How on earth do women give birth without epidurals?

[Begaydocrime94]

genuine question, for those of you who have given birth without epidurals, how?? Just gave birth for the second time and was hoping for no epidural this time but caved pretty much immediately. How do women cope without? Do some women just cope better with pain etc?

Gas and air fine. The idea of a needle in my spine is not fine.

Contractions are manageable, garden variety pain in my experience/for me. The feeling of pressure as the baby works its way out and starts crowning is HORRIFIC - not painful, just monstrously uncomfortable. Too late for epidural by that point. And mine were out in a couple of pushes, fortunately.

So many things factor into it though.... If you have had a long labour/laboured through the night/have had a physically tough end of pregnancy(or entire pregnancy!) all factor into your ability to manage pain on the day. Your personality and how apprehensive you are about the whole process factors into it too imo
I didn't want an epi if I could avoid it and had that in my birth plan but they tried giving me one (often think I should ask for my notes out of curiosity, assume it was to do with the amount of bleeding and them thinking ahead to possible section) but they couldn't get it in on 3 attempts, then I suddenly yelled which the midwife immediately recognised as me needing to push (the yell took me by surprise was totally involuntary) and baby was born 30 minutes later, 4 hours after I walked in to have bleeding checked. When I walked in I was unaware I was having contractions every 2-3 minutes, I didn't feel pain at any stage of it including the bit that scared me, the crowning. I do have a high pain threshold but afaik it was more how she was positioned, labour was more through my back but if I d needed the epi I would have been asking for it LOUDLY!
Labour is a very individual experience with so many things coming into play physically and mentally and some of these play into why a woman needs or just wants an epi, whatever it takes to get mum and baby through in the best most stable state is what's best in that particular case, for some that's an epi, for others it's no epi.

Epidural increases the risk of complications and NO WAY was I doing anything that could mean I might have to have a caesarean.
4 back labours but they were bearable with just gas and air

It’s a natural pain, I think some of the pain relief slows the birth down and you’re in pain for much longer.
Had very little with my first and nothing at all with my second, pain bearable and a rapid labour.

Oh no! 😆 you poor thing. I honestly didn't think something like that could even happen until it happened to me. I hope it all healed OK.

I had 2 natural births,no epidurals both nearly 9lbs with massive heads,ouch.

Painfully

Honestly. I didn’t have any pain relief. I can’t explain how primal I felt just pushing for three hours. I didn’t speak a word until he was born just did as instructed and my DH spoke for me based on my birth plan.

It wasnt pain like normal pain until the final push when I screamed and then it was done

Never felt like I needed one. I've given birth once so far. It was a rather easy 4 hour labour though! I only needed gas and air for pushing and stitches afterwards. Never felt like I needed more pain relief.

Oh and I'd have taken the epi for delivering the placenta! Was awful, much worse than the delivering of the 9+ lb baby!

I’ve had one with and one without. Quite frankly the one without was massively easier in every way- so much so that I didn’t realise I was as far along as I was. I read my daughter a bedtime story through contractions and then had a massive panic as realised I’d gone through transition at home and then had a very stressful trip to the hospital. There would have been no time for any pain relief with that one. First one however was an absolute shit show and the epidural was absolutely necessary.

I don’t buy anything re pain tolerance, hypno birthing etc. Some labours are harder than others and hurt more.

I think it depends on the person/luck. I had two without epidurals. The first I wanted one but they left it so late it was too late. The second i was lucky enough to have a water birth, for the mist part (had to get out at the end) and managed on a couple of paracetamol. He was 10 1/2 lbs! If I had known that I'd maybe have changed the plan! What helped was moving in early labour and a tens machine and later on the water. I was lucky though I think. I prob have 'childbearing hips'-cheers mum!

Gas and air and a tens machine. My first was quite quick so had no choice. After that I was like well I know I can do it so second and third were also without. Tens machine works well if you get it on asap and build up the vibration level gradually.

Just breathed through it.

I have a high pain threshold though, I don't like to take painkillers not even for broken bones.

It's a hard to answer question-I can only say "Because that's what I wanted to do, and it turned out I could."

Too late with number one. It was the most painful thing I’ve ever done - I couldn’t believe I didn’t die when those shoulders hit. Second one had the epidural in with the hormone drip to induce.

I was induced via sweep, then waters broken, then hormone drip. I was fine until the hormone drip. And then I had GS and air then wanted an epidural, I had the needle put in my back but no medication as labour suddenly sped up.

Then, they took the Gas and Air off me to make me concentrate so I did the whole main event without any pain relief.

I do not handle pain better than other women and I can still imagine that sting of DDs head crowning 15+ years on.

It makes me feel a bit bad ass to think I did it like that, but also I would have grabbed pain relief with both hands if they would have given it to me.

The placenta being delivered actually hurt the most though but I was given gas and air for that.

I had an epidural with my first and hated it. The next two just gas and air. Was much better. I felt completely in control. Because I already had a baby I knew what to expect which made it much easier.

I don’t think it was offered in the 80’s when I had mine, or maybe just not that common. I think I’d heard of it but there was some talk of it causing paralysis! 3 births, petitioner was marvellous and with additional gas and air I thought pain was just something to have to put up with.
I was very naive and had no idea what to expect - no such thing as birth plans or special requests at my hospital in the early 80’s.
I can still recall the pain 44 years on!

First time I didn't (manage without one) and it was bloody marvellous and utterly necessary.

Second time I was just about getting to the point of asking for one when the urge to push hit so it was too late.

Same. Waters broke, almost immediate contractions every 3 mins and was 10cm when I got to the hospital 30 mins later.

I wasn't medically allowed one due to a spinal injury so I don't know if going in with the mindset that it wasn't an option helped or not.

I'm unsure if you are feeling negative about having one? Do you feel you somehow failed because you had one? You know that's bullshit right?

If that's your mindset that some women give birth in fields and carry on working but I begged for drugs therefore I am less...please stop. Stop right now. Go and look at your healthy baby and know you did what you needed to do to get them here into the world safely for them and for you. Do NOT EVER let anyone, including yourself, make you feel less for how you gave birth.

Lecture over, congratulations on your new addition x

I would also say you can’t compare births. Having the drip was like being tortured as the doctors couldn’t get it under control- I was basically having constant contractions without the lull. I have never felt pain like it- I said in my second birth plan I wouldn’t consent to the drip and would rather have a section.

Second birth was normal and was a doddle for me after that. I really don’t like the tone of some of the posts on here that suggest a bit of superiority for not using pain relief. It is luck, pure luck.

Quick so I hadn't tired. But also I had a fear of the epidural and being in that medical environment.

I had an epidural with my first and the anaesthetist injected it too far into my spine and punctuated it so I couldn't stand up without the spinal fluid draining from my head and causing the most excruciating headaches for about 2 weeks after. So after that experience I wouldn't even consider and epidural again.

Had a home birth with my second with no pain relief and although it wasn't less painful second time around my mindset was completely different because I felt so calm!