Did you stick to your natural childbirth plan?
ByI would like to hear some experiences about women or men who’s wife or girlfriend had decided on having a natural childbirth with no pain medication or epidural. Were you or was she able to stick with the plan?
I am wanting to try and go through with labor with no pain meds or epidural. I also have no idea what to expect. I am would like to hear from people who were able to stick with the plan or were not. How do you feel you were able to do so or what was running through your head when you decided to get the meds? Did you feel like you just could not handle it or were you just tired?
I’m 28 weeks along and that time is near. Getting nervous!
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11 Comments
February 18th, 2010 at 6:37 pm
well my mother had the 5 of us with nothing. with my three i had an epidural. i did all three times say i was going to try natural but the pain gets the best of me. it does help if you have something to keep you calm and focused on to relive the pain some. tensing up during a contraction makes it hurt worse. good luck
February 18th, 2010 at 7:19 pm
The pain is pretty intense. you have to be pretty strong to go with out the meds. I was in labor for 24 hrs after 20 hrs I had to get the meds it was unbearable. I didn’t intend to have a natural childbirth i’m just that stubborn.thats why i waited so long.
February 18th, 2010 at 7:23 pm
nope i planed i want epi got ana epi …and will do it agian this time …i want to b painless and happy and not tired when my get to see my baby …i figure i went through 9 mths of uncomfortable ness and sometimes pain is enough …..ill b slefish and gets meds thats why they were made right
February 18th, 2010 at 7:44 pm
From the day I thought about having a baby, I said I wanted a natural childrbirth. Did I stick to my plan…YUPPERZ!!
My water broke at 12:50am (with Maconium)
took a shower/waited for it to stop…lol went through 3 maxi pads (sorry TMI) while waiting for my husband to get out of bed and get to the car.
got to the hospital by 1:50am and in my room. and from 2:00am-4:40am they were trying to get my IV in, because I was positive for strep B. And they no more than got the iv in, and I was like “I’m pushin, and the lady was like ‘oo no hunny this is your first your probably just starting to dialte…ha ha she checked me, and well..the babies head was right there. 2 pushes, and she was out. And the whole time my contractions were 1 minute apart.
The only thing I can tell you…if you have a drug free VAGINAL birth…request lots and lots of Epi Foam. It numbs you down there. Because if you have to have stitches…they hurt like a b****!!!
The actual birth wasn’t bad at all. As soon as she was out, I said “wheres all this pain I am suppose to feel” ? lol and I was ready for #2!
February 18th, 2010 at 8:20 pm
i planned on going all natural. I went through 30 hours of labor before i caved and got the epidural. I mostly got it because of how tired i was i was sitting in the hot bath falling asleep between contractions and knew if i didnt get it i would have no strength for pushing. I loved the epidural i was able to sleep 4 hours of the worse labor and pushed my daughter out in 3 pushes!!! Plus i didnt sleep after the baby was born (too much adrenaline) and lol havnt got much sleep since taking her home so my last really great sleep was from the epidural
February 18th, 2010 at 9:16 pm
For my first I had pethidine and I hated it at the time it was ok and helped with the pain but afterwards I had an headache and my baby was sleepy and wouldn’t feed for the first day because of it. So for my next 2 I said I would try to go Natural I used the bath and shower as I found the water very soothing and did manage it I didn’t even have gas and air. Afterwards was so much better I was on a high for ages, the pain disappeared as soon as I gave birth and I felt so good. I am hoping to have natural labour again with my 4th. This is my experience and I didn’t have any complications in labour, although my 3rd baby was premature. I am hoping to go the same way again. I think try to be positive and be prepared to change if the circumstance calls for it, you never know what can happen and never feel guilty if you have to end up taking any kind of pain relief. What matters is the health of you and your baby. Good Luck
p.s I read every birth book going, I found that the knowledge gave me power so I knew what was happening.
February 18th, 2010 at 9:58 pm
I had planned a natural unmedicated delivery with my twins. I went into labor early and woke hubby and went to the hospital. At one point the nurse asked if I wanted something for the pain and, honestly, even if I was going to have an epi it wasn’t bad enough at that point that I would ahve said yes. I did end up doing the 12 hours of labor unmedicated. By then I was 7cm. Unfortunately, one twins was frank breech (butt first) and one was footling (feet first). One had his butt trying to come out and the other had her feet wedged in next to him. No one was coming out vaginally. I ended up with a c-section with general anesthesia.
I am currently 18 weeks pregnant with #3 and I’m again planning an “all natural” delivery. In fact, I’m debating between hospital or birth center delivery (if my midwife starts doing birth centers VBACs before my due date)
Honestly, labor wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be. I think part of the reason for women thinking it’s going to be horrible is because that’s generally all you hear. As soon as you start telling people you’re pregnant you start hearing horror stories about how bad labor is. Educate yourself. Read positive birth stories and talk to other natural laborers. Have a positive outlook about your body’s ability to do what it’s supposed to do. Believe you are strong and can handle doing this.
February 18th, 2010 at 10:20 pm
Congratulations on your choice! Natural childbirth takes a lot of work, but is so well worth it in the end. Many women have an epidural because they think they will be too tired to enjoy their baby if they don’t, but the truth is the body releases adrenalin and you will be quite lucid and awake for several hours. Your brain starts squirting out oxytocin, the love hormone, and that is not something you want drugs to cover up. Most women ask for the drugs when they feel they cannot go on. But the truth is that if they were getting the right support, the support right for them, physically and mentally they would /know/ they could go on. Women do natural childbirth everyday and have been for thousands of years. I would recommend reading “Ina Mays Guide to Childbirth” by Ina May Gaskin. It’s not too long, about 350 pages, and it will change your whole outlook on birth. If you are serious about staying drug-free then you should really look into having a Doula. A doula doesn’t take over as the primary comfort giver rather they support all aspects of your labor, physically with massages, mentally by giving loving encouragement and spiritually if you need it. I am a Doula and have helped so many women achieve their goals of natural childbirth, or just minimal drugs {like narcotics, not spinals}. I did natural labor for 32 hours. Having a doula present has been proven to cut labor times in half, they have less medical intervention like vacuum assisted deliveries and cut c-section rates by over 80%. You will find some Doulas, like myself, who work for free, and some that cost money. Usually around $300-500 and up. Good luck and if you want anymore information, please feel free to email me. I would be happy to help! Don’t be scared of giving birth. Your body was designed for this!
February 18th, 2010 at 10:56 pm
I really did plan on going natural, i was hoping i would have an easy delivery since i never got that big i figured my baby would be tiny. but after about twelve hrs of labor i couldn’t take it i got the epidural and it helped a lot i was able to rest cuz of a long day of labor i was so exhausted! they ended up cutting me so its a good thing i got that epidural! in the end just seeing my baby was so amazing and she wasn’t as tiny as i thought she was 7.5 lbs i thought she would be around 6
February 18th, 2010 at 11:05 pm
I’m the opposite here – I was all ready to get some pain meds once I was in labour, but didn’t get the chance. I was already 9cm dilated when we got to the hospital, and baby arrived after only 20 minutes in the delivery room. But it was definitely NOT an easy delivery and I would absolutely go for an epidural (or ANYTHING!) if I do it again. Baby’s heart rate kept dropping while I was pushing, so they needed to get him out immediately. They tried the vacuum, but it kept popping off his head. So then they gave me an episiotomy – and most of the time when women get those, even with a natural birth, they get a bit of freezing down there. I didn’t. Even after that, I got a 4th degree tear. I certainly would NOT recommend labour, delivery, an episiotomy, and a 4th degree tear all without something to ease the pain at least a little bit. Mind you, I’m proud of myself for not giving up or passing out or something, but it hurt more than I can even explain. Also, as the doctor was trying to stitch me up in the delivery room, she didn’t freeze the area enough, so I could feel a lot of the stitches – by then, it was minor compared to everything else I’d just felt, but it hurt a lot. After all that, I ended up in the operating room to get fixed up properly, and the spinal they gave me in there was the most wonderful thing in the world (other than my new baby, of course!). If I could have had even a little bit of pain relief sooner, it would’ve been a LOT easier for me. And if I ever have another baby, I sure hope my labour doesn’t progress as quickly as this one did, so that I’m able to get an epidural or something!
I hope I didn’t scare you too much… I had a really bad experience (and didn’t even give all the lovely details here!), and I know most women have a MUCH easier time, so I don’t want to make you even more nervous than you already are! And keep in mind that our bodies are designed for this, and it’s been happening for a lot longer than pain meds have been around. So do what feels right to you, and don’t feel like you’ve failed or anything like that if you change your mind partway through!
February 18th, 2010 at 11:08 pm
Aiden
Aiden was born Sept 9 2008 – My water broke at about 5:30am on the 9th, at our Albert Street home. I went up and told Jay we were having the baby today, and called Jay’s work to let them know he wouldn’t be coming in. Then I called our midwife, and my birth assistant and things got rolling. Jason and Noah set up the birthing tub in our kitchen, and my birth assistant arrived and started doing some reflexology to help me relax through the contractions… I relaxed so much, the progress almost stopped! We sat in the livingroom and chatted while Noah played; We had soft music going in the background, and lots of fresh air through the windows. I went outside for a little while, just to do a little walking in the sunshine, and things started picking back up. At about 6pm, the midwife told us that we might have to consult a pediatrician if the labour went on for 18 hours – I was very disappointed and distraught. I DID NOT want to go to the hospital. The baby was turned the wrong way, and had more or less stopped the progress of the labour. Jay and I sat and meditated for a while, prayed for a bit, tried different positions to turn the baby the right way and after about an hour, it worked. If we had gone to the hospital, he would have been taken by c-section. At about 10pm, I started getting sick to my stomach – It had been 17 hours since my water broke, and I was getting pretty tired and frustrated. One more hour and we’d have to go see a doctor. The midwife checked me and said I was 9 cm dilated – Suddenly, I got the urge to push – Everybody went a bit frantic as I dove (head first,) into our birth pool – The baby came so fast (only 2 pushes total,) and was born 4 minutes after the midwife had just checked me. At 10:55pm, Aiden was born directly into his daddy’s waiting hands – I carried him from our birth pool in the kitchen to the bedroom with his umbilical cord still in tact! It was the best possible 17 and 1/2 hour labour anybody could have hoped for! We had no medication, lots of wonderful alternative relaxation techniques and a perfect birth.
Noah
Noah was born on Sept 16 2007 – My water broke on the 15th at about 10:30pm at our Johnson street home – Jay and I danced in our living room to Dave Matthews for about an hour, then started making preperations for the next couple of hours. We set up the birthing tub, called our midwife, Stacy Lytle, and monitored the contractions. Things started getting pretty intense around midnight, and stayed that way till about 6:00 am. The midwife checked me, and said I was about 6 cm dilated at that point. All of a sudden, I got an uncontrollable urge to push, which freaked EVERYBODY out, and I dove into our birth tub head first – Noah was born into Jason’s hands at 6:35am – Actually, Jay and the midwife kinda scrambled through the water to find him because he literally shot into the pool! He was 10 days early, and was a beautiful baby right from the start. We had no hospital, no stress, lots of candles, music and were able to do whatever we wanted to move the birth along. Noah took a grand total of 8 hours of labour, and the “pushing stage” was less than 20 minutes. What a fantastic birth!
My advice? Get a labor tub – just a blow up kiddie pool will do, and attach a hose to the water faucet. Even if you plan to go to the hospital, labor as long as you can in the comfort of your home – If you have a doula, she’ll tell you when it’s time to head out in plenty of time for the delivery. Get used to two phrases; “Don’t touch me please,” and “Leave me alone.” Don’t let any doctor or nurse tell you to “go ahead and start pushing…” Wait till you get an uncontrollable urge – Your body knows what its doing. Trust it, and go with it. I didn’t escape the pain of labor entirely, but I did work through it – You can do it too. Good luck!