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i used one for my first labour, but i don't think it did all that much for me. it's principal use was as a distraction... gave me something to do during contractions. i lasted 16 hours with TENS but by that stage was not in good shape and needed serious pain relief.
TENS apparently works wonders for some people (among them the woman who took our labour classes - she had 4 kids with no other pain relief) but not for others. there's certainly nothing to be lost by trying it, but the one thing i do regret is that it prevented me from getting in the shower which would probably have been more helpful in the later stages.
best wishes for your pregnancy and labour :).
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I used one and it was FANTASTIC and the reason I know that was because the batteries ran out and I really noticed how much more pain I was in when it stopped working! I made DH drive down to tthe servo at 6am to get some more ( after the one we took out of the fire alarm stopped working as well).
I think the key is to put it on as soon as labour starts - that what I did and then I would turn it up really high as the contractions where coming on. Also - when the midwife came to assess me at home she noted that I didn't really feel the contractions badly until they were right at their peak ( as she was feeling my belly for them) and she put that down to the TENS.
However - I think they are only going to help if you have a back labour and make sure you have spare batteries in the house!!!
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I have already posted in this thread but just wanted to pop in again as I just gave birth to our second child 4 days ago. WIthout the TENS I think I would have died, that's how useful it was for me. I cannot prraise this wonderful device enough. A second, completely natural, drug free labour for me thanks to the TENS.
ETA : I had no back labour at all, all contractions were felt in tummy, down low so definately don't need back labour for it to work.
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I used a TENS, it worked well for the first 12 hours of hard labour, but after that it annoyed me...
I will use it again though, great for distraction of the pain.
If you get one, makes sure that you get it well before you are due and you know how to put it on (or you birth partner does) and how to control it...
You may not like the sensation when you are not in labour, but it makes the world of difference when you are actually labouring.
Based on the effectiveness of it, i will probably try the water injections next time too
