To think it's impossible to explain how painful labour is?

[Mamabear1475]

Sil is trying for a baby. She asked how painful it is. I told her there is no way to describe it. She said it must feel like something. I can't think of anything that explains the feeling

Good luck with the new one Shoes!

Like you're caught in the ocean with tremendous waves crashing down on top of you, and your only chance is to take a breath and hope the next wave won't be the one that kills you.
And at first you try to surf the wave, but then they start to get the better of you and you feel yourself being forced under.
And you think, oh, so this is how I die.
And you almost want to die so that it can just be over.

I had back labour. It felt like trying to shit out an anvil with NO break between contractions.

The actual birth (crowning etc) wasn’t that bad in comparison

Had an epidural when waters broke (undiagnosed breech) labour was lovely,

sorry...

I may have to have a list of all the description so the next time she asks I can pull it out and reveal the evidence.
And the I will open a bottle of wine. I just don't want to put her off. They have been trying for a baby for a long time

I vividly remember shouting & screaming for an epidural and the midwife said it’s too late, the baby is coming. I was like Nooooo, push it back up right now, it has to be put back in.

I delivered my last baby while standing up. Gravity may well help, but it felt like I was trying to shit out all my internal organs located south of my diaphragm. Hideous.

*Like you're caught in the ocean with tremendous waves crashing down on top of you, and your only chance is to take a breath and hope the next wave won't be the one that kills you.
And at first you try to surf the wave, but then they start to get the better of you and you feel yourself being forced under.
And you think, oh, so this is how I die.
And you almost want to die so that it can just be over.

No, spot on

I’ve got 4 kids all born by Caesarean. Reading through these posts I’m so glad I never had a vaginal birth. It seems to me that women are expected to endure unbearable pain and injury because it’s ‘natural’ or ‘normal’. Does anyone else have difficulty with this train of thought?

My friend was due a few weeks after me and when she asked about it, I lied. There's nothing to be gained from knowing in advance as it'll just scare you and you can't back out. There are no words to describe the pain anyway x

Like being turned inside out.

It was awful, not remotely bearable and I'm so glad to have had dd2 by elcs!

I'm glad I didn't know how bad it would be. I genuinely thought breathing, tens, gas etc would help but nothing touched the sides til I had the epidural.

My mother told me it was like doing a big poo.

*unwatching
Maybe I’ll join you in a couple of weeks if I survive

Probably not a common opinion but I’ve had 2 natural births no pain relief and tore. One was 3 hours long the other 1 hours long and it wasn’t that bad. I mean...it hurt but it was literally like leg cramp but in my vaj and once it started to sting in a burning sort of way right at the entrance it was over.

Feels like you're being split open and bunt in the fanny at the same time whilst hugely constipated with a broken glass covered turd?

• BURNT

As an aside, I prefer normal birth to c section, had 2 of each

Actually to be fair I had a tooth abscess last month and the pain was worse.

Labour pains are just...weird

levelheadedmum

I do think there is an attitude that women need to just cope & get on with it. When I had my appendix out I stayed in hospital & had much stronger pain relief (this was before keyhole).
However I would still choose vb over cs as after my vb I was up & has zero pain or aches (perhaps helped by no instruments or tearing) whereas I was miserable after my CS and it took me much longer to feel like nothing has happened to me but every birth is so different.

It's like being ripped apart from the inside.

I should add that I have PTSD.

It was so bad I vowed never to have any more children. I did in fact have another, 13 years later. That labour, while horrifically painful, was much better and without drugs and despite having a huge baby, I feel fortunate to have had a positive birth experience. I am still traumatised by the first one. Horrific experience with long lasting traumatic damage that I was lucky didn't end up much worse. I shan't go into details but what I was put through was utterly unacceptable and no way would I put up with that now.

And dont let her watch Alien, where it bursts out of he r. But I guess that's the closest you can get - but that happens quite fast.

Just say yes to drugs

levelheadedmum nah I didn't feel that way at all, tbh. Would have hated to have had a CS or even an epidural.

My three pg colleagues were asking me as I've had 3 births, gallstones/biliary colic, IBS, endometriosis and meningitis so I'm quite familiar with pain.

I said it's a weird pain because whilst all the others are just fucking annoying and awful and made me feel horrendous; contraction pain feels like it has a purpose? That it's working towards something. Crowning pain/third degree tear made the room change colour but again felt purposeful. I think the pain hurts but not in a 'fuck I might be dying' way. Meningitis felt like I was dying. Endometriosis pisses me off constantly. Gallstones/biliary colic I felt out of control.

I think the tiredness after birth is worse than the pain!

My CS were really positive births especially the last 3 which were electives. The first was traumatic because of other complications. Looking back I’m happy not to have any pelvic floor damage although I do feel for women who do.