Does SPD make giving birth more painful?

[Jill72]

Suspect I may have SPD at 33 weeks - bummer! Some one posted to me on another thread that it makes birth easier as pelvis is slacker - however this pain at the moment makes my eyes water never mind imagining contractions ect on top!!!!!! Any experiences????

Would really appreciate any advice??

I fel your pain! I had vile SPD and it is horrible.

Afraid I can't comment on actual birth as I ended up with EMCS, but I was given the following advice to prepare:

1. Write on your birth plan and generally shout from the roof tops that you have SPD so midwives know. Have birthing partner well versed as well, in case they need to talk to midwife on your behalf.

2. Try opening your legs as far as you can, then tie a scarf round them. Use this during labour as a guide to make sure you don't further strain yourself.

3. Check out the pelvic partnership website - they have helpful advice and a phoneline i think.

4. Don't panic! I got as far as the pushing stage before having CS, and can honestly say SPD was no problem. Also, for most women it disappears pretty soon after having your baby.

Good luck!

I had SPD with last 2 pregnancies - was signed off from 6 months with last one. Both births were really easy and SPD wasn't a problem at all, although I did have very quick labours (2 hours 25 then 1 hour 50) so that might have meant I didn't have time to notice it!

Agree with previous poster, just make sure midwife is aware of it.

Good luck!

Should add that EMCS was not related to SPD at all. I had a long labour before the CS, and tbh the SPD was not a problem at all.

I had SPD with my last three pregnancies, I wasn't aware of it once in labour but I birthed on all fours or kneeling so had control over how much I moved my legs. I can't imagine what I'd have done if someone had moved my legs apart or tried to put me in stirrups. All these births were straightforward and quick too

Mmm. I didn't say anything about SPD during labour and gave birth propped up in bed with the MWs holding up a leg each. I had had an epidural so didn't notice it during labour. The SPD was dreadful for about the next 6-8 weeks - very painful to begin with, and then every time I thought it was gone it kept flaring up again. I mentioned it repeatedly to MWs, doctors etc afterwards and no one really paid any attention, just kind of went oh yes, that's to be expected. I don't think anyone wrote it down in my post-natal notes, either, despite me bringing it up so often. I don't know how fast it disappears for most people, but I wasn't expecting it to still be going up to 8 weeks later.

Hopefully if you follow all the sensible advice given above (and don't be like me and forget all about it once in labour!), you'll recover much more quickly. But it will go, even if it takes a while!

It is really important to let midwives etc know about your SPD. You or your birth partner might need to remind them - have your birth partner ready to help with this, as once you get into the zone your SPD will be the last thing on your mind, and if you have an epidural you won't be able to feel it anyway.

This website might help.

Also trawl the talk archives here, lots of good advice from women who have experienced this.

for me, with quite severe SPD in last preg (on crutches, not able to walk more than 5 mins, off work from about 29 weeks), labour was really difficult, and SPD very painful BUT this may have been because my baby, who had been in perfect position to come out up to waters breaking, suddenly apparently went transverse! according to my labour notes, which midwife and I were revisiting the other day. No wonder that hurt. I was in a lot of pain, and my legs were agony in all the places that the SPD had been affecting. I also had failure to progress, and lots of pushing and no baby coming out, and so ended up with EMCS.

However, if DC had not started shifting around inside me, maybe it would have been OK? Also, my mum, who didn't get SPD in pregnancy, had two very similar long nasty labours ending in EMCS, so I don't think I can necessarily blame the SPD - it just didn't help! Because the pain got so bad, and because there was meconium in waters and baby in distress, I wasn't able to try some of the things I'd been thinking about like moving around, being on all fours, getting in a birthing pool, and I ended up on my back with an epidural. Hopefully you will be able to stay mobile if that's what you'd like.

Good news was that birth went fine, baby and I were both very well as soon as he was out, and amazingly, SPD went completely as soon EMCS over. Pain of recovering from CS was very easy compared to pain of SPD, so I was lucky. I was also really on a high after DC was born, and that helped - I'd been in agony for weeks beforehand, so it was wonderful to have my beautiful baby and be better. I'm pregnant again, and unfortunately I'm getting SPD again, but I didn't suffer after the birth.

Wishing you an easy labour, happy birth and a very swift recovery.

oh and meant to add - despite writing SPD in huge letters all over my notes, most of the midwives and doctors during my very long labour paid no attention, and both before and during EMCS they pulled my legs right apart, and faffed around with forceps and ventouse, despite my protests. I don't know, maybe it's not possible to do these procedures without pulling legs far apart? And I know they wanted the baby out healthy, which of course was my priority too. But I felt that they didn't take SPD seriously at all, and I was really angry. If I'd had problems afterwards I would have made a real fuss.

Please make sure you are firm in letting them know what you need and make sure your DP/birth partner can speak up for you. You don't want to make any damage worse. Speak to someone at the Pelvic Partnership on the phone, they are very knowledgeable.

Thanks for replies - so fed up about this happening at the 11th hour - really want to do this as naturally as possible and now worried that I will be faced with a avalanche of pressure to accept all the interventions I so desperately want to avoid!!!

If it helps, I thought I that having a very 'natural', intervention-free birth would be very important to me, and I had load of plans for all the birth pool positions I was going to try... but looking back from the other side, the birth we ended up with, full of interventions and drugs, was actually really joyful and just amazing the minute he was out - healthy beautiful baby, and healthy me.

But do try to tell them "SPD" all the way through labour, and get advice from Pelvic Partnership about what is and isn't OK. And fingers crossed you'll be fine. When I asked similar question to you before I gave birth, I think 9 out of 10 of the answers I got on MN was, birth with SPD can actually be really easy. Just not for me

I had SPD and had an intervention-free birth with just gas and air. Labour completely took over and I didn't even notice it.

I was consultant led and she had said absolutely no to stirrups so I'd briefed both my mum and DP on that before the birth. They did try putting me in them but mum jumped up and explained forcefully why that was not an option. I used the stands to brace instead. SPD disappeared within a couple of days of the birth.

Good luck!

Whoever wrote SPD makes ligaments slacker and therefore birth easier needs shooting, clearly that person didn't have SPD. My symptoms were unusual in that my pregnancy was fine but as soon as my son was born I couldn't walk, 6weeks on zimmer and 6 months!! on crutches. RING PELVIC PARTNERSHIP would be good idea to see a RECOMMENDED manual physio to ensure that your pelvic girdle is aligned properly, and definitely don't let midwives pull your legs-thats what happened to me -one on each side of bed pushing pressure on kneese -apparently outdated practice. The trouble is that when your lying there vulnerable you just do as your told and out NCT classes and birth plans went out the window! Was the an hour in stirrups being stitched. I think a lot of the post birth problems could have been avoided with a well managed birth.
ps son now 21months and I'm back to "normal".

I agree with mumvet that seeing a really good physio before the birth will stand you in good stead. Mine for my second baby was able to explain what to do and gave pictures of good positions for different stages in labour (see good advice above) and also that IF we needed forceps, that there is a way of doctors doing it either with you on your side or without setting the stirrups as far apart as is standard.

Have SPD with two babies - DS was delivered by forceps with legs wide apart in stirrups (due to lengthy induced birth rather than the SPD). It left me very VERY sore for about 3 months. MW was aware - and shouted at the doctor who jammed my legs into stirrups - but it all got a bit confused at that point. DD, OTOH, was delivered in water following a much more natural and active labour. I did most of her labour on a birth ball/rocking which helped my hips a lot. I got into the birth pool for the last hour and found it good for helping to support me and allowing me to change positions easily for pushing. DD is 7 weeks now and SPD and PGP have all but disappeared.

I've had SPD since 1 weeks this time (it started 3 weeks before birth last time and had no impact during labour) and have just started seeing osteopaths who've said it shouldn't affect the labour at all.

I'm hoping for a 2nd homebirth and have the same midwife as before who's also been really reassuring but will check out pelvic partnership, anything to not put up with any time after labour in this much agony!

I didn't find it affected my labour (and I was lucky and had an intervention-free delivery without even tearing), but that was partly because as soon as I was in established labour I got into the birth pool and was in there virtually until delivery. I didn't feel a thing from the SPD. I agree with those who say make sure that the midwives know you have it, though.

Also be VERY CAREFUL after the birth and get some physio if you possibly can: DS is 13 months now and I'm still uncomfortable, though not in anything like the kind of pain I was in while I was pregnant. I thought the SPD had gone more or less as soon as I delivered, because I felt so much better straight away, so I did far too much too soon.

I had horrendous SPD with my second pregnancy and I had a really easy labour. My labour lasted roughly three hours and the second stage was less than 3 minutes. My ligaments were so soft that the baby almost fell out.

I had a homebirth with nothing but tens. Many people find water births helpful, but a water birth didn't appeal to me.

I think that seeing an obstetic physo really helped me. She recommended good birthing positions. She also advised me to measure out a ribbon to tie round my legs. If you need an epidural its very easy to have your legs stretched further apart than is safe because you cannot feel what is happening.

Gosh, I had hideous spd with ds and I completely forgot about it ever being an issue. I think once you're in labour, everything else like that pales into insignificance. I've got it again, but much later on in pg, with dd and hope the same applies

Just to add I brought up my SPD with my yoga teacher last night so made me prop my knees up when sat crossed legged etc - she said part of my problem might be that I'm very flexible (there was me thinking that was a good thing) so allowing my legs to stretch beyond what I ought to just because they're capable of it....random but it seems to have helped a little