Natural childbirth or Epidural for this 1st time mom ?
Byim really tiny and afraid this labor and delivery thing may be too much for me. my husband and i have been taking the bradley method classes for natural childbirth, and they have already helped us alot, but i am still worried that it may be too painful. I want to try for natural birth because of the countless benefits, but im afraid i will freak out wen it comes time and i wont be able to have the epidural because i waited to long. Im 29 weeks now, and still nervous as hell.
anyone have suggestions or experience with natural labor ?
Related posts:
8 Comments
January 30th, 2010 at 2:51 pm
I went threw the same fears and chose to go natural for my first. You only live once! But halfway threw I had trouble ( my son got his big head stuck )and went with the epideral, you can always change your mind half way threw and it really isn’t a big deal. I still got to have him naturally and it was wonderful.
I wish you luck!!!! and Congrats!
January 30th, 2010 at 3:16 pm
I think your best bet is to let the doctor know you don’t want the meds, but if you are in too much pain you would like to know when is to late to have them. You should also tell the nurses at the hospital when you go in to have the baby and ask them also. This way they’ll know you don’t plan to have the drugs but you may need them.. Good luck with it!
January 30th, 2010 at 3:54 pm
I went with the epidural with my 1st. From the time my water broke at home till I went to the hospital, which was about 18-19 hours, I couldn’t take the pain anymore. I was exhausted from the contractions and not having any sleep. I was scared before labor and during. I knew how the epidural worked and did not hesitate to get one when the time came. It helped out a lot. I was able to get some rest before it came time to push, mind you, the epidural wasn’t that effective in my case and I felt everything when I was pushing, but at least I was rested enough to push. Everyones situation is different when it comes to labor and it is a choice for natural delivery. Just remember your options for when the time comes.
January 30th, 2010 at 4:06 pm
Its going to depend on your tolerance for pain…just keep in mind that once you’re dilated to 8cm they generally can’t give anything stronger than demerol or nubain, neither of which works very effectively after 7cm!
The epidural is given at 4cm and not after 7cm generally.
January 30th, 2010 at 4:56 pm
You can do it. Your body is designed to give birth. The cesarean rate in hospitals is about 33%. Every intervention you accept (induction, water breaking, epidural, pitocin) increases the possibility for cesarean. And don’t get too hung up on following the regiment of the bradley classes. Do what feels right to you. Breathe deeply and slow. Move around. Fight the hospital to let you be off the monitors as much as possible. And don’t go to the hospital too soon. Labor at home until your contractions are really strong. You can do it!
January 30th, 2010 at 5:34 pm
You can get an epidural at last minute. I dealt with the contractions for 8 hours before I felt like I was dying and asked for an epidural. Your OB will just have to call the anaesthetist in and it doesnt take long. An hour and a half after the epidural went in I was fully dilated and ready to push and I could still feel the urge and the pushing contractions, they just werent painful. The pushing the baby out part is hard but its less painful than contractions. Good luck!
January 30th, 2010 at 6:21 pm
its only natural to feel the way you do (we all do to a degree) but dont forget thats what the drugs are there for ?some women go on like they get a medal if they have a natural birth.giving birth is painful so why not accept something thats gonna help with the pain or take it away ive had 3 kids and only required gas and air/pethadine and managed! good luck!!!!!!!!(youre not thought of any less just because you want everything going) giving birth is a hard job its just us poor women who have to do it .congrats in advance xx
January 30th, 2010 at 6:24 pm
HI. I am 23 years old and I have had 4 children with no epidural. And as far as being a tiny person, I’m kind of little myself. But anyhow, I always found the thought of an epidural more terrifying then the pain I would have to experience during the childbirth.. With my first pregnancy I did ask for an epidural, but by the time I made it to the hospital and got examined I was already 8 cm dilated and could not have one because I was so far dilated.. Which I am very thankful for. But after that first pregnancy, I knew a little more about what to expect and wasn’t so scared about the childbirth. If you have an epidural with your first pregnancy, I think that you more likely to have one with subsequent prenancies as well. I’ve always been prideful of the fact that I’ve never had an epidural. And I’m sure you will be as well if this is what you choose. I have had the pain meds via an I.V., which does take the edge off a little bit. Just make sure that the doctor/nurse gives you a “last chance” for the pain meds. Hope that this was at least a little helpful.