This can inadvertently increase fear, tension, and resistance during birth. In contrast, teaching expectant parents to use positive mental rehearsal, somnambulistic hypnosis, and sensory anchors (like touch or breath) creates a powerful association between birthing sensations and comfort. These techniques condition the mind and body to respond with calm confidence — not fear-based endurance. Instead of practicing “pain tolerance,” we can teach them how to reframe and reprogram their experience of childbirth altogether, leading to much more empowered, joyful, and even comfortable births.
💗We love pregnant and birthing moms, and their birth professionals, and just want everyone to experience more joy! The mind is very powerful, is always listening and responding, and can bring us that joy if we allow it to help us. 🤩
