Anyone had a natural birth in hospital?

[MrsHuxtable]

I'm wondering. I'd like to hear some positive and lovely birth stories. Has anyone on here managed to have a natural and intervention free birth at hospital?
If so, was it hard to get it?

Hi, yes I think you can have a good birth in hospital, I was planning home birth but got ill. Eventually had to be induced for health reasons at which I thought - oh no, this is the start its all gonna go wrong from here...

But no, it was fine, I managed to use all my hypnobirthing practice and I got away with no further intervention after the initial drug to get me started.

I think the three things you need are - luck (if the baby's stuck, it's stuck), confidence that unless something is wrong then you can cope, and a reasonable midwife (I was so lucky, the one doing my delivery was NOT the one who said 'you'll have to have an epidural').

Best of luck x

Just another couple of thoughts:

Have you thought of a homebirth?

and

Out of everyone I know who has had babies (which is quite a lot of women in total), quite a few have had interventions from forceps to induction to c-section and so on, and not one of them has felt that hospital staff forced them to have interventions they didn't want to. In all cases they have understood why the intervention was necessary for their sake or the baby's, even if in some cases in an ideal world they would rather not have had the intervention.

So I hope that it's the case in general (as well as in my anecdotal experience) that very few women feel an intervention is forced on them against their will, and it's not a battle to "get" an intervention-free birth.

Yes, squatting in a corner, lights off, no pain relief (no time, not strictly out of choice!). In midwife-led, home from home centre.

An hour later i was having a spinal in operating theatre though (blood loss, tear) - and v glad I hadn't gone for a homebirth. The best of both worlds

why is pethidine 'unnatural'? I delivered all three vaginally.

DD1 at home virtually without pain relief due to (utterly incompetent) MWs not providing enough gas and air, then to hospital for stitches on 2deg tear with masses of gas and air.
dd2 in hospital with pethidine, gas and air, and no stitches. Best labour of three; 2.5hrs start to finish. great MW. no (other?) intervention
dd3 in same hospital, plethora of MWs mostly unhelpful, then miraculously same MW as for DD2. Pethidine (didn't work well), gas and air - no stitches, no (other) intervention, despite constant monitoring of baby because some worries about position. I didn't have to fight anyone about this.

I really really do not like Ina May - I read her before I had my first, believed it all, and had a horror home birth (i really don't want to expand here, not the place).

After that I decided that I do not have to be anybody's hero, and that I need to know my own body - not the body someone tells me I have. I take paracetamol at the onset of headaches. Labour is painful. Why did I expect that I'd be able to 'breath through the pain' first time 'round??

Hospital or no: best advise - know your own pain threshold, and be realistic about it.

Three natural births, all very fast, with some excitements!

DS - arrived in hospital (through ice and snow), dragged off my clothes and he was born

DD1 - born feet first on the bedroom floor. An undiagnosed breech. Heroic ambulance man (if she's been a boy we would have named him after the guy).

DD2 - born 15 min after reaching hospital, a diagnosed breech this time, bottom first.

Both my dd's were induced as 13 days overdue, but I count them as being more or less " natural" deliveries as after the initial pessary, labour kicked off naturally and went to plan in that both were normal vaginal deliveries with no other intervention, and a little gas and air with DD1. Like some of the above posters I did hypnobirthing, not expecting it to work as I am a born sceptic.. It really did! DD2s birth was particularly good, pessary at 11 am, no real discomfort til 1.30 pm, born at 2.15, home by 6 pm. Hopefully you won't need to be induced, but if it comes to it it can still be a positive experience and essentially natural, even in hospital. Best of luck

I was monitored as they were worried about baby´s heartbeat "dipping".

Had gas & air.

Gave birth on floor on all fours.

Went into hospital after waters broke-got there about 1pm.

Had first pain at about 4.30 & was already 8cms!

No stitches or tears.

Yes - I had a surprised natural birth in hospital with my second DD! I went in fully intending to have an epidural and half though I was going in to hospital too early but was shocked to be told I was 10cm upon arrival. I'd spent the whole time worrying about the labour as had quite a bad time with my first baby but ended up having a natural birth and feeling great. Best of luck to you.

surprised natural birth - the natural birth was a surprise, I mean ... although I was surprised as I expected a repeat of my first labour!

Yes I read ina may as well and had some natal hypnotherapy which was brilliant. Sounds a bit new age but gave me some great tips to focus my mind. I was at home and walking about all day and tried to wait as long as possible to go to hospital. I felt confident when I got to hospital and wanted to do things my way (3rd baby) the midwife was great and really let me get on with it. I was put into the new natural birth room and even though hadn't planned a water birth we filled up the pool got in and with 10 mins had dd. Water birth is brilliant very relaxing and even if you are in loads of pain the water makes a massive difference. Good luck

I have had two natural births, the first one took ten hours, i was only 18 and i was rather idealistic in those days. The second one I just did not have time to worry or even think about pain relief. We got to hospital at 7am and DS2 born 7.39am. They were both wonderful experiences.

I had a waterbirth for my ds in hospital. I delivered him in the water, which is what I wanted. Only had gas and air for pain relief. I was begging for an epidural at one point but was glad I didn't get it, even though it was bloody painful!

What I am noticing in this thread is that many (not all but a lot) of the natural births were a) pretty quick (not that I'm bitter about the 3 days, oh no) b) often a second child.

This was true for me, and was an absolutely amazing experience (in hospital as had meconium in water, planned homebirth).

First time around, in a very long labour, tbh the intervention (episiotomy, ventouse) was utterly the right thing as exhaustion had set in (and standing/squatting simply laughable after three nights of no sleep). My first baby didn't want to come out, she had to be pulled out unlike the second natural birth in which she shot into the world in the most fantastic way!

So, as others have said, I think you can have natural births in hospital if there are the right set of circumstances, but don't beat yourself up if it doesn't work out that way.

I had two very happy "natural" births in a midwife led unit in big city hospital. I had a pethadine jab first time as it did drag on a bit , but they didn't examine me internally at all (fine by me), I was in my own clothes, no attached monitoring, just stethoscope, no cervix checks and it was all dandy. When I wanted to push the midwife told me to trust my body and go for it.

Second time, I managed without the pethadine, just had a few sucks of gas and air they did examine me a few times as I wasn't really progressing and they broke my waters but other than that I got on with it, they offered me advice but allowed me to wander about the hospital munching sandwiches then sitting on the toilet then hanging off the bed - then going for a bit of a walk again - handing me drinks and snacks along the way (on the NHS no less).

Midwife led units are great - my room had a birthing pool and gas and air in the shower, lovely homely decor and most importantly soundproofing and privacy. I couldn't have paid for a better experience. Even when I was on the main delivery ward for a bit when not progressng with DS2 they were respectful and professional and helpful and lovely and I would have been happy to give birth there had a room not come up in the MWLU.

I think a main theme also developing here is knowledge and control over your situation.
Those that understood and researched what their body was going to go through felt more in control of the situation and were perhaps able to calm themselves down and focus more.

In child birth there are so many things that are ultimately out of your control - position, size, presentation, cords around necks etc, that it is well worth researching those factors that you can control such as concentration, focus, not panicking etc.

DC2 was almost natural. Not entirely by choice: I'd have taken any pain relief they'd offered me. My second labour was weird though: my body more or less skipped the second stage, which is usually the window for pain relief like epidurals and birthing pools. I did have G&A available, but I didn't use it. It does nothing for me whatsoever! As I recall, I shouted abuse at it mostly (which I expect DH was secretly relieved about).

DC2 was also 11lb! Her size meant her shoulders got stuck and I needed that lovely manouvre to get her out. Can't remember it's name... probably the Dignity-B-Gone Manouvre or something like that . Hence the 'almost' natural.

Preparation does increase your chances at a natural birth, but a lot does come down to luck too unfortunately. I don't think either of my labours could have been completly natural (despite healthy pregnancies) because, for some bizarre reason (I'm not a big person myself), I make giant babies with big heads and shoulders!

I was monitored for DS2 (VBAC) but had a totally natural drugs-free birth. At about an hour after pushing they said that horrid euphemism "baby's gtting tired now" I.e. His heart beat was dropping. But it just made me push even harder and still didn't even think about even G&A! So yes it can be done- it was bloody painful though!

I had all mine in Germany where they don't do Gas and Air ('We haven't use that for 20 years' is what a Dr told me in a shocked voice about 10 years ago)
DC1 ended up with forceps
DC2 labour only took an hour or so, so there was no time for anything
DC3 was just starting to feel I couldn't manage when they said EMCS and rushed me to theatre then changed their minds and out he came after 2 mins pushing :o
DC4 was huge and twisted round and I had Pethidine and a midwife saying 'you had the others without painrelief it would be a tragedy not to do the same again' didn't quite share her opinion but 10 mins later there was DC4

with the last 2 I did a thing someone had told me she'd learnt from a Persian Dr which is to put your hands on your bump and talk and sing to the baby through the contractions - it sounds a bit daft but it really helped loads - it probably works best if you practice before the birth or else you might feel self concious - I sang Happy Birthday to You over and over again - well it was their birthday:)

"Yes I did. It wasn't exactly hard - it just relied on everything proceeding as it should which is more down to luck than anything else."

Same here. I would advise that you keep an open mind. Don't rule out the idea of intervention if the medical professionals feel that is is absolutely necessary for you and/or your baby's health

i had mine at home but know a few people who had natural hospital births. Both of them had a water birth with their dc1.

Had a lovely, lovely birth experience with DS2 in a busy, city hospital. DS1 was a long labour and ended up with an epidural, one push away from a CSection (DS1 was hefted out with forceps).

By the time I was in established labour with DS2 it was progressing fast so I had a senior MW and lovely student MW with my (plus DH). No time to get TENS on (do not discount it - worked a treat with my long labour with DS1), spot of G&A (intervention? I generally think not) and five conscious pushes from me. Couldn't have asked for better help, and the two MWs remembered all the lovely bits that I forgot to add to my birth plan (which they read and used) - skin to skin directly after birth, lowered the lights at the birth, and asked my DH if he wanted to cut the cord.

It wasn't hard to get as such but there is large element of luck in all this, which I readily acknowledge, it was calm and quiet so there was time to check on such matters.

Good luck, with however it turns out.

I was induced both times, but only with the gel. Both times my waters broke by themselves and from then on I laboured naturally. DD1 I had G&A and an 11hr labour (from waters going), no stitches or tears. DD2 no G&A, 45 minute labour and no stitches or tears- and she weighed 10.6.

IME it IS possible to have an intervention free induced labour. I would do it all again tomorrow.

I've spoken to a lot of women about their birth experiences, many of whom did not have a totally natural birth.

Not one has ever suggested the interventions carried out in hospital were anything other than vital, necessary, a blessed relief and, in one case, life-saving.

I think it's worth saying that none of them felt their baby was delivered by forceps/ventouse/c-section because they hadn't read enough hypnobirthing manuals.

It's called NATURE. It doesn't care how many books you've read, how many candles you've lit, how many NCT courses you've attended or how much clary sage you've sniffed. Some women are lucky. Some are unlucky.

I had a very positive birth experience in hospital. I was in a midwife led unit and was in a birthing pool for most of it although actually gave birth out of the pool. I just had gas and air. They did want to do an episiotomy, but didnt inn the end as I asked them not to.

I had a natural birth mainly because the very persuasive midwifes on the phone kept persuading me to stay at home (for 2 loooong days) they when I finally went to hospital there wasn't room in the birthing centre so I was gently ignored on a labour ward for 4 hours. I thought if they weren't fussing it meant I wasn't in as much pain as I felt. When I finally got a room DS arrived 30 mins later with some lovely gas and air. However, IF I had struggled to come I would have happily had more pain relief, it's good to aim for a natural birth and do everything possible (active, music, water, TENS, positive thinkings) but don't be too disappointed if it doesn't work out like that.