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Childbirth

Are second births always easier/quicker?

83 replies

Mirage · 30/10/2004 14:06

Everyone tells me that second births are much quicker & easier than first births.What do you all think & what were your experiences?

The reason I ask is that with DD,my 1st baby,from show to actually delivering her I was only in labour for 4 hours.It would have been a lot quicker if I hadn't been so rubbish at pushing.Even so,I didn't even have time to unpack my bag before she arrived.

The midwives told me that if I ever had another baby,I should camp out in the hospital car park 6 wks before hand to be sure of getting there in time.Therfore,as I am due in June,I'd be interested to hear if it is always the case of 2nd babies arriving faster.
Thanks.
Mirage

OP posts:

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blossomhill · 30/10/2004 14:08

In my case it was as my 1st labour was 31 hours and 2nd just over 8 hours. The actual birth was about a minute.
I did find the 2nd birth far more painful though! Hope you don't mine me being honest

lou33 · 30/10/2004 14:09

I hade precipitous labours with all four of mine, they got progressively quicker, and the longest one was only 2hrs 20m, so I would say there is truth in the theory.

lou33 · 30/10/2004 14:09

Oh Bh, number two was the worst for me as well.

blossomhill · 30/10/2004 14:09

My friends 2nd labour was an hour start to finish. I don't like the idea of that!

blossomhill · 30/10/2004 14:10

I had an out of body experience lou. I wasn't as brave as you to go on and have any more!

Stripymouse · 30/10/2004 14:11

Loads of my friends reckon that their subsequent births were easier and quicker. I had a long 1st labour and birth and then a slightly shorter and easier second. My mum had her first within three hours and then got quicker and quicker so that her third one was a home birth out of necessity
Have you considered home birth if your first was quick and fairly ok? I went for home birth second time (for diff. reasons admittedly) and found that the knowledge gained first time round meant I was ok and relaxed at home and so the whole thing seemed to move easier and faster. Just a thought

bunny2 · 30/10/2004 14:11

bh, lou, nooooo! more pain? I thought the baby would fly out send time around.

blossomhill · 30/10/2004 14:12

It did therefore was more painful! It was 5 years ago and I still have the scars physically and mentally!

emmatmg · 30/10/2004 14:12

Our DS2 arrived in a fraction of the time Ds1 arrived.

Ds1 from start to finish was about 24 hours, 6-8 of really hard work.

Ds2 from start to finish was 3hrs 45 mins. So much easier it was shocking.

(BTW Ds3 was faster still, 2hrs 19mins according to my notes)

foxinsocks · 30/10/2004 14:12

My first labour was about the same length as yours. My second was 2 and a half hours from the time that my waters broke till giving birth (I only had contractions for just under 2 hours). It wasn't any more painful as at least I knew how to push second time round (like you, I had no clue what I was doing the first time!).

lou33 · 30/10/2004 14:13

lol bh . I was just a darned fool!

Ok, dd1 was 2hrs 20m and born at home. Dd2 was 1hr50 and delivered 3m after arriving at hospital while I was on holiday in Ireland. Ds1 was 1hr11, born at home, and ds2 was 22minutes, in hospital.

Aero · 30/10/2004 14:13

Similar to bh - over in half the time, but much more difficult, though that could have been for any reason. Third time, the time was halved again and the labour was no problem - I was much more relaxed though as had a home birth.

blossomhill · 30/10/2004 14:14

lou - 1hr and 11 minutes? So you didn't have time for any pain relief??? I am sitting here crossing my legs at the thought.
I was a coward and had epidurals with both of mine!

lou33 · 30/10/2004 14:14

these timings are from first contraction to birth btw, apart from ds2, because I didn't notice any contractions until they broke my water, so his time is from water breaking to delivery.

blossomhill · 30/10/2004 14:16

ouch!!!

lou33 · 30/10/2004 14:17

I only had gas and air for the last one while they broke my waters bh. First time the ambulance men gave it to me but forgot to switvh it on, so I was suffocating, because I wouldn't take the mask away form my mouth, vainly hoping it was working , then the midwife arrived and wrestled it off me just as they realised their mistake. Second time it was so cold that the gas and air had frozen in the bottle in the ambulance. Third time, no time.

Bloody lovely stuff when i did get it though, for number 4 . I told the doc I loved him.

DelGirl · 30/10/2004 14:17

blimey, i hope mine isn't so quick, my sis would never make it in that time, on the other hand who wants to be in labour for hours and hours

BadHair · 30/10/2004 14:19

Second labour was much quicker than first. So quick, in fact, that if we have another child I'll be having a home birth as I doubt I'd make it to hospital.
Then again, I was was very lazy and didn't do my pelvic floor exercises after ds1, so I guess things were speeded up as everything was pretty slack down there.

blossomhill · 30/10/2004 14:20

lou - you are very brave I must say. I didn't get on with gas and air, made me really sick!

lou33 · 30/10/2004 14:20

Actually dg I don't think I would have the stamina to go for hours, so I prefer it the way it was. For dd1, dh (then dp) was lying on the bed next to me really ill after having been discharged from the tropical hospital, and my sister thought I was going to deliver all on my own, so she got her dh to drive from earlsfield to shepherds bush in 10 mins flat! I ended u[ with the whole world there I think, because in those 10 mins, 2 midwives, 2 ambulance men and my sister along with her dh, all arrived, followed by a gp a few mins later. Oh and the dog was trying to get a look in as well.

lou33 · 30/10/2004 14:21

It's not brave bh, it's just how it was, I didn't have a choice!

blossomhill · 30/10/2004 14:22

ROFL about dog

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DelGirl · 30/10/2004 14:24

. I was born in 10 mins apparently and my sis has had 4 relatively easy births too so i'm quite likely to follow suit aren't I?

Yorkiegirl · 30/10/2004 14:24

Message withdrawn

lou33 · 30/10/2004 14:26

Probably DG

Bh, honest, the dog was trying to get to the placenta!

Did I mention our kitchen ceiling fell down the night before as well, because the person above flooded their bathroom? Oh what a comedy birth it was.

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