The Babycare TENS Elle TENS+ machine is easy to use and effective. It helps with pain during contractions, especially at the beginning of labour, and it is also great for post natal care, supporting with back and shoulder pain relief.
It’s quick to assemble and the included instruction manual offers advice on where to place the pads for ultimate relief. It is on the higher end of the price scale and so if you're interested you can also borrow or hire a TENS machine to see if it’s something that could work for you during labour, before shelling out cash for a new one. If it does work, it’ll be the best thing you ever used!
This product has also won Silver in the 2024 Mother&Baby Awards.
Testing the Babycare TENS Elle TENS+
Mum tester Lynsey Orme for the M&B Awards 2017 said:
Would you recommend this to other mums?
Yes I would definitely recommend this product to a friend who was thinking of getting a tens machine for their up and coming labour. The tens machine was nicely packaged, it was very easy to follow the instructions and set up ready for labour. It times your contractions as well which is an added bonus.
How did this product make your life easier?
The product is easy to set up and took no time at all to work out. It also came with two sets of batteries which was an added bonus. The product is also easy to operate. It provides great natural pain relief in labour and also times the contractions, something while in my last labour I found a pain to do whilst trying to deal with the pain as well.
Would you choose this product to win?
It is a great machine that provides natural pain relief in the early stages of labour especially. It has a really good boast function which is an added bonus which I don't think is available on other machines in the Elle range. It also has a strap so you can forget all about it and not worry about holding it.
What changes would you make to this product?
I don't think there is anything I would change about the product it's really good and has some fantastic features. Maybe it should be available in different colours as some people really don't like pink and are not very girly. That's the only thing I could think of really as everything else I thought was really good, I especially liked the contraction timer, I thought that is a really useful feature of the product.
Tested by mum Lauren Withers for the M&B Awards 2017:
Would you recommend this to other mums?
The tens machine was small and easily portable so made transporting it around quite easy. The design itself was nice. Very feminine. I would definitely reccomend it to any pregnant friends who may be looking to try alternative or drug-free pain relief methods during labour or that have any concerns about side effects of pain relief.
How did this product make your life easier?
The massage function REALLY helped me in the early stages of labour. I was waititng around for a really long time due to being induced and I was very stressed and nervous. So this helped to relax me and pass the time whilst waiting for my little girl to come. I was also an induced labour and was reccomended to use a tens machine BEFORE labour to help kick start contractions so it became a useful tool.
Would you choose this product to win?
I feel the brand is dependable. Most of all I really loved the fact that it was aimed specifically for pregnant women and labour and their needs rather than general pain releif. The massage function and pelvic floor functions are also an invaluble asset I dont think I’ve ever seen in a tens machine before and would be my main reasons for purchasing.
What changes would you make to this product?
More protective storage perhaps a hard case would have been a help, I found myself worrying the maxhine would be damaged or broken in my hospital bag... also as it was battery operated I felt I needed spare batteries or would be restricted in how much use I could get from the machine when I needed it. Perhaps a mains rechargeable battery would be an asset.
Tested by mum Rebecca Vaughan for the M&B Awards 2017:
Would you recommend this to other mums?
I would recommend the baby care tens machine to other mums as I felt it really helped me with my labour. The esse of use, display and boost functions helped with managing the different stages of labour. I found it easy to apply the pads and set up in my own and liked having the control. It also felt robust enough to not worry about dropping or breaking it.
How did this product make your life easier?
As s mum it doesn't necessarily make your life easier. It did however let me manage my delivery with a combination or gas and air and the tens machine. I believe that this aided my recovery after delivery and therefore was able to be discharged from hospital as soon as possible to get home and settle in to a routine with my baby and toddler.
Would you choose this product to win?
I would choose this product over the others as I believe that it really added value and made a difference in my labour. Whilst some of the products are nice, I felt that this particular product I wouldn't have been able to have been without. The tens machine had a number of different settings which means you are able to manage the pain as it progresses. I also comes with s pain setting so can be used for back pain and a pelvic floor setting for after birth.
What changes would you make to this product?
If I was to change anything about the baby care tens machine it would be that I would add a lock function. On a couple of occasions I had inadvertently changed the settings up higher whilst having a contraction which increased the intensity. This made for more discomfort than I needed but it was easy to reduce it quite quickly.
Maria Martin is Digital Group Editor for Yours.co.uk and Motherandbaby.com. She is a mum-of-two with a passion for helping women from all walks of life – from supporting breastfeeding mothers with expert advice to encouraging conversations about mental health. In her professional role, she has over 10 years' experience in the digital world, including editing articles, focussing on SEO, social media engagement, picture researching and video editing.