questions about childbirth

[Sally202021]

Hi for those of you who have given birth-
Im just wondering how much preparation did you do prior to giving birth and what impact did the preparation have on the birth?

Many Thanks in advance.

I went to nct classes, the nhs classes, read several books.

Made very little difference to the actual labour but it kept me calm in the weeks before thinking I was prepared

Raspberry leaf tea is supposed to improve your muscles or something. My pushing stage was quite quick so maybe it worked? Or maybe it was unrelated.

If your asking about perineal massage then no, I didn't try it and I've read it's pointless.

Know what happens to your body during Labour. Know your pain relief options and what can go wrong and how it’s handled.
Take nice snacks.

First birth I did nothing and it was long, scary and I didn't have a clue what what was happening. 2nd birth I took hypnobirthing classes (a lady came to my house) and I felt aware, in control for the most part and prepared. However I was induced 2 weeks early the first time and it felt very medical whereas I was 6days overdue with my second and had him in the water.

I did absolutely no preparation, no classes, no research of pain relief and had a really wonderful birth. Spontaneous labour. The midwives were very knowledgeable and I had gas and air. No stitches, no intervention.

Went to free NHS antenatal classes at the hospital, there were 2 and the first one was about birth. Read The Positive Birth Book. Did lots of online reading from reputable sources .e.g. NHS, NCT, RCOG. Did perineal massage. Wrote a birth plan which was done according to the advice given to me from the perinatal mental health midwife.

Impact of the preparation...well, I wasn't going in totally clueless so knew what my options were re positions, pain relief and so on and what potential outcomes there could be for complications. I was still really scared throughout it all though anyway. Birth plan was utterly pointless, it was read by the first midwife I saw but then I received care from loads of different people as my labour went on and moved from MLU to delivery and I don't think a single other person looked at it and they didn't always follow my wishes. I've wrote one this time again but shorter and I'm not even sure I'm going to bring it with me tbh I haven't decided. Perineal massage - I didn't tear, so maybe it helped? But I did have an episiotomy due to an instrumental anyway. Been doing this again this time too on the off chance it helps.

Absolutely none.
I had a short spontaneous labour after failed induction. It was excruciating as didn’t get the epidural I wanted but had almost no damage (3 miniscule stitches I couldn’t feel).
It’s luck of the draw, I didn’t get stretch marks either. I don’t think there’s anything you can or can’t do that makes any difference.

I did nct classes, hypnobirthing course, perineal massage. I felt very prepared and calm before the birth although in practice it didn't really make a difference. My birth was much harder than i expected, I had lots of painkillers and my perineum did tear - however I recovered fine and it was my decision to have a different labour and birth than id planned (hypnobirthing sounded great in theory but in practice breathing techniques weren't working for me). I dont mean to scare you just maybe keep an open mind. Its not always possible to have a textbook experience but I'm not put off having more dc

I went to a labour class at the hospital, where they sort of ran through what to expect. I knew a lot of it, but it was still helpful. I also looked into epidurals and decided to get one, which I think helped me a lot because I felt more confident about my decision to have one.

I read stacks of books and every birth story I could find online. I read scientific studies on everything to do with childbirth- place, type, interventions, pain relief, birth injuries,etc

I’m a person who’s imagination is very strong and so for me, knowledge about everything that could happen was calming and reassuring.

However, I have friends who are the opposite. Reading everything to include what could go wrong would terrify them and they preferred to just go along with what the doctors and midwives gave them information wise.

So it sort of depends on your personality what is best preparation for you?

Spoke to my mum, sister, aunts, grandparents, cousins and friends and colleagues who had all given birth and the general consensus was just get on with it and avoid as much interference as possible, get your breathing under control and think of the end result.

With that in mind the ideas I had in my mind about birth pools and pain relief were discarded and I did exactly that and had two natural births that were a wonderful experience.

My advice is to read up on pain relief options.
I think too much reading and an overly detailed birth plan can actually be detrimental. You may have the idea of the perfect birth in your head, and it might not go that way.

Honestly it doesn't matter what preparation you do, other than knowing what pain relief is available and the pros and cons.

A good midwife will explain everything else as you go. You'll completely forget all your prep when it comes to it anyway.

Make sure your birthing partner knows what kind of birth you want. My midwives were crap second time around and DP had to be quite assertive when they weren't listening to me.

I made a birth plan.

I deliberately avoided reading or asking about others birth stories as people have the tendency to share the horror ones and I didn’t want to know it because I wanted to relax. Being calm and relaxed is very important during labor.

I also did a session with a yoga coach who taught me several breathing techniques that really helped me during the birth.

The only prep I did was watch "one born every minute" 🙈
3 births, all very different.

@5zeds

Know what happens to your body during Labour. Know your pain relief options and what can go wrong and how it’s handled. Take nice snacks.

This is really good advice.

I did pregnancy yoga and one of the exercises was a godsend in labour.

I read one book that explained exactly what is supposed to happen (What to Expect When You're Expecting) and then tried to keep calm. 4 spontaneous births, no medical intervention or drugs, but that part is just luck and genetics, nothing to do with preparation.

I didn't do any preparation other than NHS antenatal classes (pointless) and insisting on an epidural in my notes.

I got the epidural but the labour was traumatic and ended in surgery (so I had a spinal block anyway). This couldn't have been predicted and no amount of preparation would have made a difference.

What I should have done is spent more time researching what life was like with a newborn because I had no clue and it was a complete shock. So my advice would be to focus on the baby and not the birth.

Breathing techniques is a must- I use them for any pain that I face now.

The thing that helped me most for both my births was Daisy birthing. I learned about what to expect for the different stages, breathing and movement techniques, pain relief options, and generally it helped me to go from feeling absolutely petrified about birth to feeling "ready". I was lucky to have two really positive births in the birthing centre at the hospital. I felt mostly "in control" (as much as you can when in labour) and found the breathing really helped me. That being said I do know it's not like that for everyone so there is luck of the draw, but I also felt like if something were to happen I had a rough idea of different scenarios and how they might play out, as well as the pros and cons of things like pain relief options.

Highly recommend Daisy - it wasn't hypnobirthing as such but did get me in the zone

I did hypnobirthing. I did have complications, but the HB was fantastic. Gave me confidence, and I felt I knew what I had to do. You DO have to practice on a daily basis though. Would always recommend.

I did lots of preparation and it made absolutely bugger all difference. My child was a wrong way around and no amount of hypnobirthing was changing it.

Same for DS two. Although it did help because that time I was fully prepared for needing another csection. Because he was sideways too.

I went to local midwife preparation and relaxation classes and bought some baby clothes. Babies hardly need any "stuff"; no need to get much. We borrowed a crib from friends and bought a second hand pram from the family next door. I attended all my check-up appointments. Didn't drink alcohol.

That's about it.

None. I don't think there is any amount of preparation that can prepare you for childbirth. I've had 3 and not one of them was the same. I can't even say that previous experience help me. Just go with an open mind, go with the flow and do exactly as the midwife says.

It nothing, just went to see doctor twice in 9 months.
Packed about 4 weeks to due date.
I always kept snacks and drinks in the bag. For HIM not me, he needed food and glad I did. Late night hospital birth and it kept him in an excited mood not stressing because he was hungry...